In my graduation thesis, I conducted research on the prevalence of drug use for studying purposes in the population of students at the University of Ljubljana. During my studies, I noticed the frequent use of drugs for studying, but at the same time a lack of information about the risks and side effects of drug use. The results will be used to create harm reduction guidelines for drug use for studying purposes. In the theoretical part, I described the concept of young people in a risk society and described the difficulties that young people face. I presented the statistics of drug use and defined the concepts of recreational use, tolerance, dependence and addiction. I touched on the concept of harm reduction and low-threshold programs. I described the main groups of drugs and their effects on the psychophysiological characteristics of people. Additionally, I presented the findings of existing research on the use of drugs for studying purposes and highlighted the role of social work in addressing drug use-related issues. The research is quantitative, descriptive and empirical. I collected the data using the questioning method. The measuring instrument is an online questionnaire that contained 26 closed or semi-open questions. The population consisted of students of the University of Ljubljana who were enrolled in any year of undergraduate or master's studies in the academic year 2022/2023, except for the first year of undergraduate studies. I used non-random and convenience sampling. The sample consists of 190 units. I analyzed the data quantitatively. The results of the online surveys showed that almost half of the students in the sample use drugs to study. Students most often use stimulants, especially caffeine. Drug use does not differ significantly between faculties. The most common reasons cited for drug use were facilitating learning, enhancing productivity, and managing feelings of being overwhelmed. The presence of drug use is not associated with higher academic achievement. Students reported feeling most burdened by the volume of study obligations, the pursuit of good academic results and financial responsibilities. Those who used drugs for studying reported a slightly higher burden in daily responsibilities compared to non-users. Students feel that they are well aware of the risks and side effects of drug use. The drug use prevalence among students in my research sample is significantly higher than the general population in Slovenia. However, due to the small sample size and sampling method, I cannot make direct comparisons with existing studies. Nonetheless, most of the obtained results align with previous research findings. These results can serve as a foundation for further qualitative exploration. I suggest expanding and repeating the study on a larger sample. I have proposed to Drogart, a local harm reduction organization, to develop specific guidelines for drug use for studying purposes based on the obtained results. I recommend that the University of Ljubljana assess the burden experienced by its students and develop guidelines to support them in coping with stress and overload. Furthermore, I suggest individual faculties establish an online counseling platform to assist students with academic and personal challenges.
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