Exploring motives of substance abuse among adolescents in Lagos state, Nigeria

Abstract

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency of Nigeria reported in 2021 that 40 % of the youth is engrossed in substance abuse with the age as early as 10 years old. Adolescents that start trying out psychoactive substances are putting their physical, psychological and general health and wellbeing at risk. Recent studies mentioned that substance abuse is seen by adolescents as socially acceptable and a cultural norm. Coupled with their inherent urge to try new things, adolescents are more likely to engage in substance abuse. Most of the available studies have focused on the prevalence and nature of substance abuse and only one study has explored the perception of adolescents towards substance abuse in Kaduna state, Nigeria. Given the widespread prevalence and severity of adolescents’ involvement, there is a need to explore deeper into the motives behind substance abuse. The aims of this study are: (a) to identify the common substances that adolescents’ abuse, and (b) to discover the motives behind the abuse of substances among adolescents. This qualitative phenomenological study employed a purposive sampling method using the snowball technique. Data was collected using semi structured interview that triangulated with focused group discussion and field observation. Seventeen students were interviewed, and 20 students were present for the focused group discussion. The outcome of these research revealed that the most abused substance among the adolescents is alcohol (n = 17), followed by palm wine (n = 15), codeine (n = 4), marijuana (n = 3), tramadol (n = 2). All adolescents abused multiple substances. Thematic analysis revealed motives such as hedonic pursuits, eudaimonic efforts and ecosystem. Hedonic pursuits consist of subthemes such as curiosity and thrill-seeking. Eudaimonic efforts consist of subthemes such as functional, emotional, and social motives. Finally, ecosystem has subthemes such as accessibility, poverty, tradition, and parental influence. The most common substance abused were similar to previous studies. The thematic findings suggested that the government and educational institutions should engage with psychologist and therapists to improve awareness of parents on substance abuse and design exciting and adventurous intervention programs that are consistent with their motives for substance abuse. Keywords: Substance Abuse, Motives, Adolescents, Nigeria.