Date of Award

2025

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology

Specialization

Clinical Psychology

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Nicole H. Weiss

Abstract

Alcohol and cannabis are among the most frequently used substances in adolescents and are associated with negative consequences. The broaden-and-build theory posits that experiencing happiness allows one to try a wider range of novel activities, which may strengthen one’s personal resources. Behavioral theories of choice suggest that activity engagement is associated with less substance use. Thus, happiness and activity engagement may be associated with decreased alcohol and cannabis use and related consequences. Yet longitudinal research on the associations between positive psychological constructs and alcohol and cannabis outcomes in adolescents is limited. Secondary data for this study came from a larger longitudinal study that has collected data across 10 high schools throughout the Los Angeles metropolitan area since 2013 and is ongoing. We analyzed secondary data in a sample of adolescents (n = 3,396) using structural equation modeling with cross-domain latent growth curve models from 2013 (wave 1) to 2017 (wave 8). A decrease in happiness over time was associated with an increase in alcohol use frequency (b = -0.26, SE = 0.09, p = .006) over time. An increase in activity engagement over time was associated with an increase in alcohol use frequency (b = 0.05, SE = 0.01, p < .001), cannabis smoking frequency (b = 0.03, SE = 0.02, p = .036), and cannabis food or drink frequency (b = 0.04, SE = 0.02, p = .028) over time. There were no significant associations of the slopes of happiness or activity engagement with the slopes of binge drinking, alcohol-related consequences, cannabis vaping, or cannabis-related consequences. These findings suggest that happiness may be protective against alcohol use frequency while activity engagement could serve as a risk factor for frequency of alcohol use, cannabis smoking, and cannabis food or drink. Future research should investigate happiness as a protective factor against alcohol use frequency and determine whether activity engagement functions as an alternative or complementary reinforcer for alcohol and cannabis use, as well as whether unsupervised or unstructured activities are more likely to confer risk for alcohol and cannabis use in adolescents.

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