Proscription and acceptance of drugs-taking habits in the Netherlands

Samenvatting

In an effort to collect data on illicit drug use in the Netherlands, questions on illicit drugs were combined in a questionnaire along with patterns of medication & consumption of medical drugs. 1,622 R's from 73 Dutch communities were interviewed & given a questionnaire, in their homes. Results suggest: (1) positive attitudes about drugs appear to coincide with positive attitudes about sex, & a greater emphasis on leisure as opposed to work; (2) the drug-user does not fit the stereotype image of the drop-out; (3) individuals from small parental families tend to report more permissive attitudes, more factual knowledge, & more actual use of drugs; (4) no association was evident between drug use & the evaluation of one's youth; (5) no r was found between drug use & indications of oral fixation; & (6) neuroticism shows a slight (but significant) r with drug use. Combined, the evidence points to the fact spreading to the general population, & that a slow trend toward a more lenient perception of the use of drugs is evident. A discussion of the functional aspects of drugs, as well as their future is included. 4 Tables. J. Grimes.