ABSTRACT
The study investigated the prevalence of drug abuse among undergraduate students in the Faculty of Education at the University of Benin, located in Benin City. The population consisted of all 400-level students from the Faculty of Education, with a total of 160 samples selected, 20 from each of the eight departments.
Five research questions were generated for the study. These questions aimed to determine the most commonly abused drugs by undergraduate students at the University of Benin, identify the factors influencing drug consumption, assess the prevalence rate of drug abuse among undergraduate students, examine the implications of drug abuse among these students, and propose strategies to stop the harmful habit of drug abuse.
A self-designed questionnaire was used to collect responses from the participants. The collected data was then subjected to statistical analysis, and the results of the study, including the data collected in tabular form, were interpreted using SPSS, to determine the prevalence of drug abuse among undergraduate students at the University of Benin.
The findings revealed that the most commonly abused drugs by undergraduate students at the University of Benin were alcohol, cigarette smoking, marijuana, and spirit. It was also found that most students at the university take drugs out of curiosity and frustration. Among other recommendations, the study suggested that preventive health education should be intensified in the university. It was also recommended that counseling and rehabilitation should be provided to students who have experienced drug abuse in order to help integrate them back into society.
