Research & Resources

Researchers conducted individual interviews among 36 young adults (23 women, 12 men, and 1 trans man) who engage in simultaneous alcohol and cannabis use to understand simultaneous use and its consequences. Interviews included open-ended questions examining negative and positive consequences of simultaneous use and how simultaneous use differs from alcohol-only use and cannabis-only use. Young adults reported negative and positive consequences of simultaneous use, many consequences overlapping with those of single substance use. Yet, they also reported unique combinations of positive consequences not experienced by single substance use. Young adults discussed patterns of use that were sometimes approached intentionally (e.g., quantity and order of substances used) that influenced consequences. These findings provided further insight into young adults’ simultaneous use experiences. Researchers suggest that next steps include quantitative exploratory research to identify and determine the frequency of specific consequences experienced during simultaneous use and examine the relationship between simultaneous use consequences and particular patterns of use.

This paper, “A qualitative examination of positive and negative consequences young adults experience from simultaneous alcohol and cannabis use,” was funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) and published in the journal Psychology of addictive behaviors.