Family structure, peer pressure and substance abuse among adolescents in secondary schools Wakiso district case study: St Mary’s secondary school Wakiso district

Abstract

The study was aimed at finding the relationship between family structure, peer pressure and substance abuse among adolescents in St Mary’s secondary school Wakiso district. The study targeted 103 respondents 55 males and 48 females aged 12 to 19 years. The researcher used simple random sampling. The objectives of the study were to examine the relationship between family structure and peer pressure, to examine the relationship between family structure and substance abuse and then to examine the relationship between peer pressure and substance abuse among adolescents. The family structure Four Factor Questionnaire Scale was used to measure family structure. The peer pressure scale was used for measuring peer pressure and alcohol and substance abuse test for alcohol and other substance abuse. The hypotheses were tested using Pearson correlation coefficient and logistic regression. The study results showed that there is no significant relationship between family structure and peer pressure. Results showed that there is no significant relationship between peer pressure and substance abuse and that there is no significant relationship between family structure and substance abuse. The recommendations included sensitization programs, setting stronger laws and regulations on sell of drugs abused plus parenting sessions.