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. 2025;16(4):1046-1060.
doi: 10.1007/s12671-025-02544-5. Epub 2025 Feb 28.

Mindfulness Profiles and Substance Use Outcomes in University Students: The Role of Alcohol and Cannabis Use Motives

Folly Folivi  1 , Adrian J Bravo  1 , Matthew R Pearson  2
Affiliations

Mindfulness Profiles and Substance Use Outcomes in University Students: The Role of Alcohol and Cannabis Use Motives

Folly Folivi et al. Mindfulness (N Y). 2025.

Abstract

Objectives: The present study aimed to identify distinct profiles of mindfulness among a sample of university students in the USA who use alcohol and cannabis. Further, we examined whether these mindfulness profiles were indirectly associated with alcohol and cannabis-related outcomes via alcohol and cannabis use motives.

Method: Latent profile analysis (LPA) was used to determine the number of latent classes among 771 US university students (75.7% White, 66.8% female) who consumed alcohol and cannabis in the prior month. Additionally, parallel mediation analyses were conducted to determine whether mindfulness profiles were indirectly associated with alcohol- and cannabis-related outcomes via alcohol and cannabis use motives.

Results: LPA indicated a 4-class solution fit optimally. Further, the high mindfulness group was generally the most adaptive (lower scores) across alcohol and cannabis outcomes, whereas the judgmentally observing group was generally the most maladaptive (higher scores). Indirect effect analyses revealed that compared to the low mindfulness group, the high mindfulness group reported lower scores on alcohol- and cannabis-related outcomes via lower alcohol- and cannabis-related coping motives.

Conclusions: These findings can inform prevention and intervention efforts using mindfulness techniques and interventions among students who engage in problematic alcohol and cannabis use.

Preregistration: This study is not preregistered.

Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12671-025-02544-5.

Keywords: Latent profile analysis; Mindfulness; Substance use; Substance use motives; University students.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of InterestThe authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Depiction of the four latent classes defined by pattern of standardized means on five facets of mindfulness among university students (n = 771)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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