Psychological Distress, Emotional Intelligence, Social Loneliness, Academic Burnout, and Risk-Taking Tendency as Predictors of Substance Use among Undergraduate Students in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State, Nigeria

Abstract

The study examined psychological distress, emotional intelligence, social loneliness, academic burnout, and risk-taking tendency as predictors of substance use among undergraduate students in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State, Nigeria. A descriptive survey research design was adopted. A total of 502 undergraduates were selected from Ekiti State University and Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti using a multistage sampling technique. Standardized instruments were used for data collection, while Pearson Product Moment Correlation and multiple regression analysis were employed for data analysis at 0.05 level of significance. The result revealed that psychological distress (r = 0.61), social loneliness (r = 0.54), academic burnout (r = 0.59), and risk-taking tendency (r = 0.63) had significant positive relationships with substance use, while emotional intelligence had a significant negative relationship (r = -0.57). The regression analysis showed that the variables jointly accounted for 58% of the variance in substance use (R = 0.76, R² = 0.58, F = 112.45, p < .05). Relative contribution results indicated that risk-taking tendency (β = 0.33) was the strongest predictor, followed by psychological distress (β = 0.30), academic burnout (β = 0.26), social loneliness (β = 0.23), while emotional intelligence (β = -0.27) had a protective influence. The study concluded that substance use among undergraduates is influenced by a combination of psychological, emotional, social, and behavioural factors. It was recommended that universities strengthen counselling services and emotional intelligence training programmes.