Description
Abstract
This article presents findings from a national exploratory study involving 471 children aged 10–18 who participated in prevention programmes facilitated by the South African National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (SANCA). Framed within the Risk-Need-Responsivity (RNR) model, the study examined the risks associated with the initiation, motivations, and behavioural contexts of psychoactive substance use among children in South Africa.
The findings identified alcohol, nicotine, cannabis, and codeine as the most commonly used substances, with early adolescence (ages 11–14) emerging as the most critical period for initiation. Key risk factors include the easy availability of these substances, their normalisation within peer, family, and school settings, and peer influence. Motivational drivers such as curiosity, risk-taking, and the glamorisation of substance use in youth culture further reinforced patterns of use.
An additional concern noted is the use of treatment-based data to inform the development of prevention programmes. The study found a discrepancy between official treatment statistics and the actual use patterns reported by children. The lack of data regarding the age of onset of substance within treatment records further restricts the capacity to design targeted interventions. As a result, current prevention and harm reduction strategies risk being misaligned with the lived realities of children who use or are at risk of using substances.
In response to the indentified risks and needs responsivity-informed recommendations are proposed, emphasising the need for developmentally appropriate, research-driven, and context-specific interventions. The findings underscore the shifting nature of childhood substance use and highlight the importance of a progressive, adaptive, and youth-informed approach, underpinned by continuous monitoring and evaluation to ensure sustained effectiveness and relevance of prevention and harm reduction strategies.
Keywords: Childhood substance use, psychoactive substances, Risk-Need-Responsivity (RNR) model, youth culture, prevention, harm reduction
