Negative marijuana-related consequences among college students in five countries: measurement invariance of the Brief Marijuana Consequences Questionnaire

Background and aims: The 21-item Brief Marijuana Consequences Questionnaire (B-MACQ) has been shown to be a valid measure to assess negative marijuana-related consequences among US college students. The present study aimed to: (a) examine measurement invariance of the B-MACQ among college student marijuana users in five countries, (b) evaluate latent mean differences on the B-MACQ as a function of sex and country if invariance is met and (c) compare criterion-related validity across different countries and sex.

Design: Instrumental study.

Setting: Argentina, the Netherlands, Spain, Uruguay and United States.

Participants: A subsample of last-month marijuana users who completed the B-MACQ (n = 1145; 62.9% female).

Measurements: The B-MACQ, several dimensions of marijuana use and perceptions of marijuana use.

Findings: Results supported configural and scalar invariance (all ΔCFI/TLI ≤ 0.01; ΔRMSEA ≤ 0.015) of a 20-item B-MACQ across sex and four countries (the Netherlands being the exception). In examining latent mean differences, Spanish students reported a higher number of consequences than US (P < 0.001) and Argentinian students (P = 0.003). In examining criterion-related validity, marijuana use indicators (0.01 < rs < 0.64), descriptive norms (0.04 < rs < 0.49) and injunctive norms for best friend (0.06 < rs < 0.28) largely had small-to-moderate positive correlations with negative marijuana-related consequences.

Conclusions: The 20-item B-MACQ accurately assesses marijuana-related negative consequences among male and female college student marijuana users across the United States, Argentina, Spain and Uruguay. The B-MACQ could be used effectively to identify marijuana-related consequences in college students from different countries or cultures.