Drug and substance abuse among university students

Abstract Research objective: The main objective of the study was to explore drug and substance abuse among university students. Specifically, the study sought to investigate factors influencing drug and substance abuse and find out the effect of drug and substance abuse on university students. Methods: The study adopted mixed method approach. Triangulation was used in data collection both questionnaires and focus group discussions were used to collect data. Multistage sampling was used to get representation from all the five schools within the university. In each school, cluster sampling was while at programme level, simple random sampling was used. Snowball sampling technique was be used to identify the drug and substance abusers who were now targeted for interviews in focus group discussions. Quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Qualitative data was analyzed using common theming method. Results: The study established three factors which influence drug and substance abuse among university students. The factors in order of significance are peer pressure, student residence and family background of the students. In terms of influence of drugs and substances, they impair student judgement, affect quality of sleep, and lowers the performance of students both in class and outside class. Conclusions and Recommendations: The study concluded that the social groupings which generate peer pressure, the type of accommodation for the students and family influence on students need to be considered in student mentoring to effectively manage the menace of drug and substance abuse. The study recommends a turn round strategy by the university in dealing with drug and substance abuse menace to improve performance retention and completion rates.