The study explores drug abuse by learners in selected Grahamstown high schools. The study`s main concern is that drug abuse by learners is on the rise but yet there is less research on the drugs which are being used and the factors which motivate the learners to use such drugs. There are several drug abuse prevention strategies which are being implemented but yet they seem not to be very effective. It is in this frame of reference that this study saw it vital to focus on drug abuse by high school learners in Grahamstown. The study aims to identify the most commonly abused drugs by learners in the high schools of Grahamstown and the reasons why they use these drugs. The study made use of the mixed method research that is making use of both qualitative and quantitative research. The questionnaire was the instrument of data collection in quantitative data and interviews for the qualitative data. The packages which were used for the analysis of data include the Statistical Analysis System (SAS) V8 which was used to provide descriptive analysis and correlations. The findings of the study establish that the commonly abused drugs by learners are: alcohol with 58%, followed by cigarettes 22%, hookah-pipe 9%, dagga 7%. The main reasons why learners use drugs are: peer pressure, role models, availability, environment, and curiosity. Differences in drug use between male and female learners were noted. Twenty-five percent of the male learners and 16% of the female learners reported to be using drugs. In the view of these results, the researcher recommends that a comprehensive drug abuse prevention framework be formulated which focuses on preventing drug abuse at individual, family and community levels.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:ufh/vital:11759 |
| Date | January 2012 |
| Creators | Rungani, Judith |
| Publisher | University of Fort Hare, Faculty of Social Sciences & Humanities |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis, Masters, M SW |
| Format | 121 leaves; 30 cm, pdf |
| Rights | University of Fort Hare |
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