Effectiveness of Mass Media in the Fight against Drug Abuse among Undergraduates of Tertiary Institutions in Imo State

Abstract

This study investigated the effectiveness of mass media in the fight against drug abuse among undergraduates of tertiary institutions in Imo State. The study was anchored on the theory of reasoned action and the research design adopted for this study is the survey method. The population consists of 81,000 undergraduates of the select higher institutions in Imo State. A sample size of 382 arrived after the application of the Wimmer and Dominick online sample size calculator. The systematic sampling technique was employed in this study. The percentage method and bar chart were used for analysing the data. The findings revealed that the level of awareness among respondents towards mass media campaigns against drug abuse is moderate. Further findings showed that respondents agreed that mass media efforts have not been effective in reducing the threat of drug abuse among undergraduates in Imo State's tertiary institutions. As a result, it was concluded that mass media campaigns are ineffective in the fight against drug abuse among undergraduates of higher institutions in Imo State, because the campaigns have not succeeded in curbing the menace, as students continue to engage in it, which could be linked to a lack of awareness among these undergraduates. It was recommended that the media intensify their publicity and commitment to drug abuse in order to raise public awareness of the dangers of drug abuse in society. The mass media should be more creative in their content and in some cases, they should employ persuasive communication to be able to influence a good number of youths positively and make them shun drug abuse.