Peer Influence and Illicit Drug Use Among Adolescents in Secondary Schools of Makindye Division Kampala, Uganda

Abstract This study examined peer influence in relationship to illicit drug use by adolescents in secondary schools of Makindye Division, Kampala. Research interest in drug use stems from its increased frequency in the past decades making it a worldwide public health problem. The global burden of disease projected that tobacco, alcohol and illicit drugs were 2nd, 9th and 20111 consecutively the leading cause of mortality globally. This report further projected that tobacco smoking alone would lead to 1 billion deaths globally during the 21st century (Degenhardt, Whiteford et al. 2013). Reported recent use of most illicit drugs in the 14-19-year age group has been found to be increasing (Kacwamu, 2010; Nyangoma, 2015; URHN, 2016). Illicit drug use has been associated with economic, criminal, social, and short and long term health problems. Alcohol use is one of the main causes leading to morbidity and mortality among adolescents (UDHHS, 20014 in Strong 2017). The purpose of the study was to examine the extent to which peer relationships contribute to illicit drug use among students in Makindye division, Kampala district, Uganda. A correlation study was carried out to establish the relationship between peer influence and illicit drug use. Two schools were purposively sampled from which a sample of 482 students was picled using Simple random sampling technique. Data was collected by administration of questionnaires and analyzed using SPSS version 18 and presented in frequency tables. A Cronbach’s Alphavalue of 0.817 was an adequate measure of reliability. The study revealed that 22.8% of the respondents currently use illicit drugs with alcohol and cigarettes most commonly used. There is a significant relationship between peer influence and illicit drug use among adolescents in secondary schools. There is a significant difference in illicit drug use between male and female students of secondary schools. Peer influence was found to be a very strong predictor for illicit drug use among and there is a significant difference in illicit drug use between male and female students of secondary schools. There is need for affirmative policy formulation to provide and encourage use of student friendly disciplinary measures like guidance and counseling by professional teacher counselor.