Members of the DePauw Debate society argued about whether taking Adderall to increase focus while studying is cheating.
Freshmen Mickey Terlep and Matt Piggins argued the government stance that taking Adderall is a form of academic integrity, while juniors Ronnie Kennedy and Vincent Guzzetta argued the opposition.
Adderall is a prescription drug used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Like Ritalin, another drug used to treat ADHD, Adderall contains amphetamines, the same substances in meth and cocaine. According to the Drug Enforcement Agency, Adderall is a Schedule II drug, which means it has a high potential for both physical and psychological dependence. Schedule II drugs are considered dangerous. On college campuses, students use Adderall and similar drugs to increase their focus while studying and to boost their GPAs.
The DePauw debate centered on what the university's stance should be on Adderall as it relates to academic integrity. The government side argued that Adderall use is cheating because it gives some students an unfair advantage over others.
"There is a direct correlation [in college] between how long students study and how well they perform," Terlep said. "If you have students who can study longer using Adderall, then they are going to perform better."
Terlep also pointed out that using Adderall when not prescribed is a federal offense and that Adderall use has been labeled cheating in professional athletics.
"If it's illegal and cheating in sports," Terlep said, "why should it not be illegal and cheating in academics?"
The opposition argued that Adderall use should not be considered cheating because Adderall has the same effects as caffeine, allowing students to focus better and stay up longer. The opposition sited studies showing that Adderall does not improve complex memory, or a person's ability to reason and manipulate information.
"The idea that 'I'm going to take a pill and be Sherlock Holmes for a day' is simply not how it works," Guzzetta said. "Labeling Adderall as a "smart pill" creates the idea that there is some advantage."
The opposition did acknowledge the Adderall improves wrote memory, or a person's ability to memorize facts. Still, they maintained Adderall is not useful for college students.
"At best, the placebo effect motivates people to study," Kennedy said. "When society perpetuates the idea that the pill is a God-send by labeling it a 'smart pill', it makes people want it more."
The debaters talked a lot about the side effects of Adderall as well. Besides addiction, side effects include cardiac arrest, psychological defects and death due to overdose.
"Side effects are a good measure for if [Adderall] is legal or not," Kennedy said.
University policy, the opposition to Adderall said, needs to take a stand against the drug.
"If the university says [Adderall use] is not cheating," Terlep said. "They're condoning the use of a drug despite its side effects."