SOCIO ECONOMIC FACTORS DETERMINING CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOL AMONG UNIVERSITY STUDENTS CASE STUDY OF UNIVERSITY OF JUBA

Abstract

The goal of the study was to establish assess and evaluate the prevalence of alcohol consumption among the undergraduate students at the university of Juba in South Sudan. The dependent variable in the study is consumption of alcohol by students measured by their responses as to whether they consumed alcohol or not. The independent variables were represented in nine major determinants of consumption of alcohol among the student which include age, gender, income, price, employment status, peer influence, knowledge of alcohol dangers, and parent education level. Use was made questionnaire to collect the primary data from the students at the University of Juba. A random sample of 120 students was interviewed and the data analyzed using STATA and SPSS version 17. Tests for associations of variables were automatically done by the STATA process in which we explained the Z-tests and Chi-square tests as well as explaining the critical statistics and economics sense the results make. The study found strong associations of the nine variables to the dependent variable among the students. Price, culture, religion, accessibility and peer influence were found to be significant in determining consumption of alcohol. The study findings therefore, supported the classical theory of consumer behavior and the theory of demand which almost hold all the above factors as determinants. However, consumer income was not significant in determining consumption which in this case fails to support the consumer theory which states that as income increases, more of normal goods will be consumed. Nevertheless, these findings can further prove here that alcohol is neither a normal nor a necessity and as such it becomes sometimes difficult to predict the behaviors of consumers involved in drinking alcohol, especially in case of addiction.