Et udstrakt selv

Abstract

Artiklen undersøger unge studerendes (18-25 år) narrativer om trivsel og håndtering af præstationskrav i forbindelse med at være under uddannelse. Unges brug af receptpligtig medicin til ikke-medicinske formål som at trives eller præstere bedre diskuteres i lyset af et øgende præstations- og effektivitetspres i det danske uddannelsessystem. Analysen viser, at de unge bruger medicin ud fra meget forskellige logikker og forbehold. Nogle unge normaliserer egen brug og ser den som en legitim måde at håndtere oplevet pres på og som en mulighed for at differentiere sig. Andre mener, at de burde kunne klare sig uden. Disse unge fortæller om etiske dilemmaer og om en følelse af at snyde og at bevæge sig væk fra et ’autentisk’ selv. Mange unge fortæller om en følelse af utilstrækkelighed og om stor ambivalens over for de samfundsmæssige krav, de oplever. Artiklen diskuterer, hvorvidt den øgende individualisering i samfundet, både når det gælder valg og ansvar, måske kræver for meget af unge under uddannelse.

Beyond Pressure and Perfectionism – Student Struggles in Contemporary Denmark from the Perspectives of Educational Counsellors

“…Furthermore, counselors are concerned about the increase in diagnoses among young people in general, as well as about indications that more students than before use performance-enhancing drugs. Finally, they are concerned about the pressure that is born of the requirement to present oneself as a successful being on social media [39]. The counselors reflect on how recent structural developments also cause new requirements for their daily work with the students.…”

“…We have until now described recent changes from the perspective of educational counselors, but the tendencies described above are also central in our interviews with students as described elsewhere [12,18,39]. In the next section, we discuss how the counselors understand some of the different coping strategies used by students.…”

“…Overall, study counselors are quite concerned with recent reforms of the educational system which is also described in research [39,41]. They find that recent changes in Denmark, for example, the implementation of the 'progress reform' in 2005, has had a large influence not only on the educational pressure that students must deal with but also on their own role and ability to help students, who face difficulties.…”

Making sense of pharmaceutical cognitive enhancement: taking stock and looking forward

“…During these times, a sense of urgency or 'crisis' can provoke a shift in personal ethics where drug use is considered more of a necessity than a choice as a mechanism of managing performance and achievement. Thus, a sense of ambivalence is often embedded in narratives around PCED use (Bjønness, 2018;Krøll, 2019, this issue;Loe & Cuttino, 2008).…”

“…However, and as several scholars assert, this prohibitory stance and identity of these substances as prescribed or controlled medicines does not appear to be putting everyone off using them as PCEDs, (see for example, Bjønness, 2019;Petersen & Petersen, 2019, both this issue). Furthermore, studies have found that some PCED users regard the medicinal status of PCEDs as a symbol of their safety despite their consumption practices falling outside of medically sanctioned uses (Bjønness, 2018).…”