Ready, willing, and able: the role of cannabis use opportunities in understanding adolescent cannabis use

Abstract

Approaches accounting for realistic use opportunities proved critical in our understanding of underage cannabis use, both at the national and individual level, and may be informative for development of prevention strategies in the era of cannabis liberalization. In addition, delineation of realistic opportunities from behaviours conditioned upon such opportunities is generalizable to a range of public health issues.

Consideration of use opportunities, novel products, and user modes in cannabis monitoring, research, and policy: a response to the commentary

“…In his commentary, Fink extends our argument on the importance of use opportunities [1]-a basic physical requirement for actual use [2][3][4][5][6][7][8]-in examining cannabis use phenomena. We very much agree that 'specific questions about cannabis use opportunities are needed to clarify the mechanisms that… link MMLs [medical marijuana laws] and RMLs [recreational marijuana laws] to population changes in cannabis use' [1].…”

“…Kypri provides a thoughtful commentary [1] on our study, a randomized trial of a violence prevention programme in pubs and bars [2], yet raises issues that warrant clarification. First, he suggests that environmental health practitioners (EHPs), those who delivered the intervention, 'did not implement follow-up audits as they were supposed to'.…”

“…Knowing how many individuals (and youth, in particular) experience use opportunities would provide a basic epidemiological gauge of the actual at-risk population and the more informative use rates [2]. Further, traditional examination of cannabis use through the enumeration of pot smokers does not capture the new realities of emerging cannabis markets and use cultures.…”

Commentary on Burdzovic Andreas & Bretteville‐Jensen (2017): Cannabis use opportunities—an under‐researched factor in substance use epidemiology

“…In this issue of Addiction , Burdzovic Andreas et al . aimed to investigate the role of cannabis use opportunities in understanding adolescent cannabis use in a nationally representative sample of Norwegian adolescents . In this study, a realistic cannabis use opportunity was defined by a participant endorsing either (1) ever using cannabis in their life‐time or (2) ever having the possibly to try cannabis without actually doing so.…”

Erratum

“…In the article published in the November 2017 issue of Addiction , there was an error in Table of page 1976.…”