Pubdate: Tue, 22 Feb 2005
Source: Daily Tar Heel, The (U of NC Edu)
Copyright: 2005 DTH Publishing Corp
Contact: 
http://www.dailytarheel.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2001/09/28/3bb4e48629448
Website: http://www.dailytarheel.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1949
Author: Joe Ngan
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?219 (Students for Sensible Drug Policy)

WEB SITE LOOKS AT MARIJUANA USE BY STUDENTS

Researchers at San Diego State University have created a Web site allowing 
students to perform a confidential self-assessment of their marijuana use.

The researchers created e-TOKE -- the electronic THC Online Knowledge 
Experience -- in response to research from the Harvard School of Public 
Health showing that the percentage of college students using marijuana is 
increasing.

"The latest research from Harvard shows the use of marijuana is 
significantly influencing campuses," said Douglas Van Sickle, dean of 
students at San Diego State University.

The number of college students who used the drug in the last year increased 
from 23 percent to 30 percent from 1993 to 2001, according to the study. 
About 98 percent of students who use marijuana also binge drink or use 
other illicit substances.

The e-TOKE program is designed to motivate students to reduce their 
marijuana use by using personalized information about behavior and risk 
factors, Van Sickle said.

In addition to demographic information, the Web asks students to enter data 
about their use of marijuana, spending patterns and lifestyle choices.

Responses are compared with national and local college norms, allowing the 
program to provide personalized feedback comparing students to their peers. 
It also discusses the negative consequences of marijuana use and provides 
links to campus and community resources.

E-TOKE is a spinoff of another program called e-CHUG, used at more than 100 
colleges and universities across the United States for alcohol assessment 
and intervention.

That program has been used more than 77,605 times and has effectively 
lowered students' levels of binge drinking, Van Sickle said.

E-TOKE is being tested at San Diego State and five other institutions: 
Colgate, Duke and Texas A&M universities, the University of Nebraska and 
the University of San Diego. It will be ready for nationwide subscription 
in April.

UNC has no plans to sign onto the program. "I can't say we would be 
interested in buying the program," said Dean Blackburn, assistant dean of 
students. "But we are interested in giving out resources to let students 
obtain the information and help they need."

And some say e-TOKE and other programs of its type aren't really useful. 
"It takes more than a Web site," said Steven Steiner, founder of Dads and 
Mad Moms Against Drug Dealers, an anti-drug organization. "What we need to 
do is change the culture."

Steiner said college students are influenced by pro-drug organizations and 
"liberal ideologies" on campus. He said it would be better for colleges to 
hire more conservative professors instead of spending money on programs 
like e-TOKE.

Tom Angell, communications director for Students for Sensible Drug Policy, 
said the site should provide neutral information about drug use.

"We need accurate, nonjudgmental and reality-based information," he said. 
"We haven't really seen too much in the United States."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom