Studying on stimulants : the misuse of prescription stimulants as study aids among Flemish higher education students

In this doctoral research we investigate the misuse of prescription stimulants among a population of college and university students. Despite alarming prevalence rates, as well as concerns that have been raised in both the public and academic sphere, research on stimulant misuse is still scarce. To date, the main body of research has primarily been quantitative, teaching us about the magnitude of this public health problem and about individual level determinants of this misuse, mostly in a US context (Benson et al., 2015). There is, however, a clear dearth of scientific literature reporting (1) which student groups are vulnerable to prescription stimulant misuse, and why they misuse these stimulants (demand side) and (2) how these students access the prescription drugs (supply side) (Wilens et al., 2008), stressing the need for further research on the topic. This PhD thesis aims to fill these research gaps and generate scientific knowledge on the misuse of prescription stimulant medication among Flemish students, using a comprehensive mixed-method research design focusing on two vital stakeholders: students and general practitioners.Public defense: 2021-06-16In this doctoral research we investigate the misuse of prescription stimulants among a population of college and university students. Despite alarming prevalence rates, as well as concerns that have been raised in both the public and academic sphere, research on stimulant misuse is still scarce. To date, the main body of research has primarily been quantitative, teaching us about the magnitude of this public health problem and about individual level determinants of this misuse, mostly in a US context (Benson et al., 2015). There is, however, a clear dearth of scientific literature reporting (1) which student groups are vulnerable to prescription stimulant misuse, and why they misuse these stimulants (demand side) and (2) how these students access the prescription drugs (supply side) (Wilens et al., 2008), stressing the need for further research on the topic. This PhD thesis aims to fill these research gaps and generate scientific knowledge on the misuse of prescription stimulant medication among Flemish students, using a comprehensive mixed-method research design focusing on two vital stakeholders: students and general practitioners.D