Relationship between alcohol use and purpose in life among senior high school students in Ghana

Pages: 1080-1083
Anthony K. Nkyi (Counselling Centre, College of Education Studies, University of Cape Coast. Ghana)

The current study examined the degree of relationships between Alcohol and Purpose in Life among adolescents in Senior High Schools in Ghana. A sample of 244 students made up of 40.5% males (N= 98) and 59.5% females (N=144) completed demographic questionnaires, the Adolescent Alcohol and Drug Involvement Scale (AADIS) and Purpose in Life test (PIL). The mean age was 18.4 years. Pearson product moment correlation coefficients were performed to determine the relationship between AADIS and PIL and tested at 0.05 alpha level. The results of the analysis of the sample indicate that a significant negative correlation was found between AADIS and PIL, r (242) = -.296, p < .001. This result depicts a negative linear relationship of scores, where the low scores on the AADIS relate to high scores on the PIL test. As one's Alcohol usage decreases, meaningfulness gradually became more salient, and purpose in life is high. The results of the study suggest that health education that provides adolescents opportunities for growth and exploration may be useful tool in the prevention of alcohol use among senior high students in Ghana. It is therefore recommended that drug and alcohol education should be included in the senior high school curriculum to help in Ghana's educational sustainable development.