Universitários e a relação entre uso de drogas, assertividade, estratégias de coping, impulsividade e suporte social: um estudo misto

Abstract

Global economic expansion demands increasingly qualified professionals, driving the increase in the number of young people and adults in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), where, in addition to acquiring knowledge and skills and socializing, they may face psychological distress and the risk of drug use. This academic path, although it promotes knowledge, skills and socialization, can also lead to psychological distress and drug use. Assertiveness and coping strategies can facilitate academic adaptation, while their absence tends to induce maladaptive responses, impulsivity and, eventually, drug use, and social support, in this context, can mitigate or exacerbate these difficulties. Understanding the interactions between university students, assertiveness, coping strategies, impulsivity and social support can foster preventive and intervention strategies for promoting mental health. The thesis analyzed the constructs assertiveness, coping strategies, impulsivity and social support based on the network of interactions between these variables and drug use by university students, investigated the predictive factor of the variables in university students who are drug users and non-users, and the understanding of the aforementioned constructs from the context of university students undergoing treatment for chemical dependency. Composed of three studies, the thesis uses a mixed cross-sectional method. Study I analyzes the interaction between the dimensions of the scales: Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST), Rathus Assertiveness Scale (RAS), Brief COPE Scale, Barratt Impulsivity Scale (BIS-11) and Social Support Scale of the Medical Outcomes Study’s Social Support Scale (MOS-SSS), through Network Analysis (RA) of 505 university students (367 used legal and/or illegal drugs and 138 did not use them). Data collection was carried out online, using Google Forms, and analyses were performed using R software, version 4.4.0. Study II, of an explanatory quantitative nature, used the instruments already mentioned in study I to investigate the predictive factor of assertiveness, coping strategies, impulsivity and social support (independent variables) in 505 university students who are drug users and non-users (dependent variable), with analysis using Poisson Regression. Finally, study III, an exploratory qualitative study, sought to deepen the understanding of the constructs in 07 university students undergoing treatment at CAPS AD III, applying the same, in addition to semi-structured interviews, with analysis supported by Thematic Analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006). The results of the thesis indicate that assertiveness is connected to the dimensions of coping strategies, behavioral disinvestment and self-blame in university students who use drugs. Nonadaptive coping strategies, such as substance use, behavioral disinvestment and selfoccupation, combined with social interaction and motor impulsivity are factors that increase drug use. In college students undergoing treatment for Substance Use Disorder (SUD), shyness and passive and/or aggressive behaviors stand out to deal with intrapersonal and interpersonal difficulties, with drug use increasing feelings of rumination and worsening the condition. It is concluded that the college trajectory involves complex interactions that, associated with individual characteristics, can influence drug use among students. The study suggests intervention proposals addressing the studied variables as a mechanism to promote quality of life and prevent drug use among college students.