The word \u201ccollege\u201d spurs some associations right away: living away from parents for the first time, managing a budget and schoolwork without any supervision, making new friends and parties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The parties must be included in that list. College is often a time when so many Americans experiment with drugs or alcohol for the first time. Yet, how many people truly want to take drugs or consume alcohol when they first do so, and how many students are convinced to partake by their peers? Does the pressure occur at the direct request of their friend or friends, or is it often an indirect influence caused by being at a social gathering and in the minority of those not participating in drinking or using drugs?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Recovery Village surveyed 400 people with a wide a range of financial backgrounds, ethnicities and ages on their experiences with drug and alcohol use during college<\/a>. Some of the most interesting results involved the difference in answers between the male participants and female ones. A little more than 51 percent of the 310 respondents who attended college said they used either alcohol or an illegal drug at least once during college. Males were far more likely to answered yes, as 65.87 percent of them said they consumed drugs or alcohol at least one time. Only 41.85 percent of females said the same.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Digging a little deeper into the results shows a significant disparity in how males and females were first introduced to alcohol and drugs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why do people experiment with alcohol and drugs when in college? Oftentimes, the first few instances of substance misuse feel like a rite of passage and come with a level of curiosity for the person consuming. Walking through this gateway and into the general misconception of what college life is can be intentional \u2014 or at the behest of others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The most common reasons survey respondents gave for their college drug and alcohol use was to relieve stress or to feel the euphoric high associated to whatever substance they consumed. The third-most-selected choice was \u201cto appease friends or acquaintances,\u201d which received 16 percent of answers from the 160 respondents who said they participated in using drugs or alcohol during college.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, 22 percent of females said the influence of others persuaded them to try drugs or alcohol, while only 10 percent of males answered this way. Additionally, females were more likely than males to say that peer pressure influenced their alcohol or drug use during college. Peer pressure is one of the most common reasons why people try drugs or alcohol, whether it be their first time or one of the many times following. Any setting where someone is drinking or using drugs can make a friend who isn\u2019t feel left out. Additionally, if someone has romantic interest in a person who is doing drugs or alcohol, or offers it to the original person, that might cause influence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Why did more females than males say that peer pressure influenced their substance use? The Deseret News<\/a> cited a survey in 2001 that backed up the claim that female teenagers feel more pressure than male teens to drink alcohol. The National Institutes of Health conducted the study and Bruce Simons-Morton was cited in the article saying that peer pressure was a common cause of drinking for girls, while not as much so for boys.<\/p>\n\n\n\nExamining the Why: Reasons for Substance Use<\/h2>\n\n\n\n