Behavioral Psychology / Psicología Conductua (BP) is published by IMR Press from Volume 33 Issue 1 (2025). Previous articles were published by another publisher under the hybrid model (CC-BY-NC license or on a subscription basis), and they are hosted by IMR Press on imrpress.com as a courtesy and upon agreement.
1 Universidad de Córdoba, España
2 Centro Renacer, España
*Correspondencia: Rosario Ruiz-Olivares, Dpto. de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias de la Educación, C/San Alberto Magno s/n 14071 Córdoba (España).
E-mail: rosario.ruiz@uco.es
Abstract
The aim of this study was to relate the consumption of cannabis with the perception of risks such as traffic accidents, temporary health problems, legal problems, difficulty with interpersonal relations, a decrease in the capacity to perform tasks, and permanent health problems. With a prospective ex post-facto and ad hoc questionnaire elaborated from the questionnaire used in the study “Andaluces ante las drogas”, relevant socio-demographic information and risk perceptions regarding the consumption of cannabis were collected from 1011 students of the University of Córdoba. The results revealed that, in general, the students who consumed the most cannabis were those who judged the possible risks of the drug to be smallest. The regression model indicated that low perceptions of a particular risk can predict greater consumption of the drug associated with the risk. In conclusion, the observed trend of drug consumption among university students and the low perceived risk of the negative consequences of consumption suggest the need to set up prevention programs targeting these perceptions in university students.
Keywords
- risk perception
- cannabis
- university students
