Study Finds Student Popularity Affects Drug And Alcohol Consumption

The consumption of drugs and alcohol by teens is not just about rebellion or emotional troubles. It's about being one of the 'cool' kids, according to a study by led by researchers at the Canadian Université de Montréal School of Psychoeducation with help from colleagues at Norway's University of Oslo.

The study, which is to be published during the next year as part of a collective work, was conducted on more than 500 French- speaking students at three separate moments of their lives: at ages 10 to 11, 12 to 13 and 14 to15. It took into consideration the popularity of the child and their friends and tracked their consumption of alcohol, marijuana and other drugs.

The findings showed an increase in consumption, as the child aged, regardless of their popularity level. However, the more popular a child and their friends were, the greater this consumption was. There was a two-fold between increase between ages 10 and 15 for the most popular kids who also had very popular friends. However, this trend did not apply to popular kids whose friends were not as popular.

"Our study highlights a correlation between popularity and consumption," says Jean-Sébastien Fallu, lead researcher and professor at the Université de Montréal's School of Psychoeducation, who said their study results suggest that popular teenagers are more at risk if their friends are also considered popular.

"Teenagers don't consume to belong to the group or to increase their popularity level, they do it to remain well-liked," Fallu said. "It's more about keeping their status than increasing it."