Prevalence and correlates of alcohol and tobacco consumption among research scholars: evidence from a cross-sectional survey of three Indian universities
Drugs, Habits and Social Policy
ISSN: 2752-6739
Article publication date: 15 August 2022
Issue publication date: 1 September 2022
Abstract
Purpose
Alcohol and tobacco consumption are significant public health concerns and considered some of the riskiest behaviors among students. Despite strong indications of heavy consumption of these substances, certain sections of the student population remain unexplored regarding their consumption patterns and associated factors, including research scholars pursuing Doctor of Philosophy degrees. This study aims to explore the patterns and correlations of consumption of alcohol and tobacco among doctoral students in three Indian universities.
Design/methodology/approach
A cross-sectional study was conducted on a total of 530 scholars from three central universities, Aligarh Muslim University, Banaras Hindu University and Jawahar Lal Nehru University, and focused on two substances (alcohol and tobacco) frequently used by students in India. Bi-variate analysis and penalized logistic regressions were applied to analyse the prevalence and associated factors of alcohol, smoking and smokeless tobacco among doctoral students.
Findings
Tobacco consumption was observed to be the dominant form of substance use among doctoral students. Findings revealed that 34% of scholars smoked and 25% consumed smokeless tobacco daily and around 14% consumed alcohol at least once a week. Major significant correlates of substance consumption among scholars were found to be gender, religion, parental mortality, dissatisfaction with academic performance and stress about future career/employment. Significant variation in substance use patterns was observed among universities.
Originality/value
This study provides first-hand evidence on substance use patterns and the correlates among doctoral students in three Indian universities. Findings indicate the implementation of specific intervention programs for mental health and counselling for this section of students to prevent substance use addiction would be beneficial.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
Disclosure of interest: The authors report no conflict of interest.Ethical consideration: The interview schedule was reviewed and approved by the Institutional Review Board of International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai, before conducting the survey. Written consent was obtained from Dean of Student Welfare of each university prior to data collection. Before conducting the interviews, an informed consent from all the respondents for their voluntary participation in the study was taken. The identity and details of the respondents were kept confidential.Authors’ contribution: MU – Conceptualized and designed the study, review of literature, acquisition of data, analysis and interpretation of data, drafting the article, revised it critically for important intellectual content and final approval of the version to be submitted; SR – Interpretation of data and drafting of manuscript; SNA – Provided assistance in designing the study and editing of the draft version of manuscript; EA and TA – Responsible for the preparation of the first draft of the manuscript and editing; and SU – Acquisition of data, revised the article critically for important intellectual content and gave final approval of the version to be submitted.
Citation
Usman, M., Anand, E., Akhtar, S.N., Umenthala, S.R., Anwar, T. and Unisa, S. (2022), "Prevalence and correlates of alcohol and tobacco consumption among research scholars: evidence from a cross-sectional survey of three Indian universities", Drugs, Habits and Social Policy, Vol. 23 No. 2, pp. 140-155. https://doi.org/10.1108/DHS-09-2021-0053
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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