How cannabis consumption relates to negative affect and expectancies: A cross-sectional survey of an international Spanish-speaking sample

How cannabis consumption relates to negative affect and expectancies: A cross-sectional survey of an international Spanish-speaking sample | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article How cannabis consumption relates to negative affect and expectancies: A cross-sectional survey of an international Spanish-speaking sample Luiza Rosa, Jonathon K. Lisano, Renée Martin-Willett, L. Cinnamon Bidwell This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-6075879/v2 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 2 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Show more versions Abstract Research suggests that those who use cannabis often hold more positive expectancies about its effects than those who do not use. Cannabis use is associated with negative affect, but how symptoms influence the link between expectancies and frequency is less understood. This study examined differences in expectancies and negative affect by cannabis use, residence, and gender, and tested whether negative affect moderates the relationship between expectancy and use among Spanish speakers, providing data from an understudied population. Native Spanish-speaking participants (N=421; M age = 30) were recruited nationally (U.S.) and internationally (Europe and the Americas). Of the sample, 49.4% were women, 53.2% U.S. residents, and 47.7% use cannabis regularly. Self-report questionnaires assessed past-week negative affect, cannabis expectancies, and frequency of use. Regular cannabis use was associated with higher positive and lower negative expectancies. Positive expectancies predicted increased use, and negative expectancies predicted decreased use. A significant interaction between positive expectancies and negative affect indicated that negative affect amplified the association between positive expectancy and use. Findings highlight the need to address beliefs and negative affect when examining cannabis use across populations. Psychology Cannabis Use Negative Affect International Expectancies Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4 Full Text Additional Declarations The authors declare no competing interests. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 2 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Show more versions Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-6075879","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":437511888,"identity":"385072f7-50f4-47f9-8e59-7c8e9dbc76e4","order_by":0,"name":"Luiza Rosa","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA5ElEQVRIiWNgGAWjYBACPhAhUfGvnp+BgfEAkM3YABLAp4UNRFicOZAgCVRKgpbKtgMJBgeI1iKR+/DBjTN38oyPHz5w4OMeO9l+BuaDt3nwakk3NpxR8azY7ExawsEZz5KNZzawJVvj15LGJi1xhplx2w0eg8M8B5gTNxzgMZMmqOVvGzPj5hlgLfVALfzfCGqRkGw7nLhBAqzlMMgWNvxaeJ4xG0icSTOWAPvlwHHjmc1sxpZz8GjhZ09jfCBRYSPH33744IMPB6pl+9mbH954g0cLFsBMmvJRMApGwSgYBVgAAE28Tv+s1N0HAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0009-0006-6479-9300","institution":"University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, U.S.A.","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Luiza","middleName":"","lastName":"Rosa","suffix":""},{"id":437511889,"identity":"5fb795ee-8e34-4470-8cf4-926d838183a5","order_by":1,"name":"Jonathon K. Lisano","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, U.S.A.","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Jonathon","middleName":"K.","lastName":"Lisano","suffix":""},{"id":437511890,"identity":"f95c9556-c585-4dcc-9107-59017e887a67","order_by":2,"name":"Renée Martin-Willett","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, U.S.A./ University of Stirling, Stirling, Scottland","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Renée","middleName":"","lastName":"Martin-Willett","suffix":""},{"id":437511891,"identity":"23ba1af2-400c-4523-a4e0-c8b012a100b0","order_by":3,"name":"L. Cinnamon Bidwell","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"L.","middleName":"Cinnamon","lastName":"Bidwell","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-02-21 04:01:36","currentVersionCode":2,"declarations":{"humanSubjects":true,"vertebrateSubjects":false,"conflictsOfInterestStatement":false,"humanSubjectEthicalGuidelines":true,"humanSubjectConsent":true,"humanSubjectClinicalTrial":false,"humanSubjectCaseReport":false,"vertebrateSubjectEthicalGuidelines":false},"doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6075879/v2","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6075879/v2","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":103504457,"identity":"1f548cf8-335f-4555-bbbd-60d2b8faecb8","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-02-26 13:20:04","extension":"png","order_by":1,"title":"Figure 1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":133303,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eParticipant CONSORT and countries of residence of international participants.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"1.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6075879/v2/8e468075174eb78f96f0a4fe.png"},{"id":103097649,"identity":"b1867d1c-8314-4207-a251-de750868973b","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-02-20 18:52:24","extension":"png","order_by":2,"title":"Figure 2","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":55197,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eMarijuana expectancy effects and affect by cannabis use status and gender\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eNote. Data are the mean ± SE for the Brief Marijuana Effect Expectancies Questionnaire Positive (MEEQ-Bp) and Negative (MEEQ-Bn) subscales and negative affect. A. Score comparisons for MEEQ-Bp, MEEQ-Bn, and negative affect between cannabis use and non-use groups. B. Score comparisons for MEEQ-Bp, MEEQ-Bn, and negative affect based on gender. C. Scores for MEEQ-Bp, MEEQ-Bn, and negative affect based on residency. *p\u0026lt;0.05. \u003c/em\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA. \u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/em\u003e\u003cem\u003eThose who use cannabis have more positive and lower negative expectancies than those who don’t; no difference was seen in affect. \u003c/em\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eB. \u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/em\u003e\u003cem\u003eThere were no gender differences in expectancies, but females had more negative affect than males.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"2.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6075879/v2/b83dc37a90487f2420c58403.png"},{"id":103504279,"identity":"aa948647-4f6f-4344-b913-3f32301e1bfc","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-02-26 13:18:55","extension":"png","order_by":3,"title":"Figure 3","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":43060,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eEffects of positive and negative marijuana expectancy effects on frequency of cannabis use.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eNote. Data is limited to participants using cannabis flower at least once per month (N=103). Estimated means ± standard errorSE are plotted. \u003c/em\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/em\u003e\u003cem\u003e. Frequency of cannabis flower use by Brief Marijuana Expectancy Effect Questionnaire-Positive Scores (MEEQ-Bp), the more people consumed cannabis, the more positive expectancies they held about it. \u003c/em\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eB\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/em\u003e\u003cem\u003e. Frequency of cannabis flower use by Brief Marijuana Expectancy Effect Questionnaire-Negative Scores (MEEQ-Bn), the more people consumed cannabis, the less negative expectancies they held about it.\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"3.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6075879/v2/ad9b7c64931886b4722c3030.png"},{"id":103097652,"identity":"9492cd2e-3374-4b64-b152-9d3cc83b0ad0","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-02-20 18:52:24","extension":"png","order_by":4,"title":"Figure 4","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":47461,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eFrequency of cannabis use by positive marijuana expectancy effects and negative affect\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eNote. Data is limited to participants using cannabis flower at least once per month (N=103). Estimated means ± standard error (SE) are plotted. P-values of simple effects are represented by the following: dot-dash p=0.01, dotted p=0.001. Brief Marijuana Expectancy Effect Questionnaire-Positive = MEEQ-Bp. This figure shows a moderation effect, the more people had positive expectancies around cannabis and the more negative affect they experienced in the last 7 days, the more frequently they consumed cannabis\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"4.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6075879/v2/9b7d8e57aecf01787ca7926d.png"},{"id":103509230,"identity":"558c4ea9-8d39-4c87-b44a-65311c8b7e7b","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-02-26 13:57:29","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":485450,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"ROSAExpectanciesPaperCDI.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-6075879/v2_covered_afe419ca-6b55-4815-ada3-f66db9e8baf6.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"The authors declare no competing interests.","formattedTitle":"How cannabis consumption relates to negative affect and expectancies: A cross-sectional survey of an international Spanish-speaking sample","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"University of Colorado Boulder","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Cannabis Use, Negative Affect, International, Expectancies","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6075879/v2","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-6075879/v2","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eResearch suggests that those who use cannabis often hold more positive expectancies about its effects than those who do not use. Cannabis use is associated with negative affect, but how symptoms influence the link between expectancies and frequency is less understood. This study examined differences in expectancies and negative affect by cannabis use, residence, and gender, and tested whether negative affect moderates the relationship between expectancy and use among Spanish speakers, providing data from an understudied population. Native Spanish-speaking participants (N=421; \u003cem\u003eM\u003c/em\u003eage = 30) were recruited nationally (U.S.) and internationally (Europe and the Americas). Of the sample, 49.4% were women, 53.2% U.S. residents, and 47.7% use cannabis regularly. Self-report questionnaires assessed past-week negative affect, cannabis expectancies, and frequency of use. Regular cannabis use was associated with higher positive and lower negative expectancies. Positive expectancies predicted increased use, and negative expectancies predicted decreased use. A significant interaction between positive expectancies and negative affect indicated that negative affect amplified the association between positive expectancy and use. Findings highlight the need to address beliefs and negative affect when examining cannabis use across populations.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"How cannabis consumption relates to negative affect and expectancies: A cross-sectional survey of an international Spanish-speaking sample","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":2,"date":"2026-02-20 18:52:19","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6075879/v2","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}},{"code":1,"date":"2025-04-02 15:00:34","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-6075879/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"7da375ad-8613-47dc-8a6c-9fbe7f2c6735","owner":[],"postedDate":"February 20th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[{"id":46586989,"name":"Psychology"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2025-04-02T15:00:34+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-02-20 18:52:19","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v2","identity":"rs-6075879","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-6075879","identity":"rs-6075879","version":["v2"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}