Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Feb 23;6(4):111-126.
doi: 10.26828/cannabis/2023/000190. eCollection 2024.

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Problematic Cannabis Use: The Role of Emotion Dysregulation and Affective Impulsivity

Jenna L Vieira  1 , Lindsey A Snaychuk  1 , Jana Milicevic  1 , David C Hodgins  2 , N Will Shead  3 , Matthew T Keough  4 , Hyoun S Kim  1   5
Affiliations

Adverse Childhood Experiences and Problematic Cannabis Use: The Role of Emotion Dysregulation and Affective Impulsivity

Jenna L Vieira et al. Cannabis. .

Abstract

Problematic cannabis use is highly prevalent among postsecondary students. Consequently, there is a need to examine risk factors associated with problematic cannabis use in this population. The present study investigated whether emotion dysregulation mediates the relationship between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and problematic cannabis use, and whether affective impulsivity (negative and positive urgency) uniquely moderates this relationship. Participants consisted of current cannabis users (N = 586) recruited from five universities across Canada. Participants completed an online survey containing self-report measures of ACEs, emotion dysregulation, negative and positive urgency, and problematic cannabis use. Among the sample of postsecondary students, 36% (n = 213) met the threshold for problematic cannabis use. Moderated-mediation analyses revealed that ACEs were positively associated with emotion dysregulation and problematic cannabis use. There was also a significant indirect effect of emotion dysregulation on the association between ACEs and problematic cannabis use at moderate and high (but not low) levels of negative urgency, and at moderate and high (but not low) levels of positive urgency. The moderated-mediation models remained significant when controlling for other facets of impulsivity. Results suggest that elevated levels of emotion dysregulation and urgency are important proximal risk factors for problematic cannabis use among postsecondary students with a history of ACEs. While ACEs cannot be modified given their occurrence in the past, interventions that aim to build mindfulness and adaptive emotion regulation skills may be beneficial for reducing the likelihood that these students will engage in impulsive behaviors, such as cannabis use, when experiencing emotional distress.

Keywords: adverse childhood experiences; affective impulsivity; emotion dysregulation; postsecondary students; problematic cannabis use.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Moderated-mediation model testing the relationship between adverse childhood experiences, emotion dysregulation, negative urgency, problematic cannabis use.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Moderated-mediation model testing the relationship between adverse childhood experiences, emotion dysregulation, positive urgency, problematic cannabis use.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Arterberry, B. J., Boyd, C. J., West, B. T., Schepis, T. S., & McCabe, S. E. (2020). DSM-5 substance use disorders among college-age young adults in the United States: Prevalence, remission and treatment. Journal of American College Health, 68(6), 650–657. 10.1080/07448481.2019.1590368 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Benzerouk, F., Djerada, Z., Naassila, M., Barrière, S., Kaladjian, A., & Gierski, F. (2022). Role of impulsivity and emotion dysregulation dimensions on core characteristics of binge drinking among university students. Psychologica Belgica, 62(1), 286–296. 10.5334/pb.1167 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Birkley, E. L., & Smith, G. T. (2011). Recent advances in understanding the personality underpinnings of impulsive behavior and their role in risk for addictive behaviors. Current Drug Abuse Reviews, 4(4), 215–227. 10.2174/1874473711104040215 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Boullier, M., & Blair, M. (2018). Adverse childhood experiences. Paediatrics and Child Health, 28(3), 132–137. 10.1016/j.paed.2017.12.008 - DOI
    1. Cadigan, J. M., Duckworth, J. C., Parker, M. E., & Lee, C. M. (2019). Influence of developmental social role transitions on young adult substance use. Current Opinion in Psychology, 30, 87–91. 10.1016/j.copsyc.2019.03.006 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources