The Stigma of Anabolic Steroid Use

• Author: Scott Griffiths,Jonathan M. Mond,Stuart B. Murray
• DOI: 10.1177/0022042616661837
• Published date: 01 October 2016
• Date: 01 October 2016
• Subject Matter: Articles

Journal of Drug Issues

2016, Vol. 46(4) 446 –456

© The Author(s) 2016

Reprints and permissions:

sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav

DOI: 10.1177/0022042616661837

jod.sagepub.com

Article

The Stigma of Anabolic

Steroid Use

Scott Griffiths1,2, Stuart B. Murray3,

and Jonathan M. Mond2,4

Abstract

Little is known about the stigma of anabolic steroid use despite clear implications for

treatment-seekers and for public policy development. We investigated the predictors

of steroid stigma and contextualized the results by comparing steroids with marijuana.

Undergraduates (N = 304) completed measures of drug stigma, exposure to drug users, and

history of drug use. Participants stigmatized steroid use more than marijuana use—a very large

effect. Participants reported less exposure to steroid users. Nevertheless, 15% of participants

reported having a steroid-using friend. History of drug use, but not exposure to steroid users,

predicted lower steroid stigma. Drug use and exposure both predicted lower marijuana use

stigma. The amount of stigma expressed toward steroids is commensurate with that of “hard”

drugs, such as heroin, likely constituting a formidable barrier to treatment. The public’s difficulty

empathizing with male body image insecurities may partially explain why exposure to steroid

users did not predict lower stigmatization.

Keywords

steroids, anabolic steroids, steroid stigma, marijuana, marijuana stigma, illicit drugs, illicit drug

stigma, substances stigma

Introduction

Anabolic steroids are illicit drugs used to enhance muscle development and exercise performance.

Prolonged use of anabolic steroids has been linked with numerous adverse physical and psycho-

logical outcomes, including damage to the cardiovascular system, neuroendocrine system, and to

cognition (D’Andrea et al., 2007; Far, Ågren, & Thiblin, 2011; Griffiths, Murray, Mitchison, &

Mond, 2016; Kanayama, Hudson, & Pope, 2012; Kanayama, Kean, Hudson, & Pope, 2013;

Santora et al., 2006). Anabolic steroid use has also been implicated in the etiology and mainte-

nance of muscle dysmorphia (Rohman, 2009) and forms the basis for a recently proposed psychi-

atric condition called anabolic-androgenic dependence syndrome (Kanayama, Brower, Wood,

Hudson, & Pope, 2009). Reported rates of anabolic steroid use are highly variable, particularly

1University of Sydney, Australia

2Australian National University, Australia

3University of California San Francisco, CA, USA

4Western Sydney University, Australia

Corresponding Author:

Scott Griffiths, School of Psychology, The University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.

Email: sgri6476@uni.sydney.edu.au

661837JODXXX10.1177/0022042616661837Journal of Drug IssuesGrifths et al.

research-article2016