Drug Use Is Prevalent During Virtual Raves, According to New Study

A new academic study highlights the statistics surrounding virtual event attendance and drug use.

As consumer behavior has made the dramatic switch from in-person to virtual entertainment over the past few months, researchers are beginning to learn more about how fans are adapting to the change.

Researchers at the�NYU Grossman School of Medicine and the NYU School of Global Public Health studied one particular aspect of the switch, inquiring whether virtual festival attendees have a propensity to use drugs during the event. According to the study's lead author, Doctor Joseph Palamar, that's an affirmative. 

"We explored whether stay-at-home orders changed how people use drugs—and it appears that drug use during virtual gatherings is somewhat prevalent among the party-going population we studied," Palamar said.

Around 40% of those surveyed who attended a virtual rave this year also reported using an illegal drug and 70% reported consuming alcohol during the event. Those findings are based off of a survey sample of 128 self-reporting EDM revelers from New York. Based on the survey, it seems the general switch to virtual events has retained the interest of dance music fans overall, with over 55% of the sample reporting that they have attended at least one virtual rave during quarantine. 

Ultimately researchers see virtual events as a potential future touchpoint for outreach with regard to education and harm reduction efforts. The academic study was first published by the International Journal of Drug Policy.

source https://edm.com/industry/nyu-reports-relationship-between-drug-use-and-virtual-raves-in-new-study