Racial differences in the associations among daily affect, stress, and cannabis use across weekends and weekdays

Psychol Addict Behav. 2026 Nov 9. doi: 10.1037/adb0001194. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Prior literature on affect, stress, and cannabis use (CU) has shown mixed results and has not examined racial differences in associations. The present study extends prior literature by examining within- and between-person associations of stress and positive and negative affect on CU and if these associations differed for Black and White young adults.

METHOD: One hundred sixty-three young adults (ages 21-30; 41% self-identifying as Black/African American; 69% assigned female at birth; required to drink alcohol at least weekly) completed a 17-day ecological momentary assessment protocol (four daily prompts and drinking-contingent self-initiated surveys) as part of a larger study examining acute alcohol response.

RESULTS: Multilevel models showed that increased positive affect on a given day was related to next-day likelihood of CU more strongly for Black compared with White young adults. Likewise, Black individuals, compared with White individuals, displayed an increased likelihood of CU during weekends if they experienced elevated stress during the prior day. Both sets of results were robust across all sensitivity analyses (examining effects in participants who used cannabis during the 17-day ecological momentary assessment only, in nondrinking days only, and when accounting for prior-day CU).

CONCLUSIONS: Results demonstrate the importance of considering positive affect in addition to negative affect and stress and consideration for alcohol use. Importantly, prior-day positive affect and weekend stress may be more likely to relate to next-day CU among Black young adults, which can inform culturally informed just-in-time treatments. Future research including CU motives is needed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

PMID:43002504 | DOI:10.1037/adb0001194