Influences of Substance Abuse Among School Children

Substance abuse among children is a devastating problem that not only effects the user, but the world around them as well.  Substance abuse can influence families by causing disruption and conflict and can bring suffering to the entire family. Substance abuse can also negatively influence schools by disrupting progress when a number of students are involved in substance abuse and the deviating acts that may come with it, such as selling drugs, stealing, etc. Communities as a whole can also be affected negatively through drug related violence and crime and social problems such as child abuse and homelessness.

What causes or reinforces substance abuse youth? A number of factors can contribute to the issue including family and peer influences. Families are the primary source of emotional support for children. When children have a healthy home life and a stable support system, they are less likely to use drugs that a child that does not have the stable home. Peer influences also dictate indications for substance abuse. The Peer Cluster Theory illustrates the bond between friend groups and substance abuse. It says that substance use occurs among peers socially. These groups can range from a duo of friends to a cluster of people that ultimately have the same opinion on using substances. These youth normally gravitate together through experiences with the same problems (family life, school, etc.). The theory focuses on the social and psychological factors behind substance abuse.

The theory gives implications of treatment through one of two ways. (1) Prevention- Using family, school and fiends to secure an environment where substance abuse does not take place. (2) Treatment- This involves removing the child from the peer group that is reinforcing the abuse, or changing the peer group as a whole. Therefore treatment and prevention programs must take peer groups into consideration when combating this problem.

An experiment was conducted using qualitative research though interviews and observation to gain knowledge on influences of substance abuse. Eight students were interviewed for the study. The participants revealed that problems with their families at home caused them to use substances. They would use to relieve stress from the problems they faced at home. The study showed that the most influential causes of abuse were peer pressure and issues within the family. The Dreyer and Tlale suggest that schools needed to put more influence on drug abuse prevention programs and that there should be adjustments made in the time span of treating abuse and the environment in which the treatment happens.

One of the biggest limitations of this research was the use of purposive sampling. Although there were reasons for its use in this research, purposive sampling can cause bias on the part of the researcher through narrow questions, etc. Also, there were only eight students interviewed, which may not be enough to accurately assess the entire population. 

Tlale, L. D. N., & Dreyer, S. E. (2013). Contextual influences of substance abuse problems among school children.Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences, 4(13), 361-366. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1524991124?accountid=12085

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