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CC BY 4.0 · Journal of Child Science 2023; 13(01): e65-e74
DOI: 10.1055/s-0043-1768980
Original Article

Sociodemographic Factors Affecting Tobacco, Alcohol, and Cannabis Consumption among Kosovar University Students

Zana Ibraimi
1   Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Prishtina, Prishtina, Kosovo
,
Driton Shabani
1   Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, University of Prishtina, Prishtina, Kosovo
,
Ardiana Murtezani
2   Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Prishtina, Prishtina, Kosovo
3   Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinic, University Clinical Center of Kosovo, Prishtina, Kosovo
,
Bernard Tahirbegolli
4   Department of Health Institutions and Services Management, Heimerer College, Prishtina, Kosovo
5   National Sports Medicine Center, Prishtina, Kosovo
,
Venera Berisha-Muharremi
6   Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Prishtina, Prishtina, Kosovo
7   Endocrinology Clinic, University Clinical Centre of Kosovo, Prishtina, Kosovo
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Abstract

Tobacco, cannabis, and alcohol consumption, found to be most common among college students, is known to cause life-threatening diseases, and is correlated with social, financial and health problems. For the present study, we aimed to assess the sociodemographic factors affecting tobacco, alcohol, and cannabis consumption among university students. A cross-sectional study was conducted from January to March 2020, on a random sample of 507 undergraduates, between the ages of 18 and 24. The research instrument was a self- administered questionnaire with questions on the sociodemographic characteristics, and questions regarding the consumption of tobacco, alcohol, and cannabis.

The mean ± standard deviation age of study sample was 21.56 ± 1.81 years, and 56.4% participants were females. The lifetime prevalence of tobacco usage among the study sample was 66.7%, alcohol 54.2%, and the cannabis had a prevalence of 13.8%. About 46.2% (n = 234) were co-users of tobacco smoking and alcohol, and 12.6% (n = 64) were co-user of tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption, and drug use. Analyzed with Pearson's chi-squared test, there was no statistically significant difference between students from private and public institutions on lifetime, in the past 1 year/1 month of tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption, and cannabis use (p > 0.05). The logistic regression model for dependent variable cannabis abuse in the past 1 year is associated with lower odds among female students (odds ratio: 0.337, 95% confidence interval: 0.167–0.682; p = 0.002). Smoking, drinking, and cannabis were found to be highly prevalent among university students. These findings can help program managers and policy makers devise effective and appropriate control programs and policies for substance-using university students.

Keywords

tobacco - alcohol - cannabis - university students - questionnaire - sociodemographic factors

Authors̀ Contributions

ZI and VBM were observing this research project, had full access of this study's data, and in the meantime they took responsibility to show integrity for the data. ZI, AM, and DS designed the study. VBM and AM provided instruction on the use of instruments for the outcome measures used in this study. ZI and BT analyzed and interpreted the data. ZI, AM, and VBM prepared the manuscript. BT helped in statistical analysis.


Availability of Data

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.




Publication History

Received: 18 March 2022

Accepted: 07 April 2023

Article published online:
18 May 2023

© 2023. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, permitting unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction so long as the original work is properly cited. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Georg Thieme Verlag KG
Rüdigerstraße 14, 70469 Stuttgart, Germany

 

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