Youth substance abuse is widespread in India. Data is needed to inform the focus of prevention approaches. Our aim was to understand the perspectives of Indian young people about what protects them from substance (ab)use, and our study followed protocols approved by UK and Indian university research ethics committees. We recruited 15 Indian adolescents from Assam (seven males, eight females) aged 15 to 18 years at elevated risk because they had family/friends who were substance addicts. Participants took part in a photo-led interview in which they represented visually and narratively their experience of resisting substances (ab)use. Data were analyzed by a UK-India team using reflexive thematic analysis. Seven dominant protective factors were expressed by young people, including nurturing and communicative relationships with parents; up close and personal observations around addiction which left participants fearful of substances; protective mindsets and resolutions emerging from participants’ reflection on drug culture; staying away from “bad” company; being repulsed by substances; having healthy ways to cope at difficult times; and having something that mattered more than using substances. Findings show the resilience of Indian adolescents and suggest that prevention approaches in India should focus on augmenting individual, school and family mechanisms which appear dynamic and cumulative.

中文翻译：

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什么可以保护印度的高危年轻人免于使用和滥用药物？以照片为主导的生活体验研究

青少年滥用药物在印度很普遍。需要数据来告知预防方法的重点。我们的目的是了解印度年轻人对于如何保护他们免受药物滥用的看法，我们的研究遵循英国和印度大学研究伦理委员会批准的协议。我们招募了 15 名来自阿萨姆邦的印度青少年（七名男性，八名女性），年龄在 15 至 18 岁之间，这些青少年的风险较高，因为他们的家人/朋友是药物成瘾者。参与者参加了一次以照片为主导的采访，在采访中他们以视觉和叙述的方式展示了他们抵制药物（滥用）使用的经历。英国-印度团队使用反思性主题分析对数据进行了分析。年轻人表达了七个主要的保护因素，包括与父母的养育和沟通关系；对导致参与者对物质感到恐惧的成瘾行为进行近距离和个人观察；参与者对毒品文化的反思中产生的保护性心态和决心；远离“坏”公司；对物质产生排斥；有健康的方法来应对困难时期；拥有比使用物质更重要的东西。研究结果显示了印度青少年的复原力，并表明印度的预防方法应侧重于加强个人、学校和家庭机制，这些机制似乎是动态和累积的。