The abuse of prescription stimulants among college students is a growing public health concern. While these substances are often viewed as safe, “smart drugs”, they are associated with a number of maladaptive outcomes, ranging from poorer academic performance to cardiovascular incidents and even death. To date, the majority of research on the abuse of these substances have focused on demographic factors which are not amenable to intervention, such as race, Greek organization status, and class rank. The current study examined family factors, academic stress, and impulsivity as potential risk factors which are amenable to intervention. In a sample of 335 undergraduate students, no associations were found between family variables and prescription stimulant abuse or academic stress and prescription stimulant abuse. Inconsistent support was found for an association between impulsivity and prescription stimulant abuse.

Mémoire en recherche-création / L’usage de smart drugs pour améliorer les capacités cognitives est devenu un problème majeur depuis les années 1970 et revêt une importance croissante dans le contexte moderne (Denis, 2021). Ce mémoire explore les motifs d’usage de psychotropes à des fins de performance parmi les programmeurs. L’objectif principal est de comprendre si l’usage des substances vise principalement l’amélioration personnelle et le dépassement de soi, ou si elle découle de problématiques plus complexes et multifactorielles. Pour y parvenir, la méthodologie repose sur une approche qualitative en trois étapes : 1) Netnographie — analyse de 40 fils de discussion sur un forum de programmeurs pour appréhender de manière globale la profession et les motivations liées à cette utilisation; 2) Entretiens semi-structurés — réalisation de quatre entretiens avec des programmeurs pour comprendre leurs expériences professionnelles, les compétences requises, les pressions subies et les défis rencontrés. Les entretiens ont été transcrits, codés dans le logiciel Nvivo et soumis à une analyse thématique; 3) Triangulation des données – croisement et confrontation des informations des deux premières étapes afin d’approfondir l’analyse du phénomène, améliorer la compréhension, et renforcer la validité et la fiabilité des résultats. Les données analysées révèlent que les programmeurs font face à des pressions professionnelles accrues, avec des motivations de consommation allant de la recherche de performance à la gestion du stress. Toutefois, une pression sociétale valorisant la réussite personnelle et professionnelle sous-tend ce contexte. / The use of smart drugs to enhance cognitive abilities has become a major issue since the 1970s and is of increasing importance in the modern context (Denis, 2021). This dissertation explores the motives for performance-enhancing psychotropic drug use among programmers. The main objective is to understand whether substance use is primarily aimed at self-improvement and self-transcendence, or whether it stems from more complex, multifactorial issues. To achieve this, the methodology is based on a three-stage qualitative approach: 1) Netnography - analysis of 40 discussion threads on a programmers' forum to gain an overall understanding of the profession and the motivations associated with this use; 2) Semi-structured interviews - conducting four interviews with programmers to understand their professional experiences, the skills required, the pressures experienced and the challenges encountered. The interviews were transcribed, coded in Nvivo software and subjected to thematic analysis; 3) Data triangulation – cross-referencing and confrontation of information from the first two stages in order to deepen analysis of the phenomenon, improve understanding, and reinforce the validity and reliability of results. The data analyzed reveals that programmers are facing increased professional pressures, with consumer motivations ranging from the quest for performance to stress management. However, a societal pressure to value personal and professional success underpins this context.