The Relationships between Behavioral and Sociocultural Constructs and Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS) and Cannabis Patterns in Hispanic Young Adult University Students

The proliferation of both electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) and cannabis has contributed to a concerning trend of dual usage, posing a greater public health risk, particularly pronounced among at-risk populations of increased substance use, such as Hispanic young adult college students. This study utilized the socioecological framework and social cognitive theory to observe behavioral and sociocultural constructs associated with dual use and identify potential risk and protective factors. Four hundred and twenty-one Hispanic young adult university students completed a cross-sectional survey assessing sociodemographics, depression, anxiety, stress, familism, acculturation, self-efficacy, and past month dual use and dual use recency of ENDS and cannabis. Four ordinal regression models were conducted to assess the relationships between the independent variables and dependent variables (past month dual use, dual use recency) while controlling for sex and age. Moderated linear regressions were conducted to test if the moderator variable (self-efficacy) impacts significant relationships via Model 1 in the PROCESS Macro (version 4.2). None of the ordinal regression models were statistically significant, though age was positively associated with dual use recency. After none of the hypotheses were supported, exploratory analyses were conducted to observe cumulative past month dual use among individuals who had used both substances. Two negative binomial models were conducted to assess both behavioral and sociocultural models associated with cumulative dual use. The negative binomial behavioral model predicting cumulative dual use frequency yielded several predictors, and two statistically significant moderated models were noted between self-efficacy and anxiety and subjugation of self for family. Study hypotheses were not supported. In exploratory analyses, self-efficacy moderated the relationships between cumulative dual use and anxiety and subjugation of self for family in nuanced ways. Study findings implicate self-efficacy in addressing substance use. Clinical implications of study findings and directions for future research are discussed.