“I don’t think marijuana counts as a drug”: Drug & alcohol use amongst South Sudanese youth in Australia
Aims: To understand alcohol and other drug (AOD) use and its impact among South Sudanese youth in Melbourne, Australia. Methods: This qualitative exploratory study was underpinned by the psychosocial conceptual framework. We undertook semi-structured interviews with 23 South Sudanese youth...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Taylor and Francis
2021
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/86968 |
| _version_ | 1848764892100689920 |
|---|---|
| author | Pittaway, Troy Dantas, Jaya A R |
| author_facet | Pittaway, Troy Dantas, Jaya A R |
| author_sort | Pittaway, Troy |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Aims: To understand alcohol and other drug (AOD) use and
its impact among South Sudanese youth in Melbourne,
Australia.
Methods: This qualitative exploratory study was underpinned
by the psychosocial conceptual framework. We undertook
semi-structured interviews with 23 South Sudanese youth aged
14-21 years to explore attitudes and potential harms of AOD
use. We also undertook focus groups with these participants
and a focus group of 11 South Sudanese community elders
and parents. Feedback on results was obtained through two
forums with community members. The data collected were
analyzed using thematic analysis.
Results: The participants revealed that AOD use was common,
specifically the use of cannabis. The participants believed that
there was a lack of basic understanding of the potential harm
of cannabis use. The results also highlighted that the community
was unaware how the use of drugs and alcohol can contribute
and exacerbate poor mental health. Cannabis was a
regular drug of choice used by young South Sudanese in this
study. It was used daily as a coping mechanism both for stress
and for undiagnosed mental health.
Conclusion: The results of this study indicate increased potential
harm for South Sudanese youth from AOD use. Of concern
was a lack of diagnosis and treatment for mental health wellbeing
due to the beliefs around AOD use. Without targeted
interventions this has significant implications for the South
Sudanese community and the young people affected. The significance
of these findings may assist in the delivery of AOD
treatment and improve health education for refugee youth. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:26:34Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-86968 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T11:26:34Z |
| publishDate | 2021 |
| publisher | Taylor and Francis |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-869682022-01-14T03:37:08Z “I don’t think marijuana counts as a drug”: Drug & alcohol use amongst South Sudanese youth in Australia Pittaway, Troy Dantas, Jaya A R Aims: To understand alcohol and other drug (AOD) use and its impact among South Sudanese youth in Melbourne, Australia. Methods: This qualitative exploratory study was underpinned by the psychosocial conceptual framework. We undertook semi-structured interviews with 23 South Sudanese youth aged 14-21 years to explore attitudes and potential harms of AOD use. We also undertook focus groups with these participants and a focus group of 11 South Sudanese community elders and parents. Feedback on results was obtained through two forums with community members. The data collected were analyzed using thematic analysis. Results: The participants revealed that AOD use was common, specifically the use of cannabis. The participants believed that there was a lack of basic understanding of the potential harm of cannabis use. The results also highlighted that the community was unaware how the use of drugs and alcohol can contribute and exacerbate poor mental health. Cannabis was a regular drug of choice used by young South Sudanese in this study. It was used daily as a coping mechanism both for stress and for undiagnosed mental health. Conclusion: The results of this study indicate increased potential harm for South Sudanese youth from AOD use. Of concern was a lack of diagnosis and treatment for mental health wellbeing due to the beliefs around AOD use. Without targeted interventions this has significant implications for the South Sudanese community and the young people affected. The significance of these findings may assist in the delivery of AOD treatment and improve health education for refugee youth. 2021 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/86968 10.1080/15332640.2021.1965932 English Taylor and Francis restricted |
| spellingShingle | Pittaway, Troy Dantas, Jaya A R “I don’t think marijuana counts as a drug”: Drug & alcohol use amongst South Sudanese youth in Australia |
| title | “I don’t think marijuana counts as a drug”: Drug
& alcohol use amongst South Sudanese youth in
Australia |
| title_full | “I don’t think marijuana counts as a drug”: Drug
& alcohol use amongst South Sudanese youth in
Australia |
| title_fullStr | “I don’t think marijuana counts as a drug”: Drug
& alcohol use amongst South Sudanese youth in
Australia |
| title_full_unstemmed | “I don’t think marijuana counts as a drug”: Drug
& alcohol use amongst South Sudanese youth in
Australia |
| title_short | “I don’t think marijuana counts as a drug”: Drug
& alcohol use amongst South Sudanese youth in
Australia |
| title_sort | “i don’t think marijuana counts as a drug”: drug
& alcohol use amongst south sudanese youth in
australia |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/86968 |