It’s 11 p.m. on a Friday night. People are heading over to SAE or Bob or wherever there might be booty-shaking music.

But not the 30 or so students still hard at work in Meyer Library.

Is it just midterm season? Or is there a subculture of workaholism at Stanford?

Workaholism is an actual disorder under which an individual is addicted to work. Few Stanford students are willing to label themselves or their peers as workaholics, but striking a good balance between work and play is a concern on this campus.

The culture of workaholism extends from school to the workplace, as many companies promote an atmosphere of competition between their employees.

According to WebMD, an online health information resource, workaholism is a form of obsessive-compulsive disorder. It’s not the same as working hard or working a lot of hours. Rather, work becomes an all-consuming activity and prevents a workaholic from enjoying time outside of work.

For Stanford students, schoolwork is unavoidable, but most students don’t view themselves as workaholics.

“From what I see from my peers, they work pretty hard — but we don’t make a big deal out of it,” said freshman Huong Thei, who spent Friday night reading for I-Hum in Meyer’s 24-hour study room.

Some students said that they think it is not cool to make a big deal about schoolwork or to be perceived as someone who studies a lot.

“At Stanford there’s a lot of closet studying,” said sophomore Mastoora Nasiri.

She cited the often-heard analogy that Stanford students are like ducks — swimming along effortlessly on the surface, but paddling like crazy underneath.

However, Nasiri admitted that she does study a lot and sometimes has trouble enjoying free time.

“If I’m not studying, I feel guilty,” Nasiri said. “I feel like I have to be studying. Sometimes I won’t be studying, but I won’t be enjoying myself.”

Others felt a sense of competition on campus that drives some students to work too much.

“We’ve all been crammed into the same campus, and there are enough of us to reach overachiever critical-mass,” said Ian Spiro, a co-terminal student. “Chances are, you want to be this busy. And if you don’t, then you look lazy in comparison to your roommate, friends, Resident Assistant, etc.”

“I’ve gotten to the point a few times where I realized I was just doing too much,” Spiro added. “But I don’t think it’s appropriate to up and quit at the moment you realize you are overworked. More important is to recognize that situation and look out for the next critical point in your life where you’ll be deciding how busy to be for the future.”

This balance is hard to establish. Junior Laura Hyde, a volunteer at the Bridge Peer Counseling Center, said that she has counseled many students who were stressed out by schoolwork.

Donnovan Somera Yisrael, a health educator at Vaden Student Health Center, finds that Stanford students tend to over-commit themselves.

“How much can you realistically do?” he asked. “My lesson for people is you can’t do it all.”

This tendency to over-commit may be due a culture of achievement orientation, where a person’s self-worth is based on his or her accomplishments.

When asked what to do if a friend has problems related to workaholism or academic stress, Yisrael suggested that the worst thing to do is stay silent.

“Confrontation at some point needs to happen,” he said. “Two things to say are, ‘I care about you’ and ‘I’m concerned about you.’”

Yisrael added that “You can’t change people, but you can give them feedback.”

There are a host of resources at Stanford that can aid students in managing academic-related issues. Counseling and Psychological Services at Vaden offers one-on-one counseling sessions that are free to registered Stanford students. Additionally, Health Promotion Services, also at Vaden, offers workshops on stress management.

If students are looking for peer support, Peer Health Educators in student residences and the Bridge can provide these types of services.

For those struggling with a fear of anything less than pristine, Yisrael stressed that no one is perfect.

“It’s perfectionism that tears you down,” Yisrael said. “The best students in the world, they come to this school. They compare themselves to everyone else, and they feel like losers.”

“Students should strive for mastery, “ Yisrael said, “not perfection.”