KUALA LUMPUR: Many youths are taking drugs out of curiosity or under peer influence, with a significant number obtaining substances themselves, according to a recent government study on youth behaviour.
Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the comprehensive study, conducted by the Youth and Sports Ministry through the Malaysian Youth Research and Development Institute (IYRES) in collaboration with the National Anti-Drugs Agency (AADK), focused on youths aged 15 to 30 in high-risk areas.
The research, titled "Study on Youth Behaviour in Substance Abuse in Selected High-Risk Areas", ran from September 2024 to February 2025.
The survey of 249 respondents found that youths cited curiosity (30.1%), stress (20.9%), and peer influence (18.9%) as the main reasons for taking drugs.
Other factors included seeking pleasure (9.6%), work-related purposes (9.2%), and various other reasons such as using drugs to sleep, gain energy, or sell (4.5%), seeking calm (3.6%), being influenced (2.0%) or mistreated by friends (1.2%).
The study also revealed that most respondents purchased drugs themselves (53.4%), while others obtained them from friends (43%), family members (2%), or other sources (1.6%).
Saifuddin highlighted a worrying upward trend in youth drug abuse between 2022 and 2024.
The number of youths involved increased from 85,657 in 2022 to 90,520 in 2023, and surged to 116,245 in 2024—a 28.4% rise. In the first half of 2025 alone, 78,674 youths were recorded, with 84% abusing Amphetamine-Type Stimulants (ATS).
"The study concludes that the main drivers for youth involvement in drug abuse are the desire to try, to relieve stress, and peer influence," he said in a written reply on Wednesday (Dec 2).
Saifuddin was responding to Bukit Gelugor MP Ramkarpal Singh, who asked whether a comprehensive study would be conducted to identify the main causes pushing youths, particularly those in desperate circumstances, into drug distribution or becoming drug mules.
