The Tellegen Absorption Scale, widely used to measure personality Trait Absorption, may not adequately distinguish true capacity for absorption or the opportunity for absorptive experiences. This study adds Capacity and Opportunity subscales to the scale and uses Principal Components Analysis to generate five useful sub-dimensions. Building on the author's earlier suggestion linking Trait Absorption to cannabis use and depression, an exploratory study examined how cannabis use, gender, self-perceived motivation loss, and depression relate to overall Absorption, Capacity, and Opportunity.
The so-called cannabis "amotivation syndrome" may not be a single disorder but instead a change in cognitive style arising from cannabis's ability to facilitate a unique attentional state favored by individuals with higher levels of the personality trait "absorption." When this absorptive cognitive style is exaggerated through cannabis use in the context of pre-existing or reactive depression, it may be mistakenly categorized as amotivational syndrome.