Domestic violence, depression and substance abuse among adolescents

Abstract

The study aimed at finding out whether domestic violence, substance abuse and depression among adolescents living in the slums of Bwaise-Kawempe division. The study indicated a significant relationship between domestic violence and depression among adolescents which implied that when adolescents’ experiences constant beatings, threats, abuses and constant quarrels between the two parents, his or her chances of developing depression are so high compared to an adolescent who does not experience that. The study went further to find a significant relationship between domestic violence and substance abuse among adolescents which implies that adolescents who constantly observe or experience constant fights or abuses within their families tend to resort to abusing substances as the mean of copying. The study also found depression and substance abuse to be significantly related among adolescents. This implies that adolescents who are depressed are more likely to go into drugs as a way of coping with depression than their colleagues who are not experience any form of depression.