EDUPEDIA247

CHAPTER ONE BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY Drug abuse is becoming increasingly problematic in Nigeria. A number of recent studies suggest that almost all Nigerian youths experiment with drugs at some point, particularly alcohol and nicotine. The foremost concern is the number of these youth that will form an addiction to serious substances, jeopardizing their own health and safety and creating difficulties for their families and the public at large. Drug use, it is widely accepted, has negative consequences for the academic, social and physical development of the users.                  According to a united Nation Office on drug crime(UNODC) report(2005), some 200 million people, or 5percent of the world’s population aged 15-24 have used at least once in the last 12months -15million more than the previous year’s estimate. Likewise according to the world drug report(2005), the use of illicit drugs in all nations has increased in recent years. The report goes on to note that the increasingly a

                                                                         CHAPTER ONE                                                                        INTRODUCTION 1.1     Background of the Study Life and death are inter-related and are often seen as two sides of the same coin. Unfortunately, many people feel uncomfortable discussing issues relating to death. For instance, whenever the topic of death arises, people go to great lengths to avoid words like death and dying (Corr, Nabe, & Corr, 2003). Instead, euphemisms are used to provide a more pleasant feeling and to conform to social norms. Phrases such as ‘kicked the bucket, passed away, moved on, laid to rest’, and ‘went to a better place’ are used to discuss death. Hence, the thought of death or dying is something that is uncomfortable and to a certain extent, frightening, for some, if not most people in modern society. Death is viewed as an event that one generally has no control over and thus generates anxiety amongst p