Substance abuse in young people in Europe

Substance abuse in young people in Europe

Introduction

Substance abuse is the harmful or hazardous use of psychoactive substances such as alcohol and illicit drugs (WHO, 2019). The psychoactive substances can lead to dependency, where the user experiences a powerful urge to use the medication and difficulties in controlling its use. In extreme cases, the user persists with use regardless of any harmful consequences they suffer, and most end up prioritizing the drugs than other meaningful responsibilities. Alcohol use and misuse account for 3.3million deaths every year (WHO, 2019).

The effects of substance abuse are adverse and felt not only by the individual but also their family and society around them. It is, therefore, necessary to understand the leading causes that are related to substance abuse and the effects it has on the population. The study seeks to examine risk and protective factors and their inter-relation for the psychopathology of substance use among adolescents and young adults in the American community.

Literature Review

People who drink alcohol are also likely to smoke tobacco and indulge in other forms of substance abuse. There are different explanations to this phenomenon ranging from biological to mental, that can contribute to concurrent alcohol and tobacco use and dependence over time. Environmental influences can as well act as triggers for cravings of substance use and offer breeding grounds for the initiation of new users. Mental disorders are the primary effects felt by the user and can adversely affect their emotional, physical, and social interaction with the environment immediately next to them. Therefore, one’s pattern of behavior can be changed by mental influence from substance use. Psychological forces are highly blamed for the indulgence in this form of abuse. Cultural and social impacts are also highlighted for substance use.

Psychological factors

Psychological factors deal with those that are connected with one’s cognitive, emotional, and mental abilities. They develop and mature as one grows, and exposure to stressful environments either from self or external factors can cause one to turn to substance abuse. Developmental exposure to toxic stress has been found in 54% of the addiction population (Susan, 2018).  Examples of such importance include neglect, loss of a guardian, physical and sexual abuse, and involvement in a dysfunctional household.  According to research carried out by Wagner in 2017, risk factors for addiction increase the chance of lifelong habit by 4-10 folds across different drug classes. It is well established that exposure to various types of stress can elevate craving for cocaine and hasten relapse (Colleen, 2018).

Studies on the relationship between drug abuse and social stress focus on stress exposure during adolescence and adulthood.  The two developmental stages offer a time for experiments, experiences, and heightened levels of sensitivity and irritability. Exposure to stress at this time is associated with the onset of drug use and abuse. Studies also show that chronic addiction can result from early initiation to the use of alcohol, tobacco, and other stimulants.

Initial perinatal strain impacts brain development and functioning, increasing sensitivity in behaviors, especially among adolescents.  The tensions are associated with depression, anxiety, and schizophrenia, and drug abuse. Disorders such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), conduct disorder, and oppositional defiant disorder are linked to drug use and misuse. When such conditions present, response to stimulants is increased.  Stress accelerates the appearance of behavior and brain development relative to external controls.

Socio- structural factors

Social network topology is influenced by people’s residence, their economic status, including their income and social status. The topology affects the typical type of drug used and its availability in a given area. A study conducted in a socially marginalized neighborhood of Vancouver indicated that personal use of a drug was proportional to the drug availability in the area ( Maisto and Conners, 2019).  A study carried out in Portugal highlights socio-economic marginalization and exclusion as major vital factors contributing to drug initiation and use. Hostile neighborhoods, such as slums and ghettos, are prone to high drug use prevalence. Adolescents born and raised in such communities are likely to find they indulge compared to those from cultured ones.

The economic status of an individual influences the availability of funds to purchase a drug and facilitate its use.  The family’s economic status as well as influences the behavior of most of the family members, especially the breadwinners. For instance, a person coming from a poor background is likely to indulge in substance abuse due to stress. Unemployment renders one idle allowing them to indulge in substance abuse. Those of higher economic statuses that are employed may not have a lot of free time for indulgence but have the resources for the purchase of the drug.

Cultural factors

Culture incorporates a set of rules, including beliefs, values, and traditions held by a given community. Social groups can be classified based on race, geographical setup, employment status, and age, among other socio-demographic factors.  The groups have standard guidelines that dictate what is morally right and how to uphold one’s behavior tailored to them. Some cultures, such as those of the Central and South American groups, favor tobacco smoking; thus, for most people, smoking is culturally accepted (Maisto and Conners, 2018). This type of permissions, however, do not dictate to what tobacco level is not harmful and thus exposing unknowing users to health problems such as organ cancers and failures.

Adolescence is characterized by efforts to achieve the objectives related to the expectations of the culture (Collen, 2018). Among adolescents and young adults, peer pressure can influence the initiation of alcohol, tobacco, and drug use for most feeling the need to belong to a particular group. Gatherings participated by members of this group are dominated by substance indulgence, and thus recruitment of new members is motivated.

Culture can have both negative and positive influence as it has been used to form seemingly successful intervention programs. Members of a given society can also impact negatively on the recovery process of individuals primarily through stigmatization that has seen most people on treatment relapse.

Substance abuse relapse

Different situations make people prone to relapse after substance abuse treatment. Most of the cases are related to social pressure to drink and can lead to abusive drinking and drug use patterns. The recovering patients often feel the pressure to be accepted back in their friendship circles and achieve a positive emotional state and thus find themselves indulging in substance abuse (Arnett, 2016).

The family set up and functioning impacts the progression or relapse of a patient. For instance, if a patient was using drugs due to family-related stress, and they find such conditions present, there is a high chance of relapse. In a study conducted among women, a high percentage of decline was recorded within six months for those that had spouses and significant others participating in substance use. Victims of any form of abuse also suffer decline when they go back to find their oppressors in the family.

Recovering patients highlights that stigmatization from the community as well pushes them to relapse. The patients that end up suffering from substance use disorders find themselves being discriminated from society and even by close friends and family. They end up afraid, confused, and feeling indifferent and alone, hence turn to the drug that once made them feel invincible.

Despite the numerous studies carried out, intervention and prevention programs, trends of psychopathology related to substance abuse in the American population remain on the rise. Studies have been carried out on the independent factors, that is, socio-structural, cultural, and psychological that influence the disorders. However, there is scarce information available on the inter-relation of the elements as an intervention measure in psychopathology. It is against this gap that this paper seeks to examine the risk and protective factors, and their inter-relation for related psychopathology in the American population.

Research question

Risk and protective factors and their inter-relation for psychopathology related to substance use among adolescents and young adults in the American population.

Research methodology

Qualitative research is a method of observation to gather non-numerical data, while quantitive research refers to objective measurements and the numerical analysis of data.  Qualitative research focuses on concepts, definitions, and characteristics, while quantitive research focuses on their counts and measure. Qualitative research explains how a phenomenon occurs while quantitive shows the occurrence of the event.

The study aims at using a qualitative method as it seeks to find an explanation from a study group that is not manipulated. The study will adopt a cross-sectional exploratory design to study adolescents and young adults at a specific time in eleven substance use treatment centers. Adolescents are aged between the ages of 10-19 years, while young adults are between the ages of 18 to 35 years. The target group is of interest as they are the most vulnerable to substance initiation, abuse, and addiction. The sample size is representative of the whole population that is chosen to participate in a given study. The ten centers have a total population of 800 patients. Out of the 800, 580 are adolescents and young adults. The study looks to include all of the 580 cases in the research.

Purposive sampling allows researchers to choose the members of the population to participate in the study, relying on their judgment. This strategy will be used as the researchers have prior knowledge on the purpose of the study, thus can quickly identify eligible respondents.

Data will be collected from focus group discussions and key informant interviews and triangulated to ensure credibility. The inductive analysis will be carried out to match findings to analytical principles. The method will be applied as there are few studies to explain the chosen theory.

References

ARNETT, J. J. (2016). The Oxford handbook of emerging adulthood.

MAISTO, S. A., GALIZIO, M., & CONNORS, G. J. (2019). Drug use and abuse.

NATIONAL ACADEMIES OF SCIENCES, ENGINEERING, AND MEDICINE (U.S.), & COMMITTEE ON THE SCIENCE OF CHANGING BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SOCIAL NORMS. (2016). Ending discrimination against people with mental and substance use disorders: the evidence for stigma change.

COLLEEN A. HANLON. (2018). Characteristics of relapse following adolescent substance abuse treatment.

SUSAN L. ANDERSEN. (2019) .Stress, sensitive periods and subastance abuse Volume 10

WHO  (2019). https://www.who.int/topics/substance_abuse/en/