DRUG USE MISPERCEIVED ON CAMPUS

It turns out that Duke isn't really the party school everyone seems to
think. According to the American College Health Association National
College Health Assessment, Duke students believe that the use of drugs
and alcohol on campus is more prevalent than it actually is. The
study-which is conducted at Duke every two years-was last reported in
Fall 2006. The results revealed fairly large discrepancies between
what students perceive and what students actually do. At Duke, 15.5
percent of students reported never drinking alcohol, though students
predicted that only 2.3 percent of the student body were nondrinkers.
Although the perceived percentage of alcohol use, at 70.8 percent, is
on par with what is actually consumed, 74.6 percent, the perceived
prevalence of starting heavy drinking upon coming to Duke is not accurate.

The perceived use of tobacco and marijuana greatly exceeds actual use
as well. The study shows that Duke students believe 67.2 percent of
their peers smoke cigarettes at least once a month, but only 10.4
percent of students actually smoke with this frequency.

Marijuana showed a similar discrepancy, with 7.3 percent of students
reporting using the drug at least once a month, although responders
estimated that 63.4 percent of their peers smoke with that frequency.

The prominence of greek life at Duke may have an effect on students'
perceptions, said Jean Hanson, administrative director of the Student
Health Center. At the Student Health Center's table during Blue Devil
Days, Hanson said they often get questions from parents asking if
there really is "all that partying," noting that tour guides sometimes
hype the party scene.

Hanson said, however, that greater frequency may not be the case-but
greater availability could be the issue. "My perception from talking
to students is that if you want something, you can find it on campus,"
she said. "There are some students that flaunt the drugs or alcohol
that they have, but they certainly are not the majority." Those who do
party hard, however, will brag about how drunk or high they are,
Hanson said, often seeing it as a means of fitting in or competing
against one another, even if they don't drink or do drugs or do so
only in moderation. Freshman Jeremy Steinman said such a difference in
numbers could be attributed to former experience. Cigarette and
marijuana usage rates were high in high school, he said, leading him
to believe it would be more prevalent in college.

Hanson added that she believes some students are just bringing their
habits from home. "One favorite story is several years ago I went to
the ABC store on Friday of Parent's Weekend and found myself in line
behind about 20 parents with students," Hanson said. "I commented on
this to the cashier, who said it's their busiest weekend of the
year-beats New Year's Eve. 'They're all stocking their kids' bars.'"
For Steinman, his Saturday evenings stay dry in his dorm room watching
movies, playing video games or making use of the often-empty gym to
play basketball. He said the range between actual substance use and
what is perceived does not surprise him, even with the reported 0.2
percent of daily use of alcohol as opposed to students predicting that
26.9 percent of their peers use it daily.

In terms of inflated numbers, Steinman said his views are based on
what he sees while sitting in the halls of his dorm Saturday nights:
people returning from a night of drinking, whereas those who are not
out partying are behind closed doors studying. "I can say for
freshmen, for a lot of us-maybe 90 to 95 percent-it's the first time
we're living without limits away from our parents, so it's kind of a
luxury to do things unrestricted," Steinman said. "Some people would
think that we would go overboard, whereas in reality we're Duke
students and we're not that stupid."