Financial strain among adult African American/Black cannabis users

• Published in: Journal of ethnicity in substance abuse 2024-05, Vol.23 (2), p.365-377
• Main Authors: Zvolensky, Michael J., Kauffman, Brooke Y., Garey, Lorra, Buckner, Julia D., Businelle, Michael S., Reitzel, Lorraine R.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Adults; African American; African Americans; Black or African American; Black people; Cannabis; cannabis use problems; Drug abuse; Economic stress; Ethnic groups; Female; Financial planning; financial strain; Financial Stress - ethnology; Health disparities; Humans; Male; Marijuana; Marijuana Abuse - economics; Marijuana Abuse - ethnology; Marijuana Use - ethnology; Mental depression; Middle Aged; Minority & ethnic groups; Minority groups; Psychoeducational treatment; Racial differences; Sex education; Social Determinants of Health - ethnology; Social factors; United States; Young Adult
• ISSN: 1533-2640; 1533-2659; 1533-2659
• DOI: 10.1080/15332640.2022.2092924

African American/Black persons belong to the second largest racial/ethnic minority group in the United States. This group evinces significant disparities related to cannabis use problems. Social determinants of health may be potentially relevant to better understand cannabis use problems among African American/Black adults. As such, the current study sought to provide an initial test of the role of financial strain, a prominent social determinant of health, in cannabis use problems and perceived barriers for cannabis cessation among African American/Black adults. Participants were 76 (32.9% female, M age = 38.64, SD = 10.82) African American/Black adult, current cannabis users. Hierarchical regression results indicated that greater financial strain was associated with more cannabis use problems and greater perceived barriers for cannabis cessation; such effects were evident above and beyond the variance explained by a range of relevant covariates, including age, sex, income, education, and depressive symptoms. These findings suggest addressing financial strain (e.g., financial planning, psychoeducation about the handling financial stress) may be a useful therapeutic tactic in the larger landscape of treatment programming when targeting cannabis use behaviors and beliefs among African American/Black adult cannabis users.