Peer influence and self-esteem as predictors of substance abuse among secondary school adolescents in Nigeria

This study examined the relationship between peer influence and self-esteem on substance abuse among senior secondary school adolescents in Ovia North-East, a Local Government Area of Edo State, Nigeria. Three research questions were raised with their corresponding hypotheses formulated and tested at 0.05 alpha level of significance. This research adopted the correlational survey research design. The population comprised 11,985 students in both public and private senior secondary schools in Ovia North-East, a Local Government Area of Edo State. Simple random sampling was used and a sample of 450 students were selected. The research instrument was a questionnaire entitled 'Substance abuse, Peer influence and Self-esteem Questionnaire'. Adapted from the 'Drug Use Questionnaire' (DAST-20) by Harvey A. Skinner (1982); 'Peer Influence, Aggressive behaviour and Attitude to Vandalism Survey Scale', and 'Parenting Styles and Self-Esteem Questionnaire'. The data was analysed using linear regression. The findings revealed that both peer influence and self-esteem are significant predictors of substance abuse among senior secondary school adolescents. It is therefore recommended that secondary schools have a working counselling centre and professional counsellors who can offer group and individual counselling sessions for victims of substance abuse.