Bollettino epidemiologico nazionale

Survey on the Use of Drugs Among High School Students, Casale Monferrato, (Piedmont Region) Italy

Donata Prosa, Marinella Arduino and Maria Elena Michelone

Substance Abuse Unit, Local Health Authority 21, Casale Monferrato

To monitor the use of drugs among adolescents and to obtain the data needed to develop a prevention program, a study was conducted among high school students in Casale Monferrato, a small town in the Piedmont Region of northwest Italy. The specific objectives of the study were to examine the extent to which drugs were available, especially new drugs (1), in the environments frequented by young persons and to determine the extent to which the students had contact with the drug subculture.

The questionnaire was designed and used by the Department of Social Affairs of the Ministry of Welfare (2) during a 2000 information campaign. It was targeted towards adolescents and was administered around the country to evaluate the drug-using attitudes and behaviors. The questionnaires, which were strictly anonymous, were administered during class  to adolescents attending the third year of high school.  At Casale Monferrato, the study was conducted between December 2001 and March 2002. A total of 392 students between the ages of 16 and 17 participated, of whom 63% were female.

When the students were asked how they prefer to spend their free time, the role of friends was highly evident. Approximately 85% stated that they spend their free time talking with friends, although the percentage was higher among girls (89%) than among boys (77%). Sixty-eight percent of the boys and 44% of the girls indicated that sports were their favorite pastime, followed, for both sexes, by watching TV, using the computer, and going to discotheques.

Most of the students (66%) had seen drugs circulating in the places they commonly frequented.  Among the places where they had seen drugs, 59% reported seeing them in discotheques, 58% among their social group, and 54% at school. The number of students who reported having seen drugs circulate in the discotheques exceeded the number who reported that going to the discotheque was among their favorite pastimes.

The Table presents the opinion of the students regarding the most common drugs in circulation among their peers. Marijuana and hashish were reported with about the same frequency as was alcohol, although it was impossible from the survey to determine the frequency of actual use of these substances. Students were specifically asked about how readily available Ecstasy was, and 66% reported that it was easily obtained. Discotheques were considered the easiest place to obtain it (92%), followed by the street (a49%) and the _____ (34%).

Among the motivations for why students use drugs, 66% stated they did so out of curiosity, 57% because everyone was doing it, and 55% for pleasure. Less important factors were a sense of emptiness (36%), rebellion (34%) and pleasure (32%). Among the reasons that could induce adolescents not to use drugs, 69% reported that it was possible to have fun without using them, 53% because they knew they could be harmful, and 42% because they were stronger than the peer pressure placed on them. Other less frequent responses included fear of consequences, lack of interest, lack of occasion, and positive peer influence.

With respect to information on drugs, 40% stated they knew some, 33% a fair amount, and 17% that they were well informed; only 7% stated they knew little and 2% that they knew nothing. It was not, possible, however, to evaluate the accuracy of the information available. When they were asked if they wanted to know more, 77% said yes: 32% because they were curious, 25% for social reasons, 20% to be able to handle themselves better. According to the students, the preferred sources of information are the school (79%) and the media (56%), while the government and the family were less often mentioned.

Our results suggest widespread availability of drugs in Casale Monferrato, especially in discotheques, among peer groups, and at school. The fact that Casale Monferrato is a small town increases the likelihood that the students would know the local situation regarding drug availability and use.

Among the most commonly available substances were alcohol and marijuana as well as Ecstasy. The informational networks created within peer groups and the school probably contribute to the findings on the ready availability of Ecstasy. Furthermore, the attention given to this drug by the mass media may have increased awareness of the circulation of this drug.

The results suggest that the peer group should clearly be the target for preventive activities. In response, efforts are being made to creating peer counselors and opening a site where students can come to discuss and receive counseling for drug use and other problems.

Comment

Iliaria Palma, Piergiorgio Zuccaro

Observatory for Smoking, Alcohol and Drugs, ISS

The survey conducted among students of Casale Monferrato offers a valuable opportunity to discuss several important considerations about adolescent risk behaviors, including drug and alcohol use.

The questionnaire conducted in this small town in the Piedmont Region in northern Italy represents a local reality in a specific age group, adolescents 16-17 years of age. The students were asked to respond in an anonymous fashion to a series of questions about drugs and their availability, what types of drugs are most frequently used, and how difficult it is to obtain drugs. The students were never directly asked whether they used these drugs, even though the students reported that the most frequently used substances were alcohol, marijuana, and hashish. Although these data do not correspond to the individual use of drugs on the part of the students, representing instead their opinions about such use, the numbers are nonetheless in line with what is reported in other studies conducted in Italy and elsewhere in Europe.

In a study regarding drug use among adolescents that was conducted among 3169 18-year old males in the Piedmont Region (3), the same region in which this study was conducted, 4-6% of the students drank wine, beer, and liquor on a daily basis. In another study (4), conducted at European level on adolescents 14-15 years of age that also involved iii666 Roman schools, the prevalence of regular alcohol use ranged from 3.4% in Bremen (3.5% in Rome) to 16% in Dublin. These results should lead us to reflect about the fact that, while the media and schools tend to give more emphasis on more visible drugs that have more emotional impact, the problems caused by the use of alcohol may be seriously under-estimated.

References

1.Geninatti S, Bellavia F, Chieppa G. Contributo alla definizione di nuove droghe. Bollettino per le farmacodipendenze e l’alcolismo 2001; 24: 16-30.

2.Disponibile da: http://www.minwelfare.it.

3.Siliquini R, Faggiano F, Geninatti S, et al. Patterns of drug use among young men in Piedmont (Italy). Drug alcohol depend 2001; 64: 329-35.

4. McArdle P, Wiegersma A, Gilvarry E, et al. European adolescent substance use: the roles of family structure, function and gender. Addiction 2002; 97: 329-36.