A Multi-Method Investigation of Cannabis Messaging: Characterizing Source, Content, and Associations with Cannabis Consumption

随着美国大多数州通过立法，在医疗和/或娱乐方面使大麻合法化， 公众现在对这种药物的看法是压倒性的好感。更多的使用机会和普及率是 伴随着对低健康风险和/或与使用大麻相关的治疗益处的看法。 除了在某些医疗条件下症状缓解的证据外，关于治疗效果的证据 大麻在许多情况下仍然难以捉摸，留下了关于何时和如何使用大麻的决定 给用户。CU的治疗和娱乐原因(动机)很大程度上是通过接触 关于大麻影响的信息，但人们对信息的来源、如何传播知之甚少 对于用户，它如何塑造他们的思维，最终它与CU模式的关联。拟议的研究将 收集有关消息源、推广大麻的内容和风险警告的关键信息 向大麻使用者传播的信息以及收到的信息，它们对CU动机的影响，以及 随后的CU。混合方法设计将包括两个阶段。第一阶段涉及半结构化 与吸食大麻的人以及包括大麻在内的消息来源进行的访谈 药房和零售店的工作人员(店员)，3)种植者，4)讨论大麻的医疗保健提供者 和病人在一起。此外，信息内容的摘录和编码将通过互联网和 社交媒体消息平台。娱乐/医用大麻销售点的观察性编码将是 使用经过验证的监视工具进行。总而言之，这些数据可以描述大麻的特征。 跨各种来源和平台的消息传递内容(目标1)，进而告知阶段2 方法：研究方法。第二阶段包括一项为期三次、为期4周的生态瞬时评估(EMA)研究， 每周抽样调查(N=300)18-74岁吸食大麻的青少年。参与者将完成基于智能手机的简要 衡量接触信息的程度(来源和内容)、大麻动机和在自然环境中的使用模式 环境。有了这些量化数据，这将是第一个检查未来相关性的研究 使用者接触大麻信息与动机和其他认知之间的关系(目标2)。此外，我们还将 测试大麻动机是否是大麻信息和大麻信息之间联系的基础机制 人与人之间和人内两级的协调一致(目标3)。最后，我们将探讨用户特征 和消息来源特征作为大麻消息传递和CU影响的潜在调节因素 (目标4)。这种互补和高度严格的数据收集方法的组合将提供 对正在传播的关于大麻对 吸食大麻。这些发现将为政策制定者和大麻监管科学提供循证证据 关于大麻信息的影响的信息，最终可以减少滥用造成的潜在危害。

With the majority of US states having adopted legislation to medically and/or recreationally legalize cannabis, public perception of the drug is now overwhelmingly favorable. Increased access and prevalence of use are accompanied by perceptions of low health risk and/or of therapeutic benefits associated with cannabis use. Aside from evidence for symptom relief in certain medical conditions, evidence regarding therapeutic effects of cannabis for many conditions remains elusive, leaving the decision regarding when and how to use cannabis to the user. Both therapeutic and recreational reasons (motives) for CU are largely shaped through exposure to messages about the effects of cannabis, yet little is known about the source of messaging, how it is transmitted to users, how it shapes their thinking, and ultimately its association with CU patterns. The proposed study will gather critical information about message sources, cannabis-promoting content, and risk warnings being disseminated to cannabis users as well as the messages being received, their effects on CU motives, and subsequent CU. The mixed-methods design will include two phases. Phase 1 involves semi-structured interviews conducted with 1) cannabis users, as well as with message sources, including 2) cannabis dispensary and retail outlet staff (budtenders), 3) growers, and 4) health care providers who discuss cannabis with patients. Additionally, extraction and coding of messaging content will be conducted across internet and social media messaging platforms. Observational coding of recreational/medical cannabis outlets will be conducted using validated surveillance tools. Together, these data permit characterization of cannabis messaging content across various types of sources and platforms (Aim 1) that will in turn inform Phase 2 methods. Phase 2 consists of a three-burst 4-week ecological momentary assessment (EMA) study with a sample (N=300) of weekly 18-74 year-old cannabis users. Participants will complete brief smartphone-based measures of exposure to messaging (source and content), cannabis motives, and use patterns in the natural environment. With these quantitative data, this will be the first study to examine prospective associations between a user’s exposure to cannabis messaging and motives and other cognitions (Aim 2). Further, we will test whether cannabis motives are a mechanism underlying the association between cannabis messaging and CU at both the between-person and within-person levels (Aim 3). Finally, we will explore user characteristics and message source characteristics as potential moderators of the effects of cannabis messaging and CU (Aim 4). This combination of complementary and highly rigorous data collection approaches will provide the most nuanced understanding of the messages being disseminated about the effects of cannabis to the cannabis user. Findings will arm policy makers and cannabis regulatory science with evidence-based information about the impact of cannabis messaging that can ultimately reduce potential harms from misuse.