A comprehensive examination of delay discounting in a clinical sample of Cannabis-dependent military veterans making a self-guided quit attempt

Abstract

Delay discounting (DD), an index of impulsivity, reflects individuals' preference for smaller immediate rewards to larger delayed rewards. The current study examined (a) relations between DD and quantity, frequency, and severity of Cannabis use, as well as several other measures of co-occurring substance use and clinical severity, and (b) whether DD predicted Cannabis-cessation outcomes. Cannabis-dependent United States (U.S.) veterans (N = 72; 95% male) who were interested in making serious self-quit attempts were evaluated prior to their cessation attempts, during which they completed a computerized DD task, and were followed throughout six months postattempt. Results indicated that higher DD was significantly correlated with higher compulsive craving for Cannabis (ρ = .29, p < .05), younger age of first Cannabis use (r = -.32, p < .01), earlier commencement of regular Cannabis smoking (r = -.25, p < .05), and seeking professional help for a previous Cannabis quit attempt (ρ = .27, p < .05). DD did not significantly predict any Cannabis-cessation outcomes in the first week postattempt or during the 6-month follow-up. These results add to the literature on DD, which has focused on users of tobacco, alcohol, opioids, and cocaine, by demonstrating that DD is sensitive to developmental trajectories of Cannabis dependence, but does not reliably predict cessation outcomes. Results also suggest that DD may carry less relevance for Cannabis than for other substances of abuse.