Student Perceptions of Prescription Drug Use to Improve Academic Performance

gr-students-webTabitha Grier-Reed, Associate Professor in the Department of Postsecondary Teaching and Learning, had students from her PsTL 1281 Principles of Psychology class have their research accepted and presented at the Minnesota Psychological Association (MPA) Annual Convention. The group of students conducted a project titled “Student Perceptions of Prescription Drug Use to Improve Academic Performance: Survey Research Project” as part of Grier-Reed’s PsTL 1281 course. The team developed an online questionnaire and surveyed college students about using someone else’s prescription drugs to enhance academic performance. They hypothesized that most students would believe that using prescription drugs without a prescription to enhance academic performance was not wrong, and at that least half would admit to engaging in this practice. Grier-Reed was extremely proud of this group as she heard them discuss the importance of cultural differences and changing norms regarding prescription drug use. This innovative study echoed findings by Dodge, Williams, Marzell, and Turrisi (2012) recently highlighted in the APA Monitor.