Turning over a new leaf in Colorado: an exploration of legalized recreational marijuana preferences, leisure interests, and leisure motivations in a sample of young adults

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to explore the cannabis consumption preferences, leisure interests and leisure motivations of cannabis consumers in the context of legalized recreational marijuana in Colorado, USA. Snowball samples were conducted by the distribution of the questionnaire link using the Facebook accounts of four recreational consumers attending university in Colorado to obtain responses from 382 cannabis consumers (mean 21.9 yoa). The questionnaire was composed of consumption preference items and pre-existing measures of the Leisure Interest Measure and Leisure Motivation Scale. Results revealed gender differences in preferences for cultivar and strength of psychoactive effect. The top leisure interest choice of respondents when under the psychoactive effects was social activity/time with friends. Regression testing revealed that stimulus avoidance motivations followed by competence-mastery best predicted preferred psychoactive strength. Competence-mastery motivations best predicted consumption times per week. ANOVA testing revealed that the electronic activity/screen time leisure interest group reported less social motivation and competence-mastery motivation than other leisure interest groups. Considered is that cannabis consumption behaviour may reflect a multi-dimensional leisure experience.

KEYWORDS:

• Recreational marijuana
• leisure motivation
• leisure interests
• cannabis
• cultivars

Acknowledgement

We would like to acknowledge Lyda Ellis-McCartin and Soo Kang for their contributions.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.