Summary
The 1998 National Drug Strategy Household Survey Between June and September 1998, 10,030 Australians aged 14 years and older participated in the National Drug Strategy Household Survey. This was the sixth survey in a series which commenced in 1985 but the first to be managed by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Respondents were asked about their knowledge of drugs, their attitudes towards drugs, their drug consumption histories, and related behaviours.
General findings
Tobacco
Tobacco was primarily associated with a drug ‘problem’ by fewer than one in 20 Australians; two in every five approved of the regular use of tobacco by adults. Two-thirds of Australians had tried tobacco at some time in their lives, and more than one in four were recent smokers.
One in seven persons indicated that tobacco was their first drug of choice, and the ;proportion recently smoking daily or most days declined by two percentage points between 1995 and 1998 to 22%. The average age at which smokers took up tobacco increased from 15.6 to 15.8 years in the same period. Under-age smokers (that is, persons aged under 18 years, to whom it is illegal to sell tobacco products) were likely to have been introduced to smoking by friends and acquaintances. Subsequently, two out of every five under-age smokers obtained their cigarettes from retail outlets. Further, of those teenage recent smokers, nearly 96% also reported using alcohol recently and 76% using marijuana/cannabis recently. Of persons aged 40–49 years who had ever smoked, 60% no longer did so.
Alcohol
About one in every seven Australians primarily associated alcohol with a drug ‘problem’ three in every five approved of the regular use of alcohol by adults. Nine out of every ten Australians had tried alcohol at some time in their lives and three-quarters had recently consumed alcohol. Two in every five persons nominated alcohol as their first drug of choice, and the proportion drinking regularly increased from 44% to 49% between 1995 and 1998. One in four persons consumed alcohol daily or on most days in a week, and two in five consumed less often than weekly. Under-age alcohol drinkers (that is, persons aged under 18, to whom it is illegal to sell alcohol) were likely to have been introduced to drinking by relatives. Subsequently, almost one in every five under-age drinkers obtained their alcohol from retail outlets.
One in six persons admitted to driving a motor vehicle, one in ten verbally abused someone, and one in 50 persons physically abused someone while under the influence of alcohol. Three in every ten persons had been verbally abused and one in every 16 had been physically abused by someone who had been affected by alcohol. In terms of alcohol-moderation behaviour by recent drinkers, the most frequently cited activity to moderate the consumption of alcohol was to reduce the amount of alcohol usually consumed (29%).
Illicit drugs
More than three in every four Australians primarily associated an illicit drug with a drug ‘problem’; one in four approved the regular use of marijuana by adults, and fewer than one in 20 persons approved the regular use of each of the other illicit drugs included in the survey. Almost one in every two Australians had used an illicit drug at some time in their lives and over one in five had used illicit drugs in the previous 12 months.
One in every two persons supported measures designed to reduce harm associated with illicit drug use. Around one in 14 persons nominated any illicit drug as their first drug of choice, with one in 18 nominating marijuana/cannabis as first choice. The average age at which people first tried illicit drugs declined slightly from 16.8 years in 1995 to 16.6 years in 1998. Four in every five illicit drug users were introduced to illicit drugs by friends and acquaintances. Subsequently, most illicit drug users continued to obtain their illicit drugs from friends and acquaintances.
One in 16 persons drove a motor vehicle, one in 50 verbally abused someone, and one in 200 physically abused someone while under the influence of illicit drugs. One in ten persons were verbally abused and one in 40 were physically abused by someone affected by illicit drugs.
Correlates of drugs use
The survey showed that the following appear to influence drug use:
- socioeconomic characteristics such as education, employment, occupational status and cultural background;
- geographical variables such as rural/remote location and the index of socioeconomic status of an area; and
- demographic variables such as marital status.
In general, the survey showed that unemployed persons, persons with low educational qualifications, persons working in blue collar jobs, and persons who were never married were more likely than others to be using drugs.
Preliminary material (175K PDF): List of tables; Preface
1. Introduction (134K PDF)
- Background
- About this report
- Overview - the status of drug use in 1998
2. Use of tobacco (136K PDF)
- Smoking status
- Ages of smokers
- Number of cigarettes smoked
- Multiple drugs use with tobacco
- Source of supply for under-age smokers
- Correlates of tobacco use
3. Use of alcohol (146K PDF)
- Alcohol drinking status
- Frequency of drinking
- Type of alcohol consumed
- Usual place of alcohol consumption
- Amount of alcohol consumed
- Multiple drugs use with alcohol
- Source of supply for under-age drinkers
- Correlates of alcohol
4. Use of non-medical prescription drugs (129K PDF)
- Prescription drug use for non-medical purposes
- Multiple drugs use with non-medical prescription drugs
- Correlates of non-medical prescription drug use
5. Use of marijuana/cannabis (141K PDF)
- Marijuana/cannabis use
- Type of marijuana/cannabis and method of consumption
- Usual place of marijuana/cannabis consumption
- Frequency of marijuana/cannabis use
- Source of supply of marijuana/cannabis
- Multiple drugs use with marijuana/cannabis use
- Correlates of marijuana/cannabis use
6. Use of pain-killers/analgesics for non-medical purposes (132K PDF)
- General use of pain-killers/analgesics for non-medical purposes
- Usual place of pain-killers/analgesics consumption
- Frequency of use of pain-killers/analgesics for non-medical purposes
- Sources of supply of pain-killers/analgesics for non-medical use
- Multiple drugs use with pain-killers/analgesics for non-medical purposes
- Correlates of pain-killers/analgesics use for non-medical purposes
7. Use of tranquillisers/sleeping pills for non-medical purposes (128K PDF)
- General use of tranquillisers/sleeping pills for non-medical purposes
- Usual place of consumption of tranquillisers/sleeping pills
- Frequency of use of tranquillisers/sleeping pills for non-medical purposes
- Source of supply of tranquillisers/sleeping pills for non-medical use
- Multiple drugs use with tranquillisers/sleeping pills
- Correlates of tranquillisers/sleeping pills use for non-medical purposes
8. Use of amphetamines (132K PDF)
- Lifetime and recent use of amphetamines
- Types of amphetamines and methods of consumption
- Usual place of consumption of amphetamines
- Frequency of amphetamines use
- Source of supply of amphetamines
- Multiple drugs use with amphetamines
- Correlates of amphetamines use
9. Use of heroin (129K PDF)
- Lifetime and recent use of heroin
- Types of heroin used and methods of consumption
- Usual place of heroin consumption
- Frequency of heroin use
- Source of supply of heroin
- Multiple drugs use with heroin
- Correlates of heroin use
10. Use of cocaine (132K PDF)
- Cocaine use
- Types of cocaine and methods of consumption
- Usual place of cocaine consumption
- Frequency of cocaine use
- Source of supply of cocaine
- Multiple drugs use with cocaine
- Correlates of cocaine use
11. Use of hallucinogens (133K PDF)
- Hallucinogen use
- Type of hallucinogens used
- Usual place of hallucinogen consumption
- Frequency of hallucinogens use
- Source of supply of hallucinogens
- Multiple drugs use with hallucinogens
- Correlates of hallucinogens use
12. Use of ecstasy/designer drugs (131K PDF)
- Ecstasy/designer drugs use
- Usual place of ecstasy/designer drugs consumption
- Frequency of ecstasy/designer drugs use
- Source of supply of ecstasy/designer drugs
- Multiple drugs use with ecstasy/designer drugs
- Correlates of ecstasy/designer drugs use
13. Use of inhalants (129K PDF)
- Inhalants use
- Usual place of inhalants consumption
- Frequency of inhalants use
- Source of supply of inhalants
- Multiple drugs use with inhalants
- Correlates of inhalants use
14. Use of injecting drugs (126K PDF)
- Injecting drug use
- Frequency of injecting drugs
- Multiple drugs use by injecting drug users
- Correlates of injecting drugs
15. Health and social impact of drug use (180K PDF)
- Use of selected substances by pregnant or breastfeeding women
- Activities undertaken while under the influence of alcohol or other drugs
- Activities undertaken in order to buy alcohol or drugs
- Incidence of alcohol- and other drug-related violence
- Lost days of school or work
- Physical and mental health status of drug users
- Drug consumption status and contact with health services
16. Drug avoidance behaviour (71K PDF)
- Avoidance of cigarette smoke
- Restrictions on smoking in workplaces or educational institutions
- Effort in quitting smoking
- Encouragement to quit smoking
- Intention to give up smoking
- Alcohol moderation behaviour
- Participation in drug treatment programs
17. Awareness of drug problems and drug regulations (122K PDF)
- Drugs thought to be causing the most deaths in Australia
- Likely source of information on health effects of drugs
- Perceived health risk from passive smoking
- Health risk from alcohol
- Awareness of regulations relating to the use of marijuana/cannabis
- Understanding of the term 'decriminalised'
18. Community perceptions of drug problems in society (138K PDF)
- Drugs thought to be associated with a 'drug problem'
- Most serious concern regarding drug use/activity in the community
- Acceptability of regular use of drugs
- Opinion on legal status of possession of marijuana/cannabis for personal use
- Potential consumption rate of marijuana/cannabis if it was legal to use
- Preferred resource allocation to reduce the use of various drugs
19. Community support for drug-related policy (116K PDF)
- Measures against tobacco use
- Measures against alcohol use
- Measures against heroin use
- Support for legalising drugs for personal use
- Support for increased penalties for the sale or supply of drugs
Appendix 1: Relative standard errors
Appendix 2: Definition, measurement and distribution of correlates
End matter (81K PDF): References