“Lock in” — a phrase employed habitually by today’s youth to communicate the necessity of concentration. “Locking in” requires discipline. It requires self-control. It requires … Adderall? Concerningly, a growing number of college students are relying on non-medical prescription stimulant drugs like Adderall to focus on their studies.
As a senior in college, you wouldn’t believe the number of times I’ve heard the term “undiagnosed ADHD” thrown around to justify taking an Adderall, especially when a final that’s 50% of your grade is approaching. Such excuses demonstrate my generation’s tendency to devalue the discipline of concentration. Humans aren’t born with this ability. It is a skill we must develop and improve. However, it’s likely that the abuse of NMPSs is a growing issue due to decreasing attention spans and an instant gratification mindset typical of today’s average college student.
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a legitimate mental health disorder, and stimulant drugs like Adderall are used to treat those professionally diagnosed with ADHD. Presently, more and more college students illegally use Adderall to enhance concentration and productivity. According to a survey by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the 18- to 25-year-old age group has the highest prevalence of NMPS usage, and 18- to 25-year-old college students are two times more likely to report NMPS use than 18- to 25-year-olds not in college. Aside from the questionable ethics, non-prescribed use of any prescription-only medicine poses significant health risks. There are serious side effects, so it is critical that users be evaluated and prescribed the medicine by a licensed healthcare professional. College students using NMPSs skip the medical evaluation and prescription process, unknowingly subjecting themselves to serious health consequences.
The gravity of stimulant drug misuse is evident. So, why are college students increasingly taking NMPSs? Their motive is clear: success. It’s not surprising that these students, burdened with stressful academic loads and future professional pressures, are swayed to take drugs that help them block out the college chaos and “lock in.” In a Brigham Young University study, researchers used Twitter to track college students’ use of Adderall and found that Adderall mentions across the app peaked during the middle of the week and spiked during final exam periods. This data insinuates a relationship between stimulant drug use and busy, stressful time periods for students. Students use stimulants as a shortcut: pop an Addy, and the inconvenient effort it takes to ignore distractions and concentrate on a given task is significantly reduced. This is the attitude too often employed by today’s overwhelmed students.
Research conducted at the University of California, Irvine testifies to modern-day society’s decreasing attention spans. The research data shows a decrease in the average attention span from two and a half minutes in 2004 to a mere 47 seconds as of late. There are a multitude of causal stories to explain this escalating inattentiveness: increased social media usage, greater technologies, greater stress, etc. However, the key takeaway is that decreased attention spans reinforce college students’ unprescribed use of stimulant drugs.
Another contributor to college students’ stimulant drug abuse is the desire for instant gratification. From one double-tap on Instagram to one swipe up on TikTok, today’s society gets that dopamine hit – that feeling of temporary pleasure – at record speed. Over time, this instant gratification mindset causes impatience and impulsivity. As a member of Gen Z myself, I can testify to such effects. Our generation is accustomed to TV streaming platforms that allow you to watch a whole season of a show at once. Recently, my friends and I began to watch a new show with weekly episode releases. Our disconcertion and annoyance at waiting a whole week between episodes exemplifies the instant gratification mindset that pervades Gen Z. Although more serious, the abuse of stimulant drugs is another manifestation of our generation’s desire for instant gratification.
Accustomed to this instant satisfaction and burdened by shortening attention spans, college students are increasingly susceptible to NMPS abuse. Stimulant drugs like Adderall offer the quick fix to our concentration dilemmas. This is not to say that no college student has legitimate need for stimulant drugs nor that every college student abuses them. Learning disabilities are rightful justifications for stimulant drug use, but they require credible medical diagnosis — not situational self-diagnosis.
As a Vanderbilt student, I am surrounded by academically driven and disciplined students who have mastered the art of concentration. These exceptional students are exactly why I felt compelled to write this article, because I know our generation is capable of “locking in” without drug assistance. We must understand that concentration is a state we cannot instantly gratify. It might be harder for some more than others, but it is an ability that can be developed and improved with adequate motivation and discipline.
