Knowledge of Substance Abuse Among High School Students in Jordan

Abstract

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to explore the knowledge, attitude, and beliefs about substance abuse among Jordanian adolescents (aged 15-18 years). Design: A descriptive design was employed using a self-administrated questionnaire to collect the data from 400 high school students. Methods: A multistage, random sample was generated in selecting schools from the educational directorate located in a large urban city located in the north of Jordan.This city district contains 23 public secondary schools and serves 56.8% of the adolescents in the entire province. Results: The results revealed the following: Students of both sexes were knowledgeable about aspects of substance abuse, including its harmful effects on the body and society and reported that even occasional or frequent use of cigarettes, alcohol, and other drugs was extremely harmful. A majority of the students perceived substance abuse as a problem, although the older students were more acutely aware than the younger group. However, the results revealed that the students lack in-depth knowledge of substance abuse. In addition, the adolescents consistently refer to Islamic principles forbidding use of intoxicants but mistakenly presume that mosques are sources for assistance regarding substance abuse. Conclusions: Policy makers, health workers, and religious leaders must collaborate to build structured educational programs and readily accessible, evidence-based treatment programs for adolescents. Given that young people constitute the majority of the Jordanian population and that drug trafficking is prevalent in the region, the implications of prevention programs are critical to maintaining gains in public health outcomes as well as economic progress and development in Jordan.