Drug Demand Reduction through Collaborative Intervention in Delta State Universities
The study focused on drug demand reduction through collaborative intervention in Delta State universities. Two research questions were raised and two null hypotheses were formulated in the study. A mixed-methods design was adopted in the study. It combines qualitative and quantitative research approaches to achieve a more comprehensive understanding of the research problem. The population comprises 126,350 undergraduate students from universities in Delta State. A multistage and snowball sampling technique was used in this survey. The first stage involves selecting three universities (Delta State University, Abraka, Southern Delta University, Orerokpe campus and University of Delta, Agbor) from the study area. The second stage involves selecting two departments, each from the selected faculties, so that each faculty will be represented. The next stage involves selecting 100, 200, 300 and 400 Level students from each selected department (Psychology & Political Science, Delta State University, Abraka; Electrical Electronics & Civil Engineering, Southern Delta University, Orerokpe campus; English Education & Religious Studies Education, University of Delta, Agbor). Due to the sensitive nature of the study, we used a snowball sampling technique to select a sample of 450 participants. The instrument used for data collection was a self-structured questionnaire titled “Drug Demand Reduction through Collaborative Intervention Questionnaire (DDRCIQ) with psychometric value of validity and reliability. The instruments were duly validated, and reliability was tested using Cronbach's Alpha, which yielded a coefficient of 0.74 and above (coefficient of determination; a benchmark of 2.50 and above is considered agreed, and 2.49 and below is considered disagreed). The process used to generate the questionnaire items is called Scale Development. The Pearson Product-Moment Correlation Statistic was used to test the hypotheses at the 0.05 level of significance, while Thematic analysis was used to interpret responses. In conclusion, collaborative approaches to drug demand reduction in Nigerian universities are crucial for addressing the growing substance abuse problem.