Reported Reasons for Initiating Drug Use among Drug-Dependent Adolescents and Youths in Yunnan, China
Background: As an entry point for illicit drug trafficking, Yunnan was hit hard by the twin epidemics of drug abuse and HIV/AIDS. There are no empirical studies regarding the reasons for initiation of drug use in Yunnan. Objectives: The study investigated the reasons for initiating drug use in drug-...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
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Informa Healthcare USA
2009
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/39756 |
| _version_ | 1848755678324195328 |
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| author | Yang, L. Li, Jianghong Zhang, Y. Maycock, Bruce |
| author_facet | Yang, L. Li, Jianghong Zhang, Y. Maycock, Bruce |
| author_sort | Yang, L. |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Background: As an entry point for illicit drug trafficking, Yunnan was hit hard by the twin epidemics of drug abuse and HIV/AIDS. There are no empirical studies regarding the reasons for initiation of drug use in Yunnan. Objectives: The study investigated the reasons for initiating drug use in drug-dependent adolescents and youths in five regions in Yunnan. Methods: The data were collected in 2004–2005 from a stratified random sample of 467 registered drug addicts under age 25. Pearson chi-square tests were used to analyze the association of reasons for drug use with sociodemographic factors, knowledge of drug related harm, and access to illicit drugs. Results: Curiosity was the most commonly reported reason for initiating drug use and the majority of the respondents reported having little or no knowledge of drug-related harm. The majority of the drug abusers initiated drug use at the age of 13–14 years or younger. Conclusions: There is a potential for sustained educational programs to reduce the high prevalence of adolescent drug use in Yunnan. Scientific Significance: This is the first empirical study that has investigated reasons for initiating drug use based on a random sample of registered drug users in a high risk province of China. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T09:00:07Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-39756 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T09:00:07Z |
| publishDate | 2009 |
| publisher | Informa Healthcare USA |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-397562017-09-13T15:51:04Z Reported Reasons for Initiating Drug Use among Drug-Dependent Adolescents and Youths in Yunnan, China Yang, L. Li, Jianghong Zhang, Y. Maycock, Bruce illicit drug abuse Yunnan Adolescent and youth China Background: As an entry point for illicit drug trafficking, Yunnan was hit hard by the twin epidemics of drug abuse and HIV/AIDS. There are no empirical studies regarding the reasons for initiation of drug use in Yunnan. Objectives: The study investigated the reasons for initiating drug use in drug-dependent adolescents and youths in five regions in Yunnan. Methods: The data were collected in 2004–2005 from a stratified random sample of 467 registered drug addicts under age 25. Pearson chi-square tests were used to analyze the association of reasons for drug use with sociodemographic factors, knowledge of drug related harm, and access to illicit drugs. Results: Curiosity was the most commonly reported reason for initiating drug use and the majority of the respondents reported having little or no knowledge of drug-related harm. The majority of the drug abusers initiated drug use at the age of 13–14 years or younger. Conclusions: There is a potential for sustained educational programs to reduce the high prevalence of adolescent drug use in Yunnan. Scientific Significance: This is the first empirical study that has investigated reasons for initiating drug use based on a random sample of registered drug users in a high risk province of China. 2009 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/39756 10.3109/00952990903469299 Informa Healthcare USA restricted |
| spellingShingle | illicit drug abuse Yunnan Adolescent and youth China Yang, L. Li, Jianghong Zhang, Y. Maycock, Bruce Reported Reasons for Initiating Drug Use among Drug-Dependent Adolescents and Youths in Yunnan, China |
| title | Reported Reasons for Initiating Drug Use among Drug-Dependent Adolescents and Youths in Yunnan, China |
| title_full | Reported Reasons for Initiating Drug Use among Drug-Dependent Adolescents and Youths in Yunnan, China |
| title_fullStr | Reported Reasons for Initiating Drug Use among Drug-Dependent Adolescents and Youths in Yunnan, China |
| title_full_unstemmed | Reported Reasons for Initiating Drug Use among Drug-Dependent Adolescents and Youths in Yunnan, China |
| title_short | Reported Reasons for Initiating Drug Use among Drug-Dependent Adolescents and Youths in Yunnan, China |
| title_sort | reported reasons for initiating drug use among drug-dependent adolescents and youths in yunnan, china |
| topic | illicit drug abuse Yunnan Adolescent and youth China |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/39756 |