Cannabis abuse : a phenomenological study of the causative factors as perceived by patients with a history of Cannabis use, admitted at Bophelong Psychiatric Hospital in the North West Province

Abstract

A phenomenological study was carried out to find out from patients with a history of cannabis use. admitted at Bophelong Psychiatric Hospital, reasons or factors that caused them to use/abuse cannabis. An original sample of 30 male patients between the ages of 16-30 years was selected from chronic (rehabilitation) wards of mentally stable patients awaiting discharge. Out of the 30 subjects, 10 protocols were selected for phenomenological explication. An unstructured type of interview was conducted to aid data collection. According to the data obtained and analysed, youth drug taking is being influenced by peer pressure, the need to escape from reality problems, the need for cognitive enhancement, the desire for improved sell-confidence and modelling of parental drug behaviour. Other significant associated findings were that adolescents who come from single-parent families and low socio-economic status backgrounds are at a high risk of developing cannabis use problems. Male gender was also shown to be a predictive factor towards the abuse of cannabis. Finally. there is an on-going need to identify causative and curative factors of adolescent drug use in an effort to reduce this tremendous loss of our resources. particularly the youth. Therefore, in the development of suitable programmes for assessment, treatment, rehabilitation and prevention, it is Important riot to emphasise any one particular factor as the main and only cause of drug abuse, but to view the different reasons and factors as related to and interacting with one another and forming part of a bigger whole.