engleski

The Moderating Role of Causality Orientations in the Relationship between Personality Traits and Cannabis Consumption

According to the Self-Determination Theory, causality orientations present relatively enduring aspects of people that characterise the source of initiation and regulation of their behaviour. Individuals with a high-autonomy orientation organise their behaviours according to their own interests and goals, whereas controlled behaviour is initiated and regulated by pressure from internal or external forces (Deci & Ryan, 1985). This research tested a model that incorporated causality orientations, personality traits and cannabis consumption. The sample consisted of 438 (37.9% males and 62.1% females ; mean age M=19.62, SD=0.826) participants comprising first and second-year students at the University of Zagreb that lived in student dormitories. An adapted version of autonomy and control subscales of the General Causality Orientations Scale (Deci & Ryan, 1985), and International Personality Item Pool (IPIP50) - extraversion, conscientiousness and neuroticism subscales were applied. Cannabis consumption was operationalised as the number of days a person has consumed cannabis in their lifetime. A hierarchical regression analysis was conducted with a number of days a person consumed cannabis in a lifetime as a criterion, personality traits and autonomy causality orientation as predictors in the first step, and their interactions in the second step. The same procedure was conducted with control causality orientation. The results showed that moderation effects of autonomy causality orientation and personality traits on cannabis consumption were not significant. There were significant interaction effects of control causality orientation and extraversion, as well as the effects of this motivational orientation and conscientiousness on the frequency of cannabis consumption. Among participants that were average and high in control causality orientation, increase in extraversion was followed with an increase in cannabis consumption, with the effect being stronger among students with a higher control causality orientation. In addition, among average and high-control oriented participants, an increase in conscientiousness was followed with a decrease in cannabis consumption. These effects of personality traits on cannabis consumption were not present among students that scoring lower when it comes to control orientation.

autonomy orientation, control orientation, personality traits, cannabis consumption

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