Investigating the extent of substance use by Form 4 students on the school premises

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine whether the phenomenon of substance use on the school grounds by Form 4 students exists and, if so, how serious this phenomenon is. The study compared the results between state and non-state schools and the difference in gender. Furthermore, another objective was to detect whether the school status has an effect on the phenomenon of substance use and to explore the causes of such use. The research tool used to carry out this investigation, were questionnaires administered to a sample of Form 4 students attending twenty-four state and non-state schools around Malta, during the months of February and March, 2006. The sample consisted of 651 students, of whom 336 were males and 315 were females. Another aspect of this study was to disclose the approaches and measures used by eight heads of schools to deal with such problems if such a problem was reported - and to establish if these heads were familiar with the Substance Abuse Procedures. Findings indicate that the phenomenon of substance use does exist in schools; it is more prevalent in state school students and males are the predominant users. Pleasure, stress relief, curiosity, addiction, rebellion and testing out the school's disciplinary system are major factors. Most state school heads were unaware of the Substance Abuse Procedures. This is a social phenomena and nobody should exaggerate or minimise the grave reality.