Knowledge and experience of young people regarding drug abuse, 1969-89.

Abstract

Objective-To establish a baseline of knowledge to plan an effective health education programme in schools. The survey was repeated at five year intervals from 1969 to 1989.Design-To preserve consistency, the same anonymous questionnaire, which was confidential to the research workers, was used throughout.Setting-Three secondary schools in Wolverhampton in different parts of the town and representing different social groups.Subjects-Sample sizes ranged from 471 fourth year pupils (aged 14 to 15) in 1969 to 540 in 1984 and 380 in 1989, the decrease being due mainly to the falling birth rate. There were slightly more girls than boys, and the pupils covered the whole range of academic ability.Results-Over the 20 years the proportion of pupils who knew someone taking drugs more than doubled from 15% (71) to 31% (117) and the proportion who had been offered drugs almost quadrupled from 5% (24) to 19% (72). The changes taking place over the past five years were characterised by an increased knowledge about drugs and the first mention of "crack," a purified form of cocaine, and "ecstasy" (methylenedioxymethamphetamine). Peer influence continued to be given as the prime reason for taking drugs. Over the 20 years, though less often mentioned in 1989, television and newspapers remained the most common source of information.Conclusions-These results suggest the need for responsible coverage by the mass media and for more effective health and social education programmes to prevent the spread of drug misuse.

Risk factors associated with drug use: the importance of ‘risk environment’

“…Conversely, some claim that an active interest in cinema, theatre and museums, as well as participation in religious activities, is protective against drug use (Recio et al, 1989). Yet drug use is a social activity itself, and obviously strongly implicated in a range of social and leisure activities beyond those of cinema, theatre, museums or religion (Measham et al, 1998;Wright & Pearl, 1990;Schuster et al, 1998). Quite apart from an assumptive logic which conflates drug use as problematic, in our view a remarkable failing of many risk factor studies is that they fail to capture adequately the social and recreational functions of drug use.…”

“…These findings have led to the suggestion that a 'social transformation' in patterns of drug use is underway, in which recreational use has become an increasingly normalized and socially acceptable feature of youth lifestyles (Parker et al, 1995;Measham et al, 1994). Accordingly, a number of studies note that recreational drug use functions as part of youth cultures and development more generally (Parker et al, 1995;Wright & Pearl, 1990;Orte, 1994;Schuster et al, 1998). Innovations in drug use may become symbols of youth culture as much as drug culture, particularly if they cross over into the mainstream (Room, 1994).…”

“…This may be explicitly the case when drugs are used as part of leisure and recreation, and when their continued use may be determined less by physical or medical dependency than by participation in social activities. Studies show the social and cultural settings of drug use to be an important determinant of whether, which, how and why drugs are used, as well as how their effects are made manifest (Wright & Pearl, 1990;Navarro Botella & Gómez, 1998;Schuster et al, 1998;Redhead, 1993). Ecstasy, for example, is often used for the first time at a social occasion, among peers, and the most common method of introduction is via a friend ( Van de Wijngaart et al, 1998).…”

“…If drug use is in some way dependent on the social situations and networks within which it occurs then the functions and effects of drug use, and the rationale for taking them, are to some extent also social (Wright & Pearl, 1990;Becker, 1963). This may be explicitly the case when drugs are used as part of leisure and recreation, and when their continued use may be determined less by physical or medical dependency than by participation in social activities.…”

Enantiomeric separation of four methylenedioxylated amphetamines on β-cyclodextrin chiral stationary phases

“…Methylenedioxy-N-methylamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy, Adam) and other related methylenedioxylated amphetamines are widely used and misused in many countries [1][2][3]. An increasing number of MDMArelated deaths [4][5][6] and acute clinical toxicological problems following its ingestion have been reported [1,[7][8][9].…”