Personality Correlates of Drug Preference among College Undergraduates

Three groups of college drug users–those expressing a preference for marijuana, amphetamines, or barbiturates–reported on experiences resulting from their drugs, and these groups, together with a group of nondrug-users, completed the Omnibus Personality Inventory (OPI). On the OPI the nonusers appeared more conventional and conforming than each drug group. Those preferring marijuana were less anxious than any other group, but the most distinctive group was that preferring barbiturates, which appeared the least intellectually inclined and the most emotionally distressed. This group's personality dispositions also seemed generally concordant with the experiences they reported from the drug.