Why do College Students use ADHD Medications Non-Medically?
In addition to documenting the prevalence of non-medical ADHD medication use by college students, recent studies have examined the reasons why students engage in this behavior. Results from one study conducted at a large public university in the mid-west found that the motives most commonly reported by students were to help with concentration (58%), to help with alertness (43%), and to “get high” (43%) (Teter, McCabe, Cranford, Boyd, & Guthrie, 2005. Journal of American College Health, 53, 253-262). These results were largely replicated in a second recent study conducted at the same university, where the most commonly reported motives were to help with concentration (65.2%), to help with studying (59.8%), to increase alertness (47.8%) and to “get high” (31%) (Teter, McCabe, LaGrange, Cranford, & Boyd, 2006. Pharmacotherapy, 26, 1501-1510.). Similar findings from a study conducted at a public university in the northeast have also recently been reported (White, Becker-Blease, & Grace-Bis
