Linking bipolar disorder vulnerability to cannabis habits in college

Many young adults use cannabis, but its relationship with mood disorders characterized by intense positive emotions has remained poorly understood. A recent study of college students found that a higher risk for bipolar spectrum disorders is tied to more cannabis-related disruptions in daily life, while experiencing higher levels of natural positive emotions is associated with less frequent cannabis use. These results were published in the Journal of Affective Disorders.

Bipolar spectrum disorders are mental health conditions defined by intense vacillations in mood. People with these disorders experience periods of mania or hypomania, which are states characterized by abnormally elevated mood, increased energy, and a higher propensity for risk-taking. They also typically experience periods of depression, marked by deep sadness and a loss of interest in regular activities.

While happiness is generally considered a purely positive state of mind, people with bipolar tendencies sometimes have difficulty managing how they experience good feelings. They might experience positive emotions with an overwhelming intensity. They might also show a heightened excitement when anticipating rewards, or place an unusually high value on the pursuit of happiness itself.

Cannabis is the most widely consumed illicit drug in the world, and its use has grown rapidly over the past decade. Cannabis contains psychoactive compounds, most notably THC, that directly affect human mood and cognition. Because the drug interacts with the brain’s reward centers, mental health experts are increasingly interested in how its widespread use shapes psychological functioning.

Research frequently links cannabis use to mood issues centered around negative emotions, such as severe depression and chronic anxiety. Past investigations tend to focus heavily on these negative emotional outcomes. Very little research has examined how cannabis use connects to psychiatric conditions defined by intense disruptions in positive emotional systems.

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Luiza Rosa and June Gruber, psychology researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder, designed an investigation to explore this blind spot. They led a multi-community team of researchers to understand how a vulnerability to bipolar spectrum disorders might relate to different patterns of cannabis use. They also wanted to look at specific ways that emerging adults process positive emotions, exploring whether these psychological mechanisms alter how young people consume cannabis.

Investigating this age group is a logical step for mental health researchers. Emerging adulthood, which stretches from late adolescence to the mid-twenties, is a unique developmental period. Young adults in this phase typically experience higher emotional reactivity and an increased appetite for physical and social risks.

During this developmental window, individuals also gain greater personal autonomy and easier access to substances like cannabis. This makes the late teen and early adult years a peak period for the onset of both substance use issues and mood disorders.

To conduct the investigation, the researchers recruited 968 college students from nine different universities across North America. To be included in the analysis, all participants had to report having consumed cannabis at least once in their lives. The research team focused their attention entirely on individuals with some level of prior exposure to the drug.

Through a series of online questionnaires, the team asked the university students about their specific cannabis habits. The questions focused on how many days they used the drug over the past three months. The surveys also asked whether this consumption interfered with their school, work, or home life, and how difficult the students thought it would be to completely stop using it.

In addition to gathering data on substance use, the researchers administered clinical screening tools. These measures evaluated each student’s underlying risk for bipolar spectrum disorders, assessing personality traits connected to hypomania. The surveys also measured any current, active symptoms of mania and depression the students were experiencing at the time of the mental health screening.

To capture a detailed picture of the students’ emotional lives, the questionnaires measured three distinct psychological traits related to how people feel good. The first trait was positive emotion experience, which tracks how frequently and intensely a person felt positive states like joy or amusement over the past week.

The second psychological trait analyzed was reward responsiveness. This measures consecutive excitement, tracking the biological and psychological rush people feel when they obtain something they want. Examples include achieving a goal, getting a compliment, or acquiring a physical item they desire.

The third trait was positive emotion valuation. This represents a more abstract cognitive tendency where a person constantly monitors their own happiness. People who score high in this area place an immense priority on feeling cheerful, often believing that there is something inherently wrong with them if they do not feel happy at all times.

When compiling and analyzing the survey responses, Rosa and Gruber’s team found that a higher risk for bipolar spectrum disorders was linked to greater cannabis-related interference in daily life. This means that students harboring more bipolar-like traits reported more disruptions in their personal and professional responsibilities directly due to their cannabis use.

These same students did not report using cannabis more frequently than their peers. They also did not report having a harder time stopping their use of the drug. The statistical connection appeared specifically in how much the substance impaired their daily functioning.

When researchers adjusted their mathematical models to account for current, active mood symptoms, the direct association between bipolar risk traits and daily life interference faded. Looking closely at the updated data, current symptoms of depression were tied to higher levels of cannabis interference. However, this specific link was partially explained by co-occurring alcohol use, suggesting that drinking habits also play a large role in how mood symptoms disrupt a person’s life.

The team also found robust relationships between cannabis habits and the ways people process positive emotions naturally. Students who reported higher levels of recent positive emotion experience tended to use cannabis less often. They also experienced fewer disruptions to their lives and reported less difficulty stopping their use entirely.

In this context, naturally experiencing high levels of positive emotion served as a protective factor against severe cannabis habits. Placing an exceptionally high value on happiness produced a very different outcome. Students who scored higher on positive emotion valuation tended to use cannabis more frequently, and they also reported that it would be harder for them to stop using the drug.

The surveys revealed that students who were highly concerned with achieving happiness might use cannabis as a tool to artificially regulate their mood. These individuals might rely heavily on the drug to achieve a specific positive emotional state. This dynamic makes it harder for them to consider giving up the substance despite its potential side effects on memory or motivation.

The research team noted a few limitations to their work. Because the investigation relied on a cross-sectional survey, which only takes a snapshot of a single moment in time, the results cannot establish a chain of cause and effect. It is not known whether initial cannabis use exacerbates bipolar mood symptoms, or if pre-existing mood patterns prompt people to use cannabis in specific, problematic ways.

The students in this sample also reported relatively low levels of cannabis use overall. Most participants used the substance less than once a month. The researchers noted that gathering data from a population with much heavier, habitual usage patterns might yield different scientific insights.

Moving forward, behavioral scientists hope to track young adults over longer periods. Following individuals consistently throughout their entire college experience could help reveal how escalating cannabis use interacts with shifting emotional traits and mood symptoms as young people enter adulthood.

The study, “The highs and lows: Cannabis use and positive valence bipolar mood and emotion processes in emerging adults,” was authored by Luiza Rosa, Gerald Young, Stevi G. Ibonie, Joelle LeMoult, Iris B. Mauss, Lauren B. Alloy, Jessica L. Borelli, Sarah R. Holley, Ellen Jopling, Daniel P. Moriarity, Robin Nusslock, Gregory Strauss, Cynthia M. Villanueva, Lauren M. Weinstock, L. Cinnamon Bidwell, and June Gruber.