WOMEN, DRUG USE, AND DRUG TESTING

Abstract

The drug-related attitudes and behaviors of female intercollegiate athletes and their views on drug testing were assessed and contrasted with those of male athletes at the same university. Results indicated that college women athletes' attitudes toward drug use and drug testing correspond to conventional gender-related expectations about drug use among the general population, and so do the attitudes of male college athletes. Women student athletes preferred wine and men preferred beer; more women used coffee and over-the-counter drugs, and more men used tobacco or smokeless tobacco. Marijuana was the most commonly used illegal substance among college athletes. Intercollegiate women held more positive attitudes regarding drug testing than men and felt stronger about the importance of testing for all classes of drugs. Only a minority of male and female college athletes felt that athletes should be tested for the use of alcohol, tobacco, and prescription drugs.