Abstract
Drugs, substance and alcohol abuse by many youths is as a result of various factors. Research conducted in the past have looked at how mass media channels (video and TV) and their influence on abuse of drugs and other substances among the youth. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how drug-related information portrayed on Gengetone music influences drugs and substance abuse among youths in Eldoret town. The research objectives were to investigate how the acceptability level of ‘Gengetone’ music and videos among youths, to examine ways in which ‘Gengetone music lyrics communicate information on drugs, substance and alcohol abuse and establish the effect of listening of Gengetone music on drugs and substance abuse among youths in Uasin Gishu County. The study adopted George Gerbner’s Cultivation Theory. The study utilised descriptive survey. Questionnaires and interviews were utilised to collect data from selected youths aged 20 – 30 years residing in Eldoret town four estates numbering 80 and one county officer in charge of NACADA North Rift office. Analysis of data was done through qualitative (content analysis method) and quantitative approaches (descriptive statistics); The study found out that indeed lyrics, images and videos contained in some Gengetone music promoted drugs, substance and alcohol abuse by young people in the study area. This means that music preference performed a significant role in determining the level of drugs and substance abuse by youth in Eldoret town. This calls for stakeholder involvement in educating the upcoming artist on the importance of developing Gengetone music that is clean and creates awareness on the dangers of youth addiction to drugs, other substances and alcohol.
Highlights
Drugs and substance abuse refers to hazardous and harmful consumption of psycho-active stuff like illicit drugs and alcohol which are banned by public health authorities across the world (World Health Organisation, 2011)
The purpose of this paper is to investigate how drug-related information portrayed on Gengetone music influences drugs and substance abuse among youths in Eldoret town
The current study examined the role that Gengetone music on drugs and substance abuse among youths in Eldoret Town, Uasin Gishu County, Kenya
Summary
Drugs and substance abuse refers to hazardous and harmful consumption of psycho-active stuff like illicit drugs and alcohol which are banned by public health authorities across the world (World Health Organisation, 2011). KFCB’s (2016) report showed that a significant majority of music reviewed openly showcase and exalted the alcohol, drugs and other substances use including bhang These have continued to negatively influence the youth, while frustrating government efforts to tame the same vices. The theory states that viewers who listen and watch more music will be more influenced than those who watch less and that “the cumulative effect of music is to create a synthetic world that heavy viewers come to see as reality” (Reber & Chang, 2000) This means that young people listening or watching to various genres of music exposes them to various factors like violence, immorality, indiscipline and drugs and substance abuse (Cundiff, 2013). This paper looks at the influence of Gengetone music on drugs, substance and alcohol abuse by youth in Eldoret Town Uasin Gishu County to see if there are positive, negative, or no influences
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