What topics does this cannabis study cover?

This study covers research on: Mental Health, THC, Addiction.

Pandemic discrimination linked to increased cannabis use in Asian Americans

Q: What did this research study find?

This study examined how **COVID-19-related racial discrimination** impacted substance use patterns among **1,052 Asian American adults**, including Chinese, Filipino/a/x, and South Asian communities. Researchers found that experiencing racial discrimination during the pandemic—whether direct overt a

Q: Where was this research published?

Published in Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities on June 9, 2026.

COVID-19 Racial Discrimination and Substance Use among Asian Americans by Gender.

Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities • June 9, 2026 • Moderately Relevant

🤖

AI Summary

This study examined how COVID-19-related racial discrimination impacted substance use patterns among 1,052 Asian American adults, including Chinese, Filipino/a/x, and South Asian communities. Researchers found that experiencing racial discrimination during the pandemic—whether direct overt attacks, subtle discrimination, or witnessing discrimination against others—was significantly associated with increased substance use across all categories measured, including alcohol, tobacco/nicotine, cannabis, and other illicit substances.

The most striking finding involved gender differences in vulnerability. While both men and women who experienced discrimination showed elevated substance use, Asian American men demonstrated substantially stronger associations, particularly for cannabis use (interaction OR=1.68) and alcohol consumption (interaction OR=1.46). Men experienced consistently larger probability increases in using all substances following discriminatory experiences compared to women. Direct overt discrimination showed the strongest overall effect across all substance types, with cannabis use showing an 85% increased odds (OR=1.85) among those experiencing any form of COVID-19-related discrimination.

These findings have important implications for public health responses and clinical cannabis use. The research highlights how social stress and discrimination can drive substance use patterns, suggesting that healthcare providers working with Asian American communities should screen for discrimination-related trauma and mental health impacts. The particularly pronounced effect in men underscores the need for gender-specific, culturally tailored interventions that address both the psychological impacts of discrimination and substance use prevention or harm reduction strategies within these populations.

📄 Original Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic was accompanied by a surge in anti-Asian racial discrimination in the United States. To date, there has not been a study that examined the role of gender among Asian Americans (AAs) during the pandemic and its associations with racial discrimination and substance use. This study examined the relationship between COVID-19-related discrimination and substance use behaviors among AAs and investigated the moderating role of gender. We used survey data from N = 1,052 AA Chinese, Filipino/a/x, and South Asian adults (Mage = 36.58, women = 69%) collected in May 2022. COVID-19-related discrimination was measured across three dimensions: direct overt-, direct subtle-, and vicarious discrimination. Substance use outcomes included past-year frequency of alcohol, tobacco/nicotine, cannabis, and other illicit substance use. Ordinal logistic regression models examined main effects and gender interactions. Overall, COVID-19 racial discrimination was significantly associated with increased odds of all substance use: alcohol (OR = 1.72), tobacco/nicotine (OR = 1.77), cannabis (OR = 1.85), and other illicit substances (OR = 2.88). Direct overt discrimination demonstrated the strongest associations across all substances. Gender significantly moderated the discrimination-substance use relationship for alcohol and cannabis, with men showing stronger associations (alcohol interaction OR = 1.46; cannabis interaction OR = 1.68). Marginal effects revealed that men experienced consistently larger probability increases in substance use across all discrimination types compared to women. COVID-19-related racial discrimination is robustly associated with substance use among AAs, with AA men demonstrating particular vulnerability to alcohol and cannabis use following discriminatory experiences. Results underscore the need for gender-specific, culturally tailored interventions addressing discrimination-related substance use in AA populations.

Paper Type

📄 Research

Publication

Journal: Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities
Published: June 9, 2026
PMID: 42262708
DOI: 10.1007/s40615-026-03028-5

Authors (7)

Dale Dagar Maglalang Silver School of Social Work, New York University, 1 Washington Square North, New York, NY, 10003, USA. dale.maglalang@nyu.edu.
Nari Yoo School of Social Work, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
Michael Park School of Social Work, The State University of New Jersey, Rutgers, New Brunswick, NJ, USA.
Harvey L Nicholson Department of Sociology, Criminology, and Anthropology, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY, USA.
Cora de Leon Silver School of Social Work, New York University, New York, NY, USA.
+2 more authors