STUDENTS WHO USE DRUGS OR ALCOHOL FOUND MORE LIKELY TO SUFFER VIOLENCE

College students who use drugs or alcohol are more likely to become victims
of physical violence, according to a report released Thursday by the Core
Institute at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.

Researchers at the institute analyzed questionnaires from 89,874 students
at 171 U.S. colleges, and found that 43 per cent of the students reported
that during the previous year they had been victims of various forms of
violence, including physical and sexual assault and ethnic and racial
harassment. Sixty-four percent of the physical-assault victims said they
had been under the influence of alcohol or drugs when they were attacked,
as did 79 per cent of those who were sexually assaulted.

Among the report's other findings:

Students who engaged in binge drinking were three and a half times as
likely to have been victims of physical attacks as those who did not. The
binge drinkers also were three times as likely to have been sexually
assaulted.

Nearly two-thirds of the students believed that alcohol had enhanced social
activity on the campus, but half also reported that alcohol and drug use by
fellow students had interfered with their quality of life.

Alcohol was the most widely used drug on campuses, with 83 per cent of the
students reporting its use in the past year. Tobacco was second, and
marijuana was third, with 31 per cent of the students saying they had used
marijuana during the past year.

Copies of the report may be obtained for $6 each by sending an e-mail
message to the institute, at coreinst@siu.edu, or by calling Jennifer
Whiting there, at (618) 453-4366.