Pot at the End of the Rainbow: Cannabis Use Among Sexual Minorities
Publication: Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research
Volume 8, Issue Number 5
Abstract
Introduction: Gay, lesbian, and bisexual individuals (i.e., sexual minorities) use cannabis more frequently than heterosexuals; however, little research has directly compared sexual minorities' patterns of cannabis use (e.g., quantity, age of onset, forms of cannabis used) with heterosexuals. Some research has identified motivations for cannabis use in sexual minorities, but much of this research has been qualitative and/or narrow in scope (e.g., focused on sexual motivations). To the best of our knowledge, no previous research has used a validated measure to examine motives for cannabis use among sexual minorities. Additionally, cannabis use is known to be associated with mental health symptoms, but little research has examined relationships between cannabis use and mental health in this population.
Materials and Methods: Data analyses were performed on archival survey data collected from 10 undergraduate psychology subject pools across the United States (N=4,669) as a part of Project ART (Addictions Research Team). Participants indicated their sexual orientation using a 5-point scale, and responses were used to classify participants into three groups: the majority of the sample (n=3,483) were classified into the heterosexual group, about one quarter were classified into the bisexual group (n=1,081), and a small number were classified into the gay group (n=105).
Results: The bisexual group was more likely to report using cannabis. They also reported using cannabis more frequently, were more likely to report use of all product types (i.e., flower, concentrates, and edibles), and reported more severe symptoms of cannabis use disorder (CUD) than the heterosexual group. The bisexual group also reported higher levels of coping and enhancement motives for using cannabis and reported higher levels of all measured mental health symptoms (e.g., depression, suicidality, generalized anxiety, and social anxiety) compared with the heterosexual group.
Conclusions: Increased frequency of cannabis use, use of a broad range of different products, and use of cannabis to cope with mental health concerns may be placing bisexual individuals at greater risk of CUD. Findings from this study can be used to guide future research and help target mental health interventions among bisexual individuals.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
1. Branstrom R, Pachankis, JE. Sexual orientation disparities in the co-occurrence of substance use and psychological distress: A national population-based study (2008–2015). Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol 2018;53:403–412;
2. Philbin MM, Mauro PM, Greene ER, et al. State-level marijuana policies and marijuana use and marijuana disorder among a nationally representative sample of adults in the United States, 2015–2017: Sexual identity and gender matter. Drug Alcohol Depend 2019;204:1–7;
3. Robinson M, Sanches M, MacLeod MA. Prevalence and mental health correlates of illegal cannabis use among bisexual women. J Bisexuality 2016;16(2):181–202;
4. Schuler MS, Rice CE, Evans-Polce RJ, et al. Disparities in substance use behaviors and disorders among adult sexual minorities by age, gender, and sexual identity. Drug Alcohol Depend 2018;189:139–146;
5. Kerr D, Ding K, Burke A, et al. An alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use comparison of lesbian, bisexual, and heterosexual undergraduate women. Subst Use Misuse 2015;50:340–349;
6. Liautaud MM, Barrington-Trimis JL, Liu F, et al. E-cigarette, cigarette, and cannabis use patterns as a function of sexual identity in a sample of Southern California young adults. Addict Behav Rep 2021;13:1–7;
7. Parnes JE, Rahm-Knigge RL, Conner BT. The curvilinear effects of sexual orientation on young adult substance use. Addict Behav 2017;66:108–113;
8. Veliz P, Epstein-Ngo Q, Zdroik J, et al. Substance use among sexual minority collegiate athletes: A national study. Subst Use Misuse 2016;51(4):517–532;
9. Cochran SD, Ackerman D, Mays VM, et al. Prevalence of non-medical drug use and dependence among homosexually active men and women in the US population. Addiction 2004;99:989–998;
10. Mullens AB, Young RM, Dunne M, et al. The Cannabis Expectancy Questionnaire for Men who have Sex with Men (CEQ-MSM): A measure of substance-related beliefs. Addict Behav 2010;35:616–619;
11. Parent N, Ferlatte O, Milloy M, et al. The sexualized use of cannabis among young sexual minority men: “I'm actually enjoying this for the first time.” Cult Health Sex 2021;23(7):883–898;
12. Chou FY, Armstrong HL, Want L, et al. A longitudinal analysis of cannabis use and mental health symptoms among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men in Vancouver, Canada. J Affect Disord 2019;247:125–133;
13. Parent N, Coulaud P, Amirie M, et al. Cannabis use and mental health among young sexual and gender minority men: A qualitative study. Int J Drug Policy 2021;91:1–9;
14. Robinson M. The role of anxiety in bisexual women's use of cannabis in Canada. Psychol Sex Orientat Gend Divers 2015;2(2):138–151;
15. Simons J, Correia CJ, Carey KB, et al. Validating a five-factor Marijuana Motives Measure: Relations with use, problems, and alcohol motives. J Couns Psychol 1998;45(3):265–273;
16. Colder CR, Lee YH, Frndak S, et al. Internalizing symptoms and cannabis and alcohol use: Between- and within-person risk pathways with coping motives. J Consult Clin Psychol 2019;87(7):629–644;
17. Spradlin A, Cuttler C. Problems associated with using cannabis to cope with stress. Cannabis 2019;2(1):29–38;
18. Meyer IH. Prejudice, social stress, and mental health in lesbian, gay, and bisexual populations: Conceptual issues and research evidence. Psychol Bull 2003;129(5):674–697;
19. Bravo AJ, Villarosa-Hurlocker MC, Pearson MR. College student mental health: An evaluation of the DSM-5 self-rated level 1 cross-cutting symptom measure. Psychol Assess 2018;30(10):1382–1389;
20. Graham JW, Taylor BJ, Olchowski AE, et al. Planned missing data designs in psychological research. Psychol Methods 2006;11:323–343;
21. Cuttler C, Spradlin A. Measuring cannabis consumption: Psychometric properties of the Daily Sessions, Frequency, Age of Onset, and Quantity of Cannabis Use Inventory (DFAQ-CU). PLoS One 2017;12(5):1–14;
22. Adamson SJ, Kay-Lambkin FJ, Baker AL, et al. An improved brief measure of cannabis misuse: The Cannabis Use Disorders Identification Test-Revised (CUDIT-R). Drug Alcohol Depend 2010;110:137–143;
23. Narrow WE, Clarke DE, Kuramoto SJ, et al. DSM-5 field trials in the United States and Canada, Part III: Development and reliability testing of a cross-cutting symptom assessment for DSM-5. Am J Psychiatry 2013;170(1):71–82;
24. Mattick RP, Clarke JC. Development and validation of measures of social phobia scrutiny fear and social interaction anxiety. Behav Res Ther 1998;36:455–470;
25. Tabachnick BG, Fidell LS. Using Multivariate Statistics (6th ed.). Pearson: Boston, MA; 2013.
26. Bidwell LC, Martin-Willett R, Karoly HC. Advancing the science on cannabis concentrates and behavioural health. Drug Alcohol Rev 2021;40:900–913;
27. Benschop A, Liebregts N, van der Pol P, et al. Reliability and validity of the Marijuana Motives Measure among young adult frequent cannabis users and associations with cannabis dependence. Addict Behav 2015;40:91–95;
28. Cuttler C, Spradlin A, McLaughlin RJ. A naturalistic examination of the perceived effects of cannabis on negative affect. J Affect Disord 2018;235:198–205;
29. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). 2018–2019 NSDUH State-Specific Tables. Available from: https://www.samhsa.gov/data/report/2018-2019-nsduh-state-specific-tables [Last accessed: August 4, 2022].
Cite this article as: Schofield K, Cuttler C, Conner BT, Prince MA; Addictions Research Team (ART) (2023) Pot at the end of the rainbow: cannabis use among sexual minorities, Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research 8:5, 942–948, DOI: 10.1089/can.2022.0240.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research
Volume 8 • Issue Number 5 • October 2023
Pages: 942 - 948
PubMed: 36595520
Copyright
Copyright 2023, Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.
History
Published online: 9 October 2023
Published in print: October 2023
Published ahead of print: 3 January 2023
Topics
Authors
Authors' Contributions
K.S. helped conceive of the ideas, conducted the statistical analyses, and wrote the article. C.C. helped design the study and conceive of the ideas, contributed to data collection and statistical analyses, and assisted with writing and editing. B.T.C. and M.A.P. helped design the study, contributed to data collection, and edited the article. ART established the measures and collected the data.
Author Disclosure Statement
The authors have no conflicts of interest.
Funding Information
No funding was received for this article.
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Export Citation
Export citation
Select the format you want to export the citations of this publication.
View Options
Access content
To read the fulltext, please use one of the options below to sign in or purchase access.⚠ Society Access
If you are a member of a society that has access to this content please log in via your society website and then return to this publication.