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Gender as moderator of the relationship between impulsivity and driving following cannabis use

Introduction: Road traffic crashes are serious public health problem worldwide and human factors are known to be the most prominent factor of accidents. Past studies found that both gender and impulsivity are associated with driving under the influence of cannabis use (DACU), however, the interaction of these predictors is rarely addressed in the literature. Objective: To bridge this knowledge gap, the present study aims to explore the process by which sensation seeking, a specific facet of impulsivity, interact with gender identification, to predict DACU. Method: Participants from 16 to 35 years old possessing a valid driver’s licence completed an online questionnaire on their socio-demographic characteristics, cannabis consumption habits and personality score. A moderator analysis was conducted to disentangle the relationship between sensation seeking, gender and DACU using SPSS Process. Result: Overall, the model was statistically significant with b = 426.52, p < 0.01 indicating presence of moderation. Specifically, the difference in gender identification between women and men is significant b = 0.55, 95% CI [0.31, 0.78], z = 4.52, p < 0.01 suggesting the association between personality and driving behavior changes depending upon gender identification. Discussion and conclusion: The current study provides evidence that personality trait and gender identification are not only associated with DACU, but also interacts to affect driving behaviour.