Negative marijuana‐related consequences among college students in five countries: measurement invariance of the Brief Marijuana Consequences Questionnaire

Abstract

Background and aims The 21‐item Brief Marijuana Consequences Questionnaire (B‐MACQ) has been shown to be a valid measure to assess negative marijuana‐related consequences among US college students. The present study aimed to: (a) examine measurement invariance of the B‐MACQ among college student marijuana users in five countries, (b) evaluate latent mean differences on the B‐MACQ as a function of sex and country if invariance is met and (c) compare criterion‐related validity across different countries and sex. Design Instrumental study. Setting Argentina, the Netherlands, Spain, Uruguay and United States. Participants A subsample of last‐month marijuana users who completed the B‐MACQ (n = 1145; 62.9% female). Measurements The B‐MACQ, several dimensions of marijuana use and perceptions of marijuana use. Findings Results supported configural and scalar invariance (all ΔCFI/TLI ≤ 0.01; ΔRMSEA ≤ 0.015) of a 20‐item B‐MACQ across sex and four countries (the Netherlands being the exception). In examining latent mean differences, Spanish students reported a higher number of consequences than US (P < 0.001) and Argentinian students (P = 0.003). In examining criterion‐related validity, marijuana use indicators (0.01 < rs < 0.64), descriptive norms (0.04 < rs < 0.49) and injunctive norms for best friend (0.06 < rs < 0.28) largely had small‐to‐moderate positive correlations with negative marijuana‐related consequences. Conclusions The 20‐item B‐MACQ accurately assesses marijuana‐related negative consequences among male and female college student marijuana users across the United States, Argentina, Spain and Uruguay. The B‐MACQ could be used effectively to identify marijuana‐related consequences in college students from different countries or cultures.

Cross-cultural examination of the Big Five Personality Trait Short Questionnaire: Measurement invariance testing and associations with mental health

“…The total score reflects all the consequences that individuals experienced in the last 30 days. Previous research supports the test-retest reliability, as well as the discriminant and convergent validity, of the B-MACQ [34], and has also measured invariance and criterion validity across cultures and languages [i.e., 27]. The Cronbach’s alpha of the scale in the current total sample was .87, and by country were: .89 US, .81 Argentina and .86 Spain.…”

“…College students from one university in Spain, one university in Argentina, and two universities in the USA completed an online survey on personality traits, personal mental health and marijuana use behaviors [for more information see 27]. Although 2192 college students completed the BFPTSQ, only those cases with less than 5% of missing values were retained.…”

Cross-cultural examination of college marijuana culture in five countries: Measurement invariance of the Perceived Importance of Marijuana to the College Experience Scale

“…Further, the B-MACQ has been shown to be weakly correlated with alcohol use, moderately correlated with alcohol consequences and indicators of marijuana use, and strongly correlated with another measure of marijuana-related consequences (Simons et al, 2012). We have found the MACQ to be scalar invariant across sex and countries using the present sample (Bravo et al, 2019).…”

“…Participants were college students recruited from eight universities across five countries (U.S., Spain, Argentina, Uruguay, and the Netherlands) to participate in a longitudinal online survey study examining antecedents to marijuana outcomes crossculturally (Bravo et al, 2019). Among many cultural differences, these countries also have a wide range of distinct laws and regulations pertaining to marijuana.…”

“…Participants were recruited for the baseline survey between September 2017 and January 2018. Although 3,482 students were recruited across sites at baseline, only baseline data from students that completed the PIMCES (n=3,424; 68.0% female) were included in the present analyses (U.S., n=1,916; 67.3% female; Argentina, n=375; 66.7% female, Uruguay, n=97; 78.4% female; Spain, n=736; 66.7% female; Netherlands, n=300; 73.9% female; for demographics, see Bravo et al, 2019). Study procedures were approved by the institutional review boards (or their international equivalent) at the participating universities.…”