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Leveraging Social Media to Develop the Cannabis Exposure Index (CEI), A Standardized Measure of Cannabis Use

Award Number: R01DA050032
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DRUG ABUSE
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 09/30/2020
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 02/28/2026

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Leveraging Social Media to Develop the Cannabis Exposure Index (CEI), A Standardized Measure of Cannabis Use - Americans increasingly believe cannabis to be a harmless substance with therapeutic benefits; cannabis is increasingly legal in the U.S.; a burgeoning industry has introduced novel, high potency products; and the prevalence of use and cannabis use disorder (CUD) has increased. The scientific and public health communities have struggled to keep pace in determining the impact of this changing cannabis landscape. An important barrier to progress is the lack of an adequate measure of cannabis consumption. Unlike measures of alcohol use that can discriminate high and low risk drinking patterns, current cannabis measures are inadequate to investigate cannabis risks and benefits, the impact of policy changes, and the outcomes of clinical trials. Developing valid measures faces challenges, e.g., estimation of quantity; data collection from sufficiently large and diverse samples for validation. Leveraging our expertise in cannabis research, measure development, and social media survey methods, we propose to address these challenges via a rigorous mixed-methods study to develop and test a family of measures of cannabis exposure: The Cannabis Exposure Inventory (CEI; timeframe, past 30 days), a short form (CEI-S), and a daily form (CEI-D; timeframe, last 24 hours). Aim 1: Prepare initial CEI. Our expert team will assemble and program an initial version of the CEI using novel items and images to estimate use. Through cognitive interviewing and a preliminary test-retest study, we will examine how users understand the items and response categories, and iteratively adjust the CEI. Aim 2: Initial examination of CEI validity. We will administer an on-line survey with the CEI, validators (e.g., CUD severity) and covariates to 3,000 cannabis users using well-tested social media survey methods and research panels. Analyses will assess associations between the different exposure item domains (construct validity) and identify the combination of items most associated with external validators (convergent validity) to inform further refinement of the CEI. A definitive test- retest substudy (n=600) will indicate reliability. Aim 3: Confirm CEI validity in a large sample of current users; develop the CEI-S. We will administer the CEI to 12,000 users to confirm construct and convergent validity, overall and across major subgroups (e.g., gender, race/ethnicity). We will derive the CEI-S for use in studies where time does not permit the full CEI. We will conduct a biological validation substudy with n=150 participants, examining THCCOOH. Aim 4: Prepare and validate the CEI-D. We will create the CEI-D, adjusting the CEI-S timeframe to the prior 24 hours for use as a daily measure, and examine its validity in a subsample from Aim 3 (n=400). They will complete the CEI-S, then complete the CEI-D, functioning, and mood items for 30 days on a mobile device. Consistent with FDA guidelines on demonstrating validity of outcome measures, we will test how CEI-D scores, functioning and mood covary over time. Accomplishing these aims will provide the field with a set of greatly improved measures of cannabis use that will enhance clinical and epidemiologic research, and lead to more informed communication about cannabis to clinicians, health educators and policy makers.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2026 ( Subtotal = $780,228 )
2026	2026	TRUSTEES OF DARTMOUTH COLLEGE	7 LEBANON ST	HANOVER	NH	03755	GRAFTON	USA	Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs	001	6	3/6/2026	COMPETING CONTINUATION	$780,228
2026	2024	TRUSTEES OF DARTMOUTH COLLEGE	7 LEBANON ST	HANOVER	NH	03755	GRAFTON	USA	Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs	000	5	2/25/2026	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$0
2026	2024	TRUSTEES OF DARTMOUTH COLLEGE	7 LEBANON ST	HANOVER	NH	03755	GRAFTON	USA	Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs	002	5	6/25/2026	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$0
														Subtotal = $780,228

Issue Date FY: 2025 ( Subtotal = $0 )
2025	2024	TRUSTEES OF DARTMOUTH COLLEGE	7 LEBANON ST	HANOVER	NH	03755	GRAFTON	USA	Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs	000	5	7/28/2025	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$0
														Subtotal = $0

Issue Date FY: 2024 ( Subtotal = $534,160 )
2024	2024	TRUSTEES OF DARTMOUTH COLLEGE	7 LEBANON ST	HANOVER	NH	03755	GRAFTON	USA	Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs	000	5	6/24/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$534,160
														Subtotal = $534,160

Issue Date FY: 2023 ( Subtotal = $624,937 )
2023	2023	TRUSTEES OF DARTMOUTH COLLEGE	7 LEBANON ST	HANOVER	NH	03755	GRAFTON	USA	Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs	000	4	6/26/2023	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$624,937
														Subtotal = $624,937

Issue Date FY: 2022 ( Subtotal = $654,577 )
2022	2022	TRUSTEES OF DARTMOUTH COLLEGE	7 LEBANON ST	HANOVER	NH	03755	GRAFTON	USA	Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs	000	3	7/12/2022	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$654,577
														Subtotal = $654,577

Issue Date FY: 2021 ( Subtotal = $548,854 )
2021	2021	TRUSTEES OF DARTMOUTH COLLEGE	6001 PARKHURST HALL STE 207	HANOVER	NH	03755	GRAFTON	USA	Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs	001	2	6/18/2021	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$548,854
2021	2020	TRUSTEES OF DARTMOUTH COLLEGE	1 HINMAN DARTMOUTH COLLEGE	HANOVER	NH	03755	GRAFTON	USA	Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs	000	1	2/24/2021	NEW	$0
														Subtotal = $548,854

Issue Date FY: 2020 ( Subtotal = $698,204 )
2020	2020	TRUSTEES OF DARTMOUTH COLLEGE	1 HINMAN DARTMOUTH COLLEGE	HANOVER	NH	03755	GRAFTON	USA	Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs	000	1	9/18/2020	NEW	$698,204
														Subtotal = $698,204

Grand Total All Awards = $3,840,960

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Leveraging Social Media to Develop the Cannabis Exposure Index (CEI), A Standardized Measure of Cannabis Use

Award Number: R01DA050032

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DRUG ABUSE

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 09/30/2020

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 02/28/2026

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