Association of State & Trait Anxiety and Self-Perceived Stress as Predictors for Marijuana Use

Introduction: Marijuana is the most used illicit drug in the world (Mccormick). Perceptions towards the harmfulness of marijuana use have decreased in America over the last 20 years (CITE ME). This study will examine the association between state and trait anxiety and perceived stress association for using marijuana. Methods: This study utilized previously collected data at a mid-sized university in southern California. State Trait Anxiety Inventory Form- Y and the Perceived Stress Scale-14 were used to assess the anxiety and stress levels of the participants. Both a chi squared and anova tests were run to compare means of different data types. A binary logistic regression analyses revealed the significant predictors in marijuana use. Results: Our participant data (n=205) was comprised of (67.6 % females, n=138). The participants appeared to be in good health (Normal BMI was reported in 58 %) of the sample and 46.8 % of the participants reported having smoked at least one cigarette in their lifetime. Furthermore, state anxiety was the only reported psychometric scale indicating a significant association with using marijuana (p.05). A logistic regression test indicates four significant predictors of marijuana use; Age (p.05), Gender (p.01), cigarette use (p.001) and state anxiety (p.05). Discussion: The results indicate that trait anxiety and perceived stress are not significant predictors of marijuana use. These findings are unique, many studies report finding either perceived stress or trait anxiety to be significantly associated with marijuana use. Future longitudinal research is necessary to determine whether people with increased state anxiety use marijuana prior or after these increased feeling of anxiousness.