A survey of substance use at a UK university: prevalence of use and views of students

Prevalence and Psychiatric Correlates of Illicit Substance Use in UK Undergraduate Students

This study examined the prevalence of illegal drug use in UK students and motivators behind such behavior. Additionally, we explored possible relationships between substance use, psychosocial motivators, and psychiatric distress. A group (n = 543) of students completed online measures of substance use, anxiety, depression, perceived stress, and insomnia. A series of reasons behind their use were ranked based on importance. Reported cannabis, cocaine, nitrous oxide, ketamine, and MDMA use were most prevalent based on lifetime, past year, and month assessments. The experience of anxiety, depression, perceived stress, and insomnia were related to increased reports of substance use. Poor self-confidence and self-medication were key motivators of illicit drug use in those presenting greater psychiatric distress. These outcomes add to the sparse body of literature concerning illicit substance use in relation to psychiatric distress amongst UK students. Furthermore, we provided novel insight into the psychosocial motivators of such use.

Students' estimates of the prevalence of drug use: evidence for a false consensus effect

False consensus, or the tendency to overestimate the extent to which others share one's own attitudes and behaviors, was investigated in a study of 348 university students classified as non-drug users, cannabis-only users, or amphetamine + cannabis users. Participants estimated the prevalence of cannabis and amphetamine use among students. Cannabis and amphetamine users made significantly higher estimates of cannabis use among students than did nonusers, whereas amphetamine users gave significantly higher estimates of amphetamine use than nonusers and cannabis-only users. Correlations between estimates of use among friends and other students were significantly positive for both drugs. The results suggest that students are motivated to overestimate the commonality of their own position on drug use and that their estimates may also be influenced by selective exposure.