Currently in the United States, the culture of young adult education is changing due to an increase in the illicit use of prescription stimulants for the purpose of enhancing academic performance. This illicit use is largely due to the “expression of a basic human drive to stimulate the human organism beyond its normal metabolic state” (Mosher and Akins 63). Students illicitly take prescription stimulants to enhance their academic performance with the following motives: to get more energy, enhance alertness, improve concentration, and delay the need of sleep. The main prescription stimulants that are illicitly used by students today are methylphenidate, commonly known as Ritalin, and a combination of dextroamphetamine and amphetamine, commonly known as Adderall.
The prescription stimulant drug illicitly used most frequently is Ritalin. According to Drugs and Drug Policy, Ritalin was discovered accidentally during the 1950s in Rhode Island. It was given to children to help with their headaches, but resulted in “an increase in their activity level and also improved their academic performance” (Mosher and Akins 82). In 1961, the FDA approved Ritalin for sale in the United States. Ritalin was the first prescription drug used to treat attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and continues to “dominate the market in prescriptions written for ADHD” (Levinthal 111). Ritalin has a rapid onset and relatively short duration of effects. When taken to treat ADHD in school age children, Ritalin is taken in two doses per day.
A single dose of Adderall, the other prescription stimulant illicitly used by an immense population of young adult students, has effects lasting longer than Ritalin and has a slower onset and drop-off of effects. School age children that are prescribed time release Adderall usually only need one dose per day to function normally. With this drug, the dose increments are slow and gradual, allowing for the drug to have a more consistent concentration in the body at a given time. Adderall is still a relatively young drug. It was released for sale in 1996, so it is no surprise that it is not as widely used as Ritalin which is nearly half a century old. Since there are more Ritalin prescriptions written, it is the more prevalent stimulant prescription on college campuses, making it the dominant choice to enhance academic performance due to its higher availability rate.
The effects of Ritalin and Adderall on the body and mind are practically identical, due to their related properties. Ritalin is an amphetamine-like drug and Adderall is an amphetamine derived drug. When taken orally, both drugs produce a “slow but steady increase in dopamine activity in the brain” (Levinthal 111). This increased activity of dopamine causes there to be “an improvement in attention and decreased distractibility” and may also “heighten one’s motivation with regard to a particular task, enhancing the salience and interest in that task and improving performance” (Levinthal 112). No wonder students are using these drugs illicitly to enhance academic performance, right?
The use of these prescription stimulants not only provides students with a way to study more efficiently and effectively, but it also does not have the drug behavior context and reputation of other illicit usage of drugs. Ritalin and Adderall are “seen as less risky and ‘cleaner’ than illegal drugs” (Mosher and Akins 176). They are made in government approved laboratories, prescribed by licensed physicians, dispensed by pharmacies, and contained in a labeled bottle. The use of someone else’s prescription drugs seems innocent, strategic, and legitimate; not illegal, irresponsible, and dangerous.
An individual’s consumption of a prescription drug that is not directly prescribed to them is in fact illegal, irresponsible, and dangerous. According to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the distribution or dispersion and the acquiring or obtaining of prescription drugs are both illegal and punishable by law. Some other factors that make illicit prescription stimulant use irresponsible and dangerous are that an individual illicit user cannot be 100% positive that the source of the prescription stimulant is legitimate. If the drugs are bought from or given to the user by a friend, it is more likely that those drugs are in fact the prescription stimulant the user wanted, but it cannot be certain. There is much room for human error in the drug culture. That friend may have grabbed the wrong pills or mistaken the type of pill the illicit user wanted. It is also never certain how an individual will react to any drug. All drug consumption and effects are situational. A student may take Ritalin in order to improve their focus, but end up having too much energy and hyperactivity to focus. Illicit drug use and abuse is trial and error in most cases.
Illicit prescription stimulant use not only produces the favored effects previously discussed, but it also can cause detrimental effects. Some detrimental effects of long term prescription stimulant abuse that make Ritalin and Adderall risky drugs to abuse include “racing heart, nausea, headaches, and insomnia, and prolonged or heavy abuse may result in a state of ‘paranoid psychosis identical to that of chronic methamphetamine abuse’” (Mosher and Akins 82). According to Drugs and Drug Policy, there is little difference in the effects of Ritalin, cocaine, and methamphetamine. A feeling of euphoria, which is also related to increased levels of dopamine activity in the brain, is usually only seen when the drugs are administered through snorting, injection, and smoking. This feeling can lead to an increased chance of addiction to the drugs. Users do not want to feel the drop from prescription stimulants, so they keep taking the stimulants in order to continuously feel the positive effects of the drugs. This continuous intake of prescription stimulants leads to dependence and addiction. It may be perceived that the illicit use of Ritalin and Adderall is less risky than the illicit use of other drugs, but that perception would have a huge gap between it and actuality.
Illicitly using prescription stimulants to enhance academic performance is most prevalent among college students. In a recent study, it was found that “college students (5.7%) reported higher rates of non-medical use of methylphenidate (Ritalin) than their same-age peers not attending college (2.5%)” (McCabe et al. 97). As Teter states, “it may be the common features of the college environment (e.g., staying awake for extended periods of time) that lead to higher rates of illicit use of prescription stimulants” (258).
The overall prevalence of illicit use of prescription drugs in the college environment varies according to what individual study at which particular university is being evaluated. When research was conducted at only one university, the percentage of students that have illicitly used prescription stimulants in their lifetime ranged from 8.1%-20%. In a national survey, it was found that approximately 6.9% of college students had illicitly used prescription stimulants in their lifetime (McCabe et al. 98).
The most widely used motivations for illicitly using prescription stimulants are to get more energy, delay the need of sleep, improve concentration, and enhance alertness in succeeding order according to Prevalence and Motives for Illicit Use of Prescription Stimulants in an Undergraduate Student Sample. In a study at the University of Michigan, 69% of non-medical users of stimulants reported using stimulants to get more energy, 61% used prescription stimulants to stay awake, 58% used the drugs to help them concentrate, and 43% used the drugs to increase their alertness (Teter et al. 256 and 260). In this study, it was also found that some other motives for illicitly using prescription stimulants outside of the academic realm are for experimental purposes, to feel good and get high, and to lose weight. These purposes are measured at up to 43%, but are still not as significant as motives involving the enhancement of academic performance.
In the college environment, there are some student characteristics and university characteristics in which illicit use of prescription stimulants is more prevalent. Students under the age of 23 are more likely to be illicit prescription stimulant users. Males tend to use more than females by about 3%. The white population illicitly uses more than any other race. Individuals that are in a Greek organization illicitly use almost 5% more than non-members. Individuals in a higher socio-economic status are also more likely to illicitly use prescription stimulants (McCabe et al. 99 and 103). Being “more perfectionistic is associated with greater use as well” (Low 283). Universities that have more competitive admissions criteria show a higher use of illicit prescription stimulants among their students. Students that attend small, competitive colleges tend to be “more willing to experiment with amphetamines to enhance academic performance” (Low 286). Universities in the Northeast region of the United States showed the highest percentage of student illicit use of prescription stimulants. All of the characteristics in this paragraph play a role in the likelihood of college students to illicitly use prescription stimulants.
Another factor that may have a take part in the likelihood of illicit use of prescription stimulants is the amount of prescription stimulants available to young adult students. It is widely believed that ADHD is over diagnosed and prescription stimulants are overprescribed. Ritalin prescriptions in the “United States increased by 260% between 1990 and 1995” (Babcock and Byrne 143). In association with Ritalin, “11 million prescriptions are written for this drug every year, and more adolescents have used the substance illegally than are taking it as a result of a doctor’s prescription” (Mosher and Akins 83). In a national survey, it was found that “of the undergraduate students who were medically prescribed stimulant medication for ADHD, approximately 54% had been approached to divert their medication. Over 90% of non-medical users of prescription stimulants who reported a source indicated they obtained prescription stimulants from peers and friends” (McCabe et al. 103-104). It is far too easy to get a prescription stimulant from a doctor or illicitly obtain it from an individual, especially in a college environment. Prescription stimulants are easily accessible and readily given, allowing them to be illicitly used and abused more frequently.
The illicit use of prescription stimulants to enhance academic performance is a concern to our society. For many young adults, illicit prescription abuse instigates additional illegal and risky behaviors. Marijuana use was ten times more likely, binge drinking was almost seven times more likely, cocaine use was over 20 times more likely, and incidents of drinking and driving were five times more likely for young adult students who illicitly used prescription stimulants in the past year (McCabe et al. 102). Once an individual has cheated in a class and gotten away with it once, it becomes easier to cheat the second time knowing that they got away with it previously. In the same mindset, young adult users may view no harm or risk in experimenting with other drugs and dangerous behavior if they are already illicitly using prescription stimulants. This mindset brings an experimental and less honorable culture to young adult students.
In Drugs and Drug Policy, a senior in high school named Costello said, “Nothing bad comes from it, only good” (Mosher and Akins 175). Costello takes several pills of Ritalin a day, and has developed some problems sleeping. Students like Costello are putting their health in jeopardy in effort to reach exceptionally high standards of performance. Costello said that nothing bad came from using prescription stimulants, but he had already accepted and overlooked his sleeping problems. For the most part, users only see the positive effects and results of the drugs they are ingesting. There is nothing bad happening to them, so why not experiment with other drugs too?
Just like cheating on a test, taking drugs to enhance academic performance is not the honorable way to succeed; even though, it gets users the results they want. It may be on a smaller scale than heroin use, but illegal prescription stimulant use is still unethical and dishonorable. Society needs to recognize and accentuate the degradation of integrity associated with illicitly taking prescription stimulants, or young adult students will probably continue to see no problem in taking them.
In weighing their options between studying the natural way or using prescription stimulants, there is an increase in students reaching for academic success using the latter. If students do not know the effects these drugs could have on them and the impact consuming the drugs has on their integrity, they think, “why not use a drug that will aid me to do better?” Society needs to inform young adult students of the detrimental effects and degradation of integrity associated with illicit prescription stimulant abuse, so that young adult students no longer see drugs like Ritalin and Adderall as harmless and innocent.
Works Cited
Babcock, Quinton, and Tom Byrne. “Student Perceptions of Methylphenidate Abuse at a Public Liberal Arts College.” Journal of American College Health 49.3 (Nov. 2000): 143. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Torreyson Library, Conway, AR. 15 Oct. 2008 http://0-search.ebscohost.com.ucark.uca.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=3918728&site=ehost-live.
Levinthal, Charles F. Drugs, Behavior, and Modern Society. 5th ed. Boston: Pearson Education, 2008.
Low, KG, and AE Gendaszek. “Illicit use of psychostimulants among college students: a preliminary study.” Psychology, Health & Medicine 7.3 (Aug. 2002): 283-287. CINAHL. EBSCO. Torreyson Library, Conway, AR. 6 Oct. 2008 http://0-search.ebscohost.com.ucark.uca.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cin20&AN=2009449017&site=ehost-live.
McCabe, SE, et al. “Non-medical use of prescription stimulants among US college students: prevalence and correlates from a national survey [corrected] [published erratum appears in ADDICTION 2005 Apr;100(4):573].” Addiction 100.1 (2005): 96-106. CINAHL. EBSCO. Torreyson Library, Conway, AR. 6 Oct. 2008 http://0-search.ebscohost.com.ucark.uca.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cin20&AN=2005060253&site=ehost-live.
Mosher, Clayton J. and Scott Akins. Drugs and Drug Policy: The Control of Consciousness Alteration. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, 2007.
Teter, CJ, et al. “Prevalence and motives for illicit use of prescription stimulants in an undergraduate student sample.” Journal of American College Health 53.6 (May 2005): 253-262. CINAHL. EBSCO. Torreyson Library, Conway, AR. 6 Oct. 2008 http://0-search.ebscohost.com.ucark.uca.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cin20&AN=2009047473&site=ehost-live.
