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University researchers to closely examine the harsh reality of substance abuse amongst youths

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  • 10:29, 18 Dec 2020

A study to be conducted by the Faculty for Social Wellbeing at the University of Malta commencing early next year will document the developing trends of youth substance abuse over the last two decades.



The new research will also serve to widen the public’s understanding of Maltese youth and their many transitions.

The study, which is being sponsored by the  thanks to a grant of €7,500, is innovative in that it will  bring together the vast array of statistical data available on the issue and compile this into a meaningful analysis that is theoretically driven and located within a sociological understanding of Maltese society in the early 21st century. Primary data collected from interviews with  experts and NGO representatives, will give a more holistic picture of the issue in the local scenario.

The Save a Life Foundation was set up seven years ago, in 2013, to undertake concrete positive action to empower the future generations and address a number of social problems some youths experience.

“The significance of this research lies in it constituting a tool which will help us build more knowledge on our youth – something which we are expected to do as co-habitants in the same society, and which is our duty to do as their parents, relatives and friends”, said MP Claudio Grech, the co-founder of the Foundation.

“Whether it is because others are doing it, to feel good, to give themselves the impression they’re doing better or simply to experiment, among many other reasons, there is no single reason why youths do drugs. It is in our interests to find out these reasons why and address the problem through empirical data,” said , Dean of the Faculty for Social Wellbeing.

The study will consist of four stages, with a literature review on youth development making up Stage 1, a review of secondary data on youth substance use being Stage 2, with Stage 3 consisting of a series of consultation meetings with key players in the local substance abuse field, and finally Stage 4 comprising the data analysis. By the end of the study, the Faculty will be expected to present its main findings in a full report and a presentation on the same.

“Understanding youth substance abuse in this way will also be useful for future policy-making and service development. It will also help us formulate an information campaign intended for those who this problem directly impacts”, said Mrs Charmaine Grech, Founder and Co-Chairperson of the Foundation.

, the Research Support Officer who will be working with the principle investigator of the study, Prof. Marilyn Clark, told Newspoint that substance abuse in youth often leads to more serious health consequences later on in adulthood. Researching such behaviour, she said during the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the two entities, will shed light on prevention efforts, and alerting all to new risk behaviours.

Prof. Alfred J. Vella, Rector of the University of Malta, spoke about youth as a particularly tough time, with youths being in a state of constant change, and having to face intense situations. "Curtailing substance abuse and other addictive behaviour that might develop at this stage starts by looking at the root causes of it, and the expert researchers at the University are the most qualified people around to see this study through", he concluded. 

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