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Principal Investigator: Sabrina Todaro
Organization: UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND
Fiscal Year: 2024
Award: $48,974
Funding agency: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
Project Summary/Abstract
Simultaneous use of alcohol and cannabis, or co-use (i.e., the use of both substances so that effects overlap),
is an increasingly significant public health concern among young adults between the ages of 18 and 25 in the
U.S. Compared to single substance use occasions of alcohol and cannabis, co-use occasions are associated
with greater negative consequences, including driving under the influence and blacking out. Given the steady
increase in the prevalence of co-use among young adults, there is a pressing need to understand factors
related to co-use that could inform intervention efforts in this population. Protective behavioral strategies (PBS;
i.e., tactics used to modify or limit substance use related harm) have been robustly linked to fewer
consequences (e.g., lower use quantity, frequency, and consequences) for alcohol- and cannabis-only
occasions. However, research has not examined PBS in the context of co-use occasions, despite a burgeoning
literature supporting that co-use occasions are associated with greater harms. Consequently, the goal of this
proposal is to examine the extent that alcohol and cannabis PBS are used and associated with alcohol and
cannabis use outcomes on co-use occasions relative to alcohol- and cannabis-only occasions. The proposed
research will conduct secondary data analyses of a NIH-funded project using ecological momentary
assessment (EMA) data collected from 123 college students over four consecutive weekends (Thursday-
Sunday; 16 total days). The proposed research has three specific aims: 1) To assess whether alcohol and
cannabis PBS are used more frequently on alcohol- or cannabis-only occasions relative to co-use occasions;
(2) To determine whether alcohol and cannabis PBS are associated with levels of alcohol use, cannabis use,
and consequences experienced on alcohol- and cannabis-only occasions relative to co-use occasions; and (3)
To identify daily factors (environmental context, social setting) related to alcohol and cannabis PBS on alcohol-
and cannabis-only occasions relative to co-use occasions. Findings from the proposal will inform our
understanding of alcohol and cannabis PBS during co-use occasions, including proximal factors (i.e., social
setting and environment) that impact the use of PBS. In alignment with the NIAAA strategic plan, findings will
help develop and improve strategies to reduce and prevent harms associated with co-use, particularly those
that may be delivered in-the-moment. Additionally, the proposed research would provide the applicant with
training that will inform her developing program of research on the association between co-use and PBS
among young adults through providing content training on alcohol and co-use behaviors among young adults,
ecological research methods, intensive longitudinal data analyses, and professional development activities.
Terms: <Address><Age><Alcohol Chemical Class><Alcohol Drinking><Alcohol consumption><Alcohols><Attention><Basswood><Behavior><Behavioral><Cannabis><Characteristics><Cognitive Disturbance><Cognitive Impairment><Cognitive decline><Cognitive function abnormal><Complex><Data><Data Analyses><Data Analysis><Development><Disturbance in cognition><ETOH level><Ecological momentary assessment><Environment><EtOH drinking><EtOH use><Event><Exhibits><Frequencies><Funding><Goals><Harm Minimization><Harm Reduction><Heavy Drinking><Holidays><Ice><Impaired cognition><Individual><Intervention><Intervention Strategies><Knowledge><Linden><Link><Literature><Measures><Methods><Motivation><NIAAA><NIH><National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism><National Institutes of Health><Outcome><Parents><Persons><Population><Prevalence><Public Health><Reporting><Research><Research Methodology><Research Methods><Risk><Role><SAMHSA><Sports><Strategic Planning><Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration><THC co-use><THC use><Tetrahydrocannabinol co-use><Tetrahydrocannabinol use><Tilia><Time><Training><United States National Institutes of Health><United States Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration><adaptive intervention><adult youth><age group><ages><alcohol ingestion><alcohol intake><alcohol level><alcohol measurement><alcohol product use><alcohol use><alcoholic beverage consumption><alcoholic drink intake><assaulted sexually><cannabis use><cognitive dysfunction><cognitive loss><college student><data interpretation><developmental><drink heavily><drinking><driving under influence><ethanol consumption><ethanol drinking><ethanol ingestion><ethanol intake><ethanol measurement><ethanol product use><ethanol use><ethyl alcohol measurements><excessive alcohol consumption><excessive alcohol ingestion><excessive alcohol intake><excessive drinking><excessive ethanol ingestion><experience><extreme drinking><handheld mobile device><heavy alcohol use><high risk><improved><interventional strategy><marijuana use><methods to study multiple-level influences><mobile device><multi-level analysis><multi-level model><multilevel analysis><multilevel model><multilevel modeling><parent><peer><prevent><preventing><programs><research and methods><secondary analysis><sexual assault><sexual attack><social><social role><substance use><substance using><university student><young adult><young adulthood>