Self-Correction of Unreported Marijuana Use by Participants Taking a Street Intercept Survey

Abstract

Background: Due to underreporting, a major challenge associated with drug use surveys is obtaining precise estimates of drug use.Objective: This study examined reliability of self-reported lifetime marijuana use among electronic dance music (EDM) party attendees-a high-risk population for drug use.Methods: 794 adults (35.1% female) entering EDM parties were intercept-surveyed. Participants were asked about lifetime marijuana use early in the survey. Those not reporting use were asked 5-10 minutes later if their earlier response was correct. Participants reporting their original response was not correct were asked to check off a reason why they did not originally report use. Participants were also asked at the end of the survey how honestly they responded throughout the survey. Prevalence of lifetime marijuana use with and without corrected responses was compared and risk factors for underreporting were examined using a Poisson generalized linear model.Results: Among those not reporting marijuana use, 31.2% subsequently reported use when asked again. Prevalence of use increased from 73.7% to 81.9% after correcting responses, an 8.2% absolute increase and a 10.0% relative increase. Reporting lifetime use of ecstasy and/or LSD was associated with lower risk for underreporting marijuana use. Compared to those reporting that they answered all questions honestly, those who reportedly answered most or no questions honestly were also at higher risk for underreporting. Conclusion:Asking participants to confirm previous responses can help detect underreporting of drug use on intercept surveys. Results can inform survey methods when participants are believed to be at risk for underreporting.

Underreporting of Past-Year Cannabis use on a National Survey by People who Smoke Blunts

“…As such, people who have achieved a college degree or higher may simply pay closer attention to survey questions or read them more carefully. Similar correlations between level of educational attainment and discordant reporting of use of other drugs have also been established 10 , 13 , 16 , 39 …”

“…Other studies have also noted that adults in general (ages 30 and over) are more likely to underreport lifetime cannabis use when compared to younger indivduals. 16 Moreover, older adults are more likely to satisfice on surveys, 33 which is defined as respondents investing minimal attention toward survey questions and/or taking shortcuts with the intention of completing the survey sooner. 34 Similarly, our findings demonstrate that female respondents were at significantly greater odds of providing a discordant response with respect to queries on blunt use and cannabis use.…”

Shifts in Drug Use Behavior Among Electronic Dance Music Partygoers in New York During COVID-19 Social Distancing

“…We first examined participant characteristics through frequencies and percentages, and then calculated frequencies and percentages of response options regarding self-reported frequency of use, amount used, and cost and quality of drugs used. We focused on the most prevalent drugs used in this population (Palamar & Le, 2020), which are cannabis, cocaine, ecstasy, and LSD. Finally, using bivariable logistic regression, we determined whether participant characteristics were related to changes in odds of reporting decreased frequency of use of each drug.…”

Frequent teenage cannabis use: Prevalence across adolescence and associations with young adult psychopathology and functional well-being in an urban cohort

“…The high cannabis use rates in the current study are consistent with rates from cross-sectional samples of adolescents from Zurich, however (Ribeaud, 2015). Second, cannabis use and most adult outcomes were self-reported, resulting in potential biases (most likely, underreporting, e.g., Palamar & Le, 2020;Williams & Nowatzki, 2005). Finally, despite our longitudinal study design and stringent adjustment for pre-existing problem behaviors (e.g., internalizing symptoms at age 11) and many potential confounders, we cannot interpret the associations causally.…”