Running head: DRUG ABUSE AND ADDICTION 1 DRUG ABUSE AND ADDICTION 6 Drug Abuse and Addiction XXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXX Public Safety Issue: Drug Abuse and Addiction Public safety issue refers to any problem which threatens the wellbeing of people and prosperity of communities. A solution to such challenges is crucial in order to ensure that safety of people is protected and safeguarded. The issue of drug abuse and concern among school going teenagers has become a major problem in United States. According to a survey conducted by Monitoring the Future (MTF), on average, 29 percent of the school kids between grades 8, 10, and 12 were found to be using drugs. This has raised a major concern that requires the government to work closely with relevant public safety organizations in order to contain this issue. Research Topic: The Importance of Introducing Drug Abuse Unit in The Curriculum of the American Education System Overview According to findings of Monitoring the Future survey released in 2018, there is a significant increase in number of school going youths engaging in drug abuse activities. Marijuana, opioid abuse, alcohol, synthetic drugs, tobacco, and nicotine are among the top drugs and substances abused by teenagers and school going kids. These statistics are alarming since they present one of the major challenge to the wellbeing and prosperity of the future generation. Many anti-drug abuse and addiction organizations such as National Institutes on Health (NIH), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) have been working relentlessly to curb this rising level of drug abuse and addiction among teenagers. Despite all the efforts by these organizations, their programs have failed to achieve any substantial success as far the fight against drug abuse and addiction among teenagers is concerned. This research is aimed at exploring the relevant literature from books, peer-reviewed journals, publications, and other academic effort in the effort to present the dire need to integrate drug abuse into the curriculum of the American education system. The findings of the research will be a boost to the government and other public safety organizations in the fight against drug abuse and addiction among teenagers and school going youths. Annotated Bibliography Duncan, D. T., Palamar, J. J., & Williams, J. H. (2014). Perceived neighborhood illicit drug selling, peer illicit drug disapproval and illicit drug use among US high school seniors. Substance abuse treatment, prevention, and policy, 9(1), 35. The paper explores the problem of marijuana use among the students in U.S. high schools. Notably, more than 45.5 percent of the respondents revealed that they have used marijuana once on their lifetime while the other 36.4 percent revealing that they have used marijuana in the last one year. Additionally, another 22.7 percent of the respondents noting that they have been consta ...

1. Running head: DRUG ABUSE AND ADDICTION 1
DRUG ABUSE AND ADDICTION 6
Drug Abuse and Addiction
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
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Public Safety Issue: Drug Abuse and Addiction
Public safety issue refers to any problem which threatens the
wellbeing of people and prosperity of communities. A solution
to such challenges is crucial in order to ensure that safety of
people is protected and safeguarded. The issue of drug abuse
and concern among school going teenagers has become a major
problem in United States. According to a survey conducted by
Monitoring the Future (MTF), on average, 29 percent of the
school kids between grades 8, 10, and 12 were found to be using
drugs. This has raised a major concern that requires the
government to work closely with relevant public safety
organizations in order to contain this issue.
Research Topic: The Importance of Introducing Drug Abuse
Unit in The Curriculum of the American Education System
Overview
According to findings of Monitoring the Future survey released
in 2018, there is a significant increase in number of school
going youths engaging in drug abuse activities. Marijuana,
opioid abuse, alcohol, synthetic drugs, tobacco, and nicotine are
among the top drugs and substances abused by teenagers and
school going kids. These statistics are alarming since they

2. present one of the major challenge to the wellbeing and
prosperity of the future generation. Many anti-drug abuse and
addiction organizations such as National Institutes on Health
(NIH), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration (SAMHSA), and National Institute on Drug
Abuse (NIDA) have been working relentlessly to curb this
rising level of drug abuse and addiction among teenagers.
Despite all the efforts by these organizations, their programs
have failed to achieve any substantial success as far the fight
against drug abuse and addiction among teenagers is concerned.
This research is aimed at exploring the relevant literature from
books, peer-reviewed journals, publications, and other academic
effort in the effort to present the dire need to integrate drug
abuse into the curriculum of the American education system.
The findings of the research will be a boost to the government
and other public safety organizations in the fight against drug
abuse and addiction among teenagers and school going youths.
Annotated Bibliography
Duncan, D. T., Palamar, J. J., & Williams, J. H. (2014).
Perceived neighborhood illicit drug selling, peer illicit drug
disapproval and illicit drug use among US high school seniors.
Substance abuse treatment, prevention, and policy, 9(1), 35.
The paper explores the problem of marijuana use among the
students in U.S. high schools. Notably, more than 45.5 percent
of the respondents revealed that they have used marijuana once
on their lifetime while the other 36.4 percent revealing that they
have used marijuana in the last one year. Additionally, another
22.7 percent of the respondents noting that they have been
constantly using marijuana in the last one month. Moreover, 4.5
percent of them revealed that they are cocaine addicts. The
findings of this paper are crucial to this research because they
show that no interventions have been put in place to counter this
problem. Hence, our research will be crucial in ensuring that
school going teenagers are taught many things about drug abuse
and the need to avoid them.

3. Kwan, M., Bobko, S., Faulkner, G., Donnelly, P., & Cairney, J.
(2014). Sport participation and alcohol and illicit drug use in
adolescents and young adults: A systematic review of
longitudinal studies. Addictive behaviors, 39(3), 497-506.
The authors present a clear view on the association between
sport participation and increased use of alcohol among school
going teenagers. High school and college students participating
in sports have been linked to alcohol abuse though this varies
by gender or kind of sport. However, there is clear evidence that
school going teenagers involved in various sporting activities
abuse different kind of drugs hence the need to address this
issue. The findings of this paper are relevant to my research
since they show the reality of drug abuse among school going
students and why preventive interventions are crucial.
Leonard, N. R., Gwadz, M. V., Ritchie, A., Linick, J. L.,
Cleland, C. M., Elliott, L., & Grethel, M. (2015). A multi-
method exploratory study of stress, coping, and substance use
among high school youth in private schools. Frontiers in
psychology, 6, 1028.
The article acknowledges the existence of major stress-causing
factors among school youth and teenagers. Consequently,
students turn into drugs as the only strategy of coping with
chronic stress is has become synonymous with teenagers in the
adolescent stage. Social and academic challenges have forced
teenagers to seek refuge in alcohol and other hard drugs which
compromises their normal mental functioning. The study which
involved more than 100 11th grade students revealed that drug
and substance abuse behavior may end up ruining the future of
the victims in their later stages of life. The paper is relevant to
this research since it shows the reality of drug abuse and
addiction in schools and the need to address this alarming issue.
Miller-Day, M. A., Alberts, J., Hecht, M. L., Trost, M. R., &
Krizek, R. L. (2014). Adolescent relationships and drug use.

4. Psychology Press.
The authors of this book explores the reality of drug and
substance abuse among teenagers and school going adolescents.
The covers several factors which lead to drug abuse among
adolescents. These causes include peer norms, lack of parental
guidance, as well as lack of programs meant to address this
menace. This book is crucial and relevant to my research since
it presents the whole concept and reality of drug abuse among
adolescents and school going teenagers. This forms the basis for
my argument and why school-based programs and teachings will
be appropriate in addressing the vice of drug abuse and
addiction.
Onrust, S. A., Otten, R., Lammers, J., & Smit, F. (2016).
School-based programmes to reduce and prevent substance use
in different age groups: What works for whom? Systematic
review and meta-regression analysis. Clinical Psychology
Review, 44, 45-59.
The authors of this paper explores the issue of school-based
programs and their impact in preventing and reducing the cases
of drug and substance abuse. The paper acknowledges the fact
that teenagers and adolescents are at a high risk of engaging in
drug abuse behaviors which can lead to certain disorders in life.
Notably, programs formulated to target the youths on the issue
of drug abuse and addiction can only be effective if they are
implemented in schools. Considerably, school is one of the most
appropriate venue where teenagers and adolescents can be
reached in huge numbers. This paper is crucial for this research
since it forms the basis for establishment of school-based
programs meant to fight drug abuse and addiction. Making the
programs compulsory will thus essential since teenager will
learn the effects of drug abuse and how to avoid drugs for a
better future.
Palamar, J. J., Zhou, S., Sherman, S., & Weitzman, M. (2014).
Hookah use among US high school seniors. Pediatrics, 134(2),

5. 227.
The article shows a significant increase in the use of hookah
among high school seniors in U.S. Moreover, the paper shows
that many American adolescents are engaging themselves in
smoking tobacco products such as cigars, hookahs, and shisha.
Notably, the number has increased from 18 percent to 21.4
percent. However, the paper shows not interventions geared
towards handling this issue which lead to esophageal cancer,
infertility, lung cancer, among other problems. The paper is
important to this research since it shows the rising level of
tobacco abuse among adolescents and the effects it has to the
users who are mostly high school students.
Patrick, M. E., & Schulenberg, J. E. (2014). Prevalence and
predictors of adolescent alcohol use and binge drinking in the
United States. Alcohol research: current reviews, 35(2), 193.
According to the authors, “alcohol is the most commonly abused
substance among American youth” This seems to have long-
term consequences on the users. The respondents –among them
the 8th, 10th, and 12th graders –acknowledged that they have
been drinking alcohol for more than five times in the past one
month. However, the intervention and prevention efforts have
been minimal. This paper is relevant to my research since it
shows how school-going adolescents are involved in alcohol
abuse and the lack of preventive measures. Thus, there is need
to have an intervention like the one proposed by my research in
order to curb the rising cases of drug abuse among teenagers.
Singh, T. (2016). Characteristics of electronic cigarette use
among middle and high school students—United States, 2015.
MMWR. Morbidity and mortality weekly report, 65.
This paper presents the issue of electronic cigarette use among
youths in U.S. Considerably, 5.3 percent of middle school
teenagers and 16 percent of the high school students have been
using electronic cigarettes. However, comprehensive and
sustainable strategies to prevent this menace are missing. The

6. paper is equally important to my research since it shows how
youths have been addicted to e-cigarettes and lack of prevention
strategies. Hence, my research will be crucial since it will
address this issue comprehensively because teenagers will be
taught on the effects of e-cigarettes abuse and how to avoid
them.
Strøm, H. K., Adolfsen, F., Fossum, S., Kaiser, S., &
Martinussen, M. (2014). Effectiveness of school-based
preventive interventions on adolescent alcohol use: a meta-
analysis of randomized controlled trials. Substance abuse
treatment, prevention, and policy, 9(1), 48.
This paper explores the issue of alcohol abuse among the
teenagers and the negative effects this behavior can have in
their future life. According to the study, 39 percent of the
respondents admitted that they first took alcohol at the age of
13 years and below. Additionally, this early use of alcohol has
proved to have a myriad of challenges to addicts later in life.
The authors further notes that despite having several school-
based intervention programs, most of them have not been
effective. This paper is essential to my research since it reveals
the state of alcohol abuse among teenagers and why the current
school based interventions are ineffective. This shows the need
to adopt a more appropriate strategy which involves making the
drug abuse subject compulsory to all schools across U.S.
Wills, T. A., Knight, R., Williams, R. J., Pagano, I., & Sargent,
J. D. (2015). Risk factors for exclusive e-cigarette use and dual
e-cigarette use and tobacco use in adolescents. Pediatrics,
135(1), e43.
The authors of the paper present a major challenge facing
adolescents as far as the use of electronic cigarettes is
concerned. About 17 percent of the respondents admitted that
they are using e-cigarettes, marijuana, and alcohol. The
prevalence is indeed high and it exposes the adolescents to
various health issues including lung cancer. This paper is
relevant to my research since its findings are a clear reflection

7. of the rate of smoking e-cigarettes among school-going
teenagers and why prevention interventions are necessary as
presented in my research topic.
Running Head: PUBLIC SAFETY
1
PUBLIC SAFETY
6
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PSAD 410 7380
Professor XXXXXXXXXX
University of XXXXXXXX
XX July 2019
***See Comments on the end of the paper
Technology as a threat to public safety
Introduction
From the start of the 20th century, all the way to the last quarter
of the century public safety was simply concerned with five
main things. Top of the list was a secure and reliable transport
system. Second, on the list was well-trained security
department; homeland security trained enough to ensure that the
public was secure. The third thing was infrastructure; there was

8. a lot of focus on ensuring that the buildings being put up are
secure enough to have people living and working in them. The
fourth thing was protection from the effects of natural disasters;
there was a lot of focus in ensuring that local, state and the
national government was prepared well enough to deal with
natural disasters and their effects (Hofmann, Burke, & Zohar,
2017).
Towards the end of the 20th century a lot of attention started
being directed to terrorism; countering terrorism became one of
the top agendas when it came to public safety. The beginning of
the 21st century introduced not only the US but the world in
general to a new public safety concern, technology, begging the
question; is technology the biggest public safety concern in the
nation? If it is, are there enough measures and policies to deal
with technology as a public safety concern?
Problem statement
There are many supporting reasons as to why technology might
be considered a big threat to public safety. All the reason
support that technology malfunction and system glitches are the
reasons as to why technology is the next biggest issue in public
safety assuming it is not already the biggest issue.
Malfunction in the airplane industry
So far this year, the world has seen a single malfunction in the
use of technology that has led to mass deaths. In March 2019,
an aircraft crashed in Ethiopia, one of the countries in East
Africa. All the occupants of the plane died in the crash; a total
of one hundred and fifty-seven people died in the crash. The
preliminary investigation as to the cause of the crash
highlighted that a system glitch caused the plane to crash. The
Ethiopian plane had a manoeuvring characteristics augmentation
system and it is believed that it is a glitch in the system that led
to the crash that cost so many people their lives (Wojcik, 2019).
The airplane industry is one of the industries that have fully
adopted technology in all their activities. Due to the sensitive
nature of the industry, the industry has incorporated many
security features in its operations. Despite the many security

9. features incorporated in airplane technology, the security
features seem incapable of 100% guaranteed security to
passengers. The Ethiopian airline crash is an example of how
public safety is at risk due to the use of technology.
System glitches in the motor vehicle industry
Not so far away from home in March 2018, an Uber autonomous
vehicle killed a pedestrian who was pushing her bicycle in
Arizona. The incident was the first recorded death due to
driverless driven vehicle. A preliminary investigation into the
accident indicated that the primary cause of the accident was
due to an override of the vehicle’s sensors. The giant taxi
hailing company is claimed to have reduced the responsiveness
of false positive reporting in order to have smooth rides for
their customers (Laugier, 2018). Due to the reduced
responsiveness, the car’s software detected the pedestrian but
since there was an override of the system, the passenger was
categorized as a false positive. The false categorization led to
the death of the passenger.
Driverless car or self-driven cars seem to be the vehicles of the
future and by the simple fact that such a car has caused a fatal
accident before such vehicles are officially released to the
public leads to the growing concern whether public safety will
be guaranteed. The vehicles are said to rely on software to
operate rather than human intervention and it is for that reason
that they are susceptible to software bugs and hacks. The fact
that the vehicles will be used in roads that are full of people
creates a public safety concern. It leads to the question; is
public safety guaranteed with the use of self-driven vehicles.
On matters concerning vehicles, between 2009 and 2011, Toyota
recalled over one million vehicles that it had in the US. The
two-vehicle models that were recalled were the Toyota Corolla
and Toyota Camry models (Austen-Smith et al., 2017). There
were two reasons that necessitated that Toyota has a recall of
the models. All the reasons were due to an intended acceleration
of the vehicles. The first reason was that there was a floor mat
incursion which caused the acceleration pedal to get stuck on

10. acceleration. The second reason was that there was a mechanical
sticking of the acceleration pedal.
The second reason for the recall of the above-mentioned models
indicates that technology in the field of automobile creation and
development needed to be more secure. Unfortunately, Toyota is
not the only automobile company that has had some of its
vehicle models recalled due to technology or software glitches.
For example, Mercedes Benz C-class, the BMW ¾ series and
Chevrolet Tahoe are all examples of automobiles that have been
recalled due to faultiness in their software or mechanics (Eilert
et al., 2017). Some of the vehicle mentioned above had intended
acceleration as well as faulty braking systems which are all
crucial in securing the safety of passengers as well as
bystanders.
The motor vehicle industry is another example of an industry
that has almost if not fully adopted technology. Most vehicles
rely on complex mechanical and technical systems to function.
Just as with all forms of technology, automobile technology
does not 100% guarantee security to the users as well as
bystanders. The automobile industry is an example of an
industry if not carefully regulated can pose a threat to public
safety.
Technology is meant to improve how human beings live.
Technology is meant to make work easier; it is meant to
increase production, improve accuracy and speed up activities
amongst other things. Unfortunately, technology seems to be
doing more than that. It seems to be exposing the general public
to unnecessary risks while in the process of achieving what it
was intended for. Malfunctioning technology, faulty systems,
system glitches seem to expose the public to public safety
concerns. There is a need to carry out a study to establish how
risky technology is and how technology can be regulated or
controlled with the aim of guaranteeing public safety.
Teachers Comments about this paper:
It seems that you have changed your topic. This is OK but I

11. think that the two questions that you pose may be so broad that
when you build your research program it will be much larger
than the scope needed in this class. Feel free to further refine
your question as you begin to prepare your research program
description.
References
Austen-Smith, D., Diermeier, D., Zemel, E., Diermeier, D., &
Merkley, G. (2017). Unintended acceleration: Toyota’s recall
crisis. Kellogg School of Management Cases, 1-16.
Eilert, M., Jayachandran, S., Kalaignanam, K., & Swartz, T. A.
(2017). Does it pay to recall your product early? An empirical
investigation in the automobile industry. Journal of
Marketing, 81(3), 111-129.
Hofmann, D. A., Burke, M. J., & Zohar, D. (2017). 100 years of
occupational safety research: From basic protections and work
analysis to a multilevel view of workplace safety and
risk. Journal of applied psychology, 102(3), 375.
Laugier, C. (2018, December). Dynamic Scene Understanding
and Upcoming Collision Prediction to improve Autonomous
Driving Safety: A Bayesian Approach.
Wojcik, J. (2019). Outsourcing air safety. Guardian (Sydney),
(1861), 9.