Anonymous questionnaires were used to study the extent and associated
beliefs of a varied sample of 186 students aged 19-25 in the north of
England.
Over half had tried Ecstasy, and the majority of these had taken it over 15
times. It was found that light users only used ecstasy on special
occasions, while heavy users took it regularly, mostly once or twice a
month. Heavy users tended to take Ecstasy at clubs while light users tended
to use it among friends at private parties. Users were significantly more
likely to take other drugs such as marijuana, amphetamines and
hallucinogens, though less likely to use alcohol.
Enjoyment was the universal motive for taking Ecstasy - none answered
addiction, habit, experience or boredom. However, there was a marked
difference between the perceived outcome of use among users and non-users.
Non-users were far more likely to evaluate the effects of Ecstasy
negatively, such as being feeling lethargic, having mood swings, more
frequent use and feeling run down. There was a tendency for heavier users
to perceive more positive and less negative outcomes of use, although even
heavy users had only moderately positive attitudes.
