Patterns and knowledge of nonmedical use of stimulants among college students
Document Type
Journal ArticlePublication Date
2006-05-03Keywords
AdultAttitude to Health
Central Nervous System Stimulants
Female
*Health Behavior
*Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Humans
Male
Multivariate Analysis
New England
Peer Group
Questionnaires
Students
Substance-Related Disorders
Universities
Life Sciences
Medicine and Health Sciences
Pediatrics
Psychiatry
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
OBJECTIVE: To determine patterns and knowledge of nonmedical use of stimulants among a sample of college students. DESIGN: Completion of an anonymous survey consisting of 23 questions designed to explore college student use of medications intended to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. SETTING: A private liberal arts college in New England. PARTICIPANTS: Three hundred forty-seven undergraduate students. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Nonmedical use of stimulants. RESULTS: Thirty-one students (9.2%) reported nonmedical stimulant use. Two hundred forty students (71.4%) had peers who used nonprescribed stimulants, 149 (44.3%) knew of peers who made stimulant medication-seeking visits to a physician although they did not believe that they had attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and 178 (53.0%) knew of people who sold stimulants to students. Nonprescription users were significantly more knowledgeable about the effects of stimulants than nonusers, and nonusers whose peers used nonprescribed stimulants were more knowledgeable about the effects of stimulants than nonusers whose peers did not use nonprescribed stimulants. After controlling for age, race, and sex, the variables that predicted nonmedical use of stimulants were beliefs that stimulants help individuals study better, stay awake, and lose weight. CONCLUSIONS: A substantial proportion of college students in this sample were using nonprescribed stimulants. Among nonusers, those whose peers use nonprescribed stimulants were much more knowledgeable about the effects of stimulant use than those whose peers do not use stimulants. This knowledge may confer an increased risk of future nonmedical stimulant use if students become tempted to seek the beneficial effects experienced by their peers.Source
Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2006 May;160(5):481-5. Link to article on publisher's siteDOI
10.1001/archpedi.160.5.481Permanent Link to this Item
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14038/39628PubMed ID
16651489Related Resources
Link to article in PubMedae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1001/archpedi.160.5.481