NCJ Number
199604
Journal
Justice Policy Journal: Analyzing Criminal and Juvenile Justice Issues and Policies Volume: 1 Issue: 2 Dated: Spring 2003 Pages: 3-11
Date Published
2003
Length
9 pages
Annotation
This article examines the associations between ecstasy use, demographic characteristics, and alcohol and other drug use using a survey of 14,096 household members between the ages of 12 and 25.
Abstract
While media reports suggest that ecstasy use is a pervasive problem among American youth, little scientific evidence exists to support the claim of the drugs’ epidemic proportions. Thus, in order to offer a better understanding of who uses ecstasy and why, the author drew data from the 1998 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA), which surveyed 14,096 household members between the ages of 12 and 25. Respondents were asked questions regarding demographics, previous drug and alcohol use, and criminal history. In the analysis of data, the author first generated descriptive statistics. Second, the respondents were divided into two groups: those who had used ecstasy and those who had never used ecstasy. Third, logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate any associations between ecstasy use and other statistically significant variables. The findings paint a picture of the average ecstasy user as older, white, and likely to have used other types of drugs in the previous 12 months. The author points out that the current study does not allow analysis of polydrug use. Future research should probe the extent to which ecstasy users are using multiple drugs in the same session. References