Descriptive Norms, Self-Efficacy, and Avoidance of Simultaneous Alcohol–Cannabis Use and Cannabis-Impaired Driving: A Prospective Test of Social Cognitive Theory
Abstract
Simultaneous alcohol and cannabis use (SAC) and driving under the influence of cannabis (DUIC) are prevalent risk behaviors among young adults who use cannabis. Drawing on social cognitive theory, we expected that perceiving peers´ avoidance of these behaviors would strengthen confidence to avoid them. This prospective study examined whether self-efficacy mediated the association between descriptive norms and SAC and DUIC avoidance, and whether these associations differed by sex. From 505 young adults who completed baseline and 3-month follow-up assessments, two samples were drawn: participants who used alcohol and cannabis (n = 382; Mage = 21.03; 39.3% women) and those who used cannabis and drove (n = 167; Mage = 21.70; 31.7% women) at both time points. Controlling for sex, age, university status, and baseline risk behavior, higher descriptive norms and self-efficacy were associated with greater avoidance of both behaviors. Self-efficacy mediated the association between norms and avoidance of both behaviors, and neither the association between norms and self-efficacy nor the indirect association differed significantly by sex. Sex moderated only the association between norms and DUIC avoidance, which was significant among men. Normative feedback interventions highlighting peers´ avoidance could target both perceived norms and self-efficacy, especially for DUIC among men.
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BibTeX
@misc{ponce2026descriptive,
title = {{Descriptive Norms, Self-Efficacy, and Avoidance of Simultaneous Alcohol–Cannabis Use and Cannabis-Impaired Driving: A Prospective Test of Social Cognitive Theory}},
author = {Bella M. González Ponce and Fermín Fernández Calderón and Daniel Dacosta-Sánchez and Judith Muriel Gómez and Angélica Gemio Martín},
howpublished = {PsyArXiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.31234/osf.io/mhqja_v1},
url = {https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/mhqja_v1/},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Descriptive Norms, Self-Efficacy, and Avoidance of Simultaneous Alcohol–Cannabis Use and Cannabis-Impaired Driving: A Prospective Test of Social Cognitive Theory
AU - Bella M. González Ponce
AU - Fermín Fernández Calderón
AU - Daniel Dacosta-Sánchez
AU - Judith Muriel Gómez
AU - Angélica Gemio Martín
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/22
PB - PsyArXiv
DO - 10.31234/osf.io/mhqja_v1
UR - https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/mhqja_v1/
AB - Simultaneous alcohol and cannabis use (SAC) and driving under the influence of cannabis (DUIC) are prevalent risk behaviors among young adults who use cannabis. Drawing on social cognitive theory, we expected that perceiving peers´ avoidance of these behaviors would strengthen confidence to avoid them. This prospective study examined whether self-efficacy mediated the association between descriptive norms and SAC and DUIC avoidance, and whether these associations differed by sex. From 505 young adults who completed baseline and 3-month follow-up assessments, two samples were drawn: participants who used alcohol and cannabis (n = 382; Mage = 21.03; 39.3% women) and those who used cannabis and drove (n = 167; Mage = 21.70; 31.7% women) at both time points. Controlling for sex, age, university status, and baseline risk behavior, higher descriptive norms and self-efficacy were associated with greater avoidance of both behaviors. Self-efficacy mediated the association between norms and avoidance of both behaviors, and neither the association between norms and self-efficacy nor the indirect association differed significantly by sex. Sex moderated only the association between norms and DUIC avoidance, which was significant among men. Normative feedback interventions highlighting peers´ avoidance could target both perceived norms and self-efficacy, especially for DUIC among men.
ER -