Weekend Nightlife Recreational Habits: Prominent Intrapersonal “Risk factors” for Drug Use?

Abstract

Data were collected using a questionnaire from a sample of 2670 European youngsters representing the most popular recreational areas of 9 cities (Athens, Berlin, Coimbra, Manchester, Modena, Nice, Palma de Mallorca, Utrecht, and Vienna) from February to May 1998 in order to estimate the relevance of weekend nightlife recreational habits that influence the use of drugs in comparison with other more established "risk factors." Areas investigated included: drug use, the relationship with the recreational context, and many other posited "risk" and "protective factors" (such as student performance, family supervision, sensation seeking, onset of drug use, etc). Three patterns of drug use were considered: nonusers (9.8%), legal users (35.6%) and illegal users (54.6%). Data analysis used parametric, nonparametric tests and multinomial logistic regression tests. The variables related to recreational life style were better predictors for establishing the pattern of drug use, than the study's other variables. The study's limited generalizability is due to the lack of representativeness of the sample and its limited description.

Drug use and nightlife: more than just dance music

“…In addition to more frequent alcohol use, going to pubs in the last month was associated with more frequent use of illegal substances, including cannabis, MDMA and cocaine. In support of this, Calafat et al [15] found that, in addition to discos and after-hours venues, legal and illegal substance use was also linked (to an even greater extent) with nightlife recreational venues that are less significant in the techno culture, such as bars and pubs.…”

“…festivals and pubs) other than clubs/raves is rare [14]. Calafat et al [15] broadened the scope of their study to include other mainstream nightlife venues, demonstrating that the use of alcohol and illegal drugs is also linked to the frequency of visiting bars and pubs. Until recently, little attention has been paid to music festival attendees' use of illegal substances (these music festivals are comparable to rock festivals examined in our study).…”

Development and validation of a Multidimensional Motivations to Study Abroad Scale (MMSAS) among European Credit Mobility Students

“…They also completed questions regarding the type of study abroad experience (i.e., study abroad programme, host country, the amount of time they plan to spend abroad). The T 2 survey contained some criterion measures used to assess the validity of the scale, specifically students' self-reported host country language proficiency (Roever & Powers, 2005), their recreational habits at night (Calafat, Gomez, Juan, & Becona, 2007), and other measures of lifestyle habits, such as the number of hours a week spent studying or doing assignments (from 1 "None" to 7 "About 11 or more"). Students also completed three acculturation-related measures to assess their home and host country acculturation orientation (Brief Acculturation Orientation Scale).…”

Causes and Consequences of Drug Abuse: A Comparison Between Synthetic Drug and Heroin Users in Urban China

“…In addition to the pharmacological impact of synthetic drugs, the group or venue settings, which are more likely to be associated with synthetic drug use, are also believed to be conducive to risky sexual behaviors (Laidler, 2005; Maxwell, 2005). Evidence suggests that synthetic drug use is more prevalent in entertainment venues, such as dance clubs and discos, or social group gatherings in China (Xia & Yang, 2008) and worldwide (Calafat, Gómez, Juan, & Becoña, 2007; Mattison, Ross, Wolfson, Franklin, & HNRC Group, 2001; Parks & Kennedy, 2004), which is found to foster frequent polydrug use (Fendrich, Wislar, Johnson, & Hubbell, 2003; Klitzman, 2006; Lankenau & Clatts, 2005; Operario et al, 2006) and an increase in sexual partners and the likelihood of group sex (Fendrich et al, 2003; Zule et al, 2007). The environment of many entertainment venues, such as hot temperatures, loud music, and overcrowding, can further intensify the stimulating effect of synthetic drugs (Calafat, Juan, Becoña, Mantecón, & Ramón, 2009; Parrott, 2004).…”