Substance Use, Health and Behavior Lab (Meier)

Substance Use, Health and Behavior Lab (Meier)
Keywords
Keywords: cannabis/marijuana; substance use; psychosis; retinal imaging
Lab Area
Clinical Psychology
Lab Director
Madeline Meier, PhD
Actively Recruiting Undergraduate Researchers
Yes

We seek to understand the causes, course, and consequences of problematic substance use through longitudinal epidemiological and case-control studies. Current research projects include (1) understanding links between cannabis use, psychotic-like experiences, and vascular health; (2) documenting the prevalence and correlates of vaping marijuana among college students; and (3) testing whether older adult marijuana users show neuropsychological impairment and functional impairment in everyday life.

Join the Lab!

If you are interested in becoming a research assistant in the Substance Use, Health, and Behavior Lab, please send the following information to Dr. Meier:

1. Your name, year in school, major, and email address
2. Could you be a member of the lab for at least two semesters?
3. Are you interested in graduate school? What do you want to do for a career?
4. Why do you want to join the lab?
5. What can you bring to the team?

Lab Director and Principal Investigator: Madeline Meier, PhD, Assistant Professor

Dr. Madeline Meier joined the Psychology Department faculty at ASU in 2013. Her research seeks to understand the causes, course, and consequences of problematic substance use through longitudinal epidemiological and case-control studies. Her recent work on marijuana has shown that (i) persistent marijuana use across the high-school years is associated with lower grade-point-average and lower SAT scores in 12th grade, (ii) adolescent-onset persistent marijuana use is associated with IQ decline from childhood to adulthood, (iii) persistent marijuana use from adolescence to adulthood is associated with social and economic problems in early midlife, including workplace and relationship problems, downward socioeconomic mobility, and financial difficulties, and (iv) persistent marijuana use from adolescence to adulthood is generally not associated with physical health problems in early midlife (lung function, systemic inflammation, and metabolic health). Dr. Meier’s work documenting the neuropsychological, academic, social, economic, and physical health consequences of cannabis use is being used by policy makers, public interest groups, psychologists, and physicians. Curriculum Vitae.

Current Graduate Students

Melanie Hill, Doctoral Student, Clinical Psychology, Department of Psychology
Melanie earned her B.A. in psychology from UC Berkeley, where she studied sleep and emotion regulation. Currently, she is interested in how coping and emotion regulation processes impact risk for substance use in college students. Melanie hopes this line of research will promote academic success and mental well-being for adolescents and young adults.

Connor Jones, Doctoral Student, Clinical Psychology, Department of Psychology
Connor received his BS in psychology from the University of Washington in 2013. His research interests involve investigating risk factors related to substance use and co-occurring psychopathological problems. His long-term research goals are to develop preventative strategies and interventions tailored to comorbid populations.

Sarah Okey, Doctoral Student, Clinical Psychology, Department of Psychology Sarah obtained her B.A. in psychology from The Ohio State University in 2015. Her research interests include examining the short and long-term consequences of cannabis use in an effort to help inform public policy and develop effective interventions for problematic substance use.

 

Current Undergrad Research Assistants

Sasha Rife
Mikayla Isosaki
Isabelle Oboza
Kayla Reents
Nathalie Tinoco
Matthew Broussard
Jessica Siegel
William Conlin
Allie Drake

Join the Lab!

If you are interested in becoming a research assistant in the Substance Use, Health, and Behavior Lab during academic year 2016 - 2017, please send the following information to Dr. Meier:

1. Your name, year in school, major, and email address
2. Could you be a member of the lab for at least two semesters?
3. Are you interested in graduate school? What do you want to do for a career?
4. Why do you want to join the lab?
5. What can you bring to the team?

Select Publications

Below are a sample of recent publications from Dr. Meier's research and lab.

Meier, M.H., Caspi, A., Ambler, A., Hariri, A.R., Harrington, H.L., Hogan, S., Houts, R., Knodt, A., Ramrakha, S., Richmond-Rakerd, L.S., Poulton, R., & Moffitt, T.E. (2022). Preparedness for healthy aging and polysubstance use in long-term cannabis users: A population-representative longitudinal study. Lancet Healthy Longevity.

 

Meier, M.H., Caspi, A., Knodt, A., Hall, W., Ambler, A., Harrington, H.L., Hogan, S., Houts, R., Poulton, R., Ramrakha, S., Hariri, A.R., & Moffitt, T.E. (2022). Long-term cannabis use and cognitive reserves and hippocampal volume in midlife. American Journal of Psychiatry, 179, 362-374.

 

Okey, S.A., Castro, S.A., Waddell, J.T., Jones, C.B., Blake, A.J., O’Rourke, H.P., Davis, M.C, & Meier, M.H. (2022). Are recreational cannabis laws associated with declining medical cannabis program enrollment in the US? An analysis of cardholder enrollment and demographic characteristics from 2013 to 2020. International Journal of Drug Policy, 100, 103531.

 

Meier, M.H. Cannabis use and psychosocial functioning: Evidence from prospective longitudinal studies. (2021). Current Opinion in Psychology, 38, 19-24.

 

Jones, C.B., Meier, M.H., Corbin, W.C., & Chassin, L. (2021). Adolescent executive cognitive functioning and trait impulsivity as predictors of young-adult risky drinking and alcohol-related problems. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 35, 187-198.

 

Meier, M.H., Beardslee, J., & Pardini, D. (2020). Associations between recent and cumulative cannabis use and internalizing problems in boys from adolescence to young adulthood. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 48, 771-782.

 

Okey, S., Meier, M.H. A within-person comparison of the subjective effects of higher vs. lower-potency cannabis. (2020). Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 216, 108225. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2020.108225

 

Hill, M.L., Wong, T.Y., Davis, M., & Meier, M.H. (2020). Associations between cannabis use and retinal vessel diameter in young adults. Schizophrenia Research, 219, 62-68.

News & More!

Conrod, P. J. (2022). Cannabis and brain health: What is next for developmental cohort studies? American Journal of Psychiatry, 179(5), 317-318.

“Long-term Cannabis Use Linked to Dementia Risk Factors” (2022). Medscape. https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/972160

“Another Great Marijuana Lie: “Dabs” Are Bad and Most Cannabis Consumers Prefer Less THC, Study Finds” (2020). Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/chrisroberts/2020/09/03/another-great-marijuana-lie-dabs-are-bad-and-most-cannabis-consumers-prefer-less-thc-study-finds/#465ec6edce70

“Teens Who Use Concentrated Marijuana More Likely to Use Other Drugs” (2019). NBC News. https://www.nbcnews.com/health/kids-health/teens-who-use-concentrated-marijuana-more-likely-use-other-drugs-n1045961
 

Madeline Meier’s marijuana research hits media mainstream!

In collaboration with researchers at Duke University, UC Davis, and others in the UK and New Zealand, Dr. Meier’s recently published study on marijuana usage gains international attention.  Read more on their findings published in JAMA Psychiatry and see the story, “Study says long-term pot use causes poor gum health – but not much else” from The Guardian. Posted June 1, 2016.

Medline PLUS, NIH U.S. National Library of Medicine, Long-Term Pot Use Tied to Gum Disease in Study. June 1, 2016

Washington PostChronic marijuana use is about as bad for your health as not flossing, researchers find, June 2, 2016.

Dr. Meier will travel to Bethesda, MD in March 2016 to present research on marijuana and neuropsychological function for the NIH-sponsored meeting, “Marijuana and Cannabinoids: A Neuroscience Research Summit”

Undergraduate students in the lab are learning to use the retinal camera for our research studies on cannabis, psychotic-like experiences, and retinal vascular health (attach photo: “Undergrads retinal imaging”). The retina of the eye offers a window to the condition of the blood vessels in the brain and body. By studying the health of the retinal blood vessels, we can gauge the health of the brain and body blood vessels.

Dr. Meier's video interview with the National Institute on Drug Abuse, NIDANotes:  Early-Onset, Regular Cannabis Use Is Linked to IQ Decline, August 13, 2013.
Marijuana's Lasting Effects on the Brain, March 2013, Messages from the Director of NIDA, Dr. Nora Volkow

From The Conversation, Teen cannabis use lowers IQ, despite claims to the contrary, Jan 14, 2013
In Nature, Drop in IQ linked to heavy teenage cannabis use; Aug 28, 2012.
Teen pot use linked to later declines in IQAssociated Press, August 27, 2012