Drug Abuse among In-School Adolescents in Nigeria

International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI) | Volume VII, Issue I, January 2020 | ISSN 2321–2705

Drug Abuse among In-School Adolescents in Nigeria

Agatha Francis ZIRRA
Department of Science Education, Adamawa State University, Nigeria

Abstract: – The most susceptible and deeply engaged group in the social menace of drug abuse are in school adolescents. However, in the mainstream media, drug abuse among school teenagers has lately dominated debate. In Nigeria, the threat of drug abuse has reached an appalling level and every fibre of culture has been penetrated. Teachers, parents, religious officials and other stakeholders have tried to identify the causes and methods to manage it. This emphasis the need for the vice to be curbed. This article therefore seeks to examine drugs abuse among in-school adolescents and the implications for counselling. It examined a range of topics such as the concept of drug abuse, drug abuse theories, causes of drug abuse among teenagers in schools, drug abuse impacts on school adolescents’ learning and investigated methods of preventing or controlling curved drug abuse. Finally, some recommendations were made that could help curb the threat of drug abuse among in-school adolescents in Nigeria if adopted.

Keywords: Drug abuse, in-school adolescents, peer group, cocaine and nicotine.

I. INTRODUCTION

Adolescence is a time of transition from infancy to adulthood, and several physical, psychological and social modifications mark the critical developmental period. Adolescents are 14 – 25year age segment of the population. In Nigeria, most learners in schools are generally between 14 and 25 years of age (Olugbenga-Bello; Adebinpe; Abodurin, 2009). Teen age is a time of exploration, research, curiosity and a search for identity. This includes some risk-taking, including the use and abuse of psychoactive substances, which are the drugs that have their main impacts on the brain and which cause an individual’s mood to sedate, encourage or alter. Adolescents face the enormous job of identity-building. The fresh cognitive abilities of mature teenagers enable them to think about who they are and what makes them special. Identity consists of two parts: one self-concept and the other self-esteem. Self-concept is a collection of views about oneself that include characteristics, roles, objectives, concerns, values, religious beliefs and political beliefs.

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