Drug Advertisements: Role of Media in Adoption of Drugs among Students

Abstract

Significant scientific evidence exists regarding the role of drug advertisements in media on the desensitization and adoption of drugs among the masses. Primarily, this study aims to investigate the influence of such active and passive drug advertisements on drug inclination and onset patterns among Pakistani students. Twenty participants between the ages of 18 to 26 were selected and asked to share whether they believed drug advertisements have had a conscious or sub-conscious role in their friends’ or own temptations/experimentations with drug substances. Both qualitative and quantitative methods of analysis were used to analyse the responses. In the qualitative phase, semi-structured interviews were conducted aimed at exploring participants’ observations and opinions regarding the topic. Thematic analysis was used to analyse this qualitative data. Later, the participants were asked to fill out a 5-point Likert-type scale consisting of fourteen items aimed at exploring the same notion quantitatively. The results demonstrate a positive correlation between drug advertisements and students’ drug endeavours. Many end up becoming addicts, which then opens the door for a range of mental health problems which are discussed. An expanded sample obtained via random sampling is recommended to further validate these findings.