Psychosocial Determinants of Substance Use: South Asia vs. Europe

Abstract

 This systematic review explores the psychological and socio-demographic determinants of psychoactive substance use in South Asian and European countries in the last decade (2014-24). It synthesizes 42 eligible articles identified from databases namely Pubmed, Pubmed Central, BMC Public Health, Google Scholar and Science Direct, following strict inclusion and exclusion criteria. The findings are categorized into five themes: children and adolescents, college students, clinical populations, general populations, and other populations including prisoners, healthcare workers, and Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) victims. The key similarities observed are the effects of peer influence and socio-economic factors among all the populations. Differences in psychological traits appeared in regional emphasis. South Asian studies highlighted family structures, socio-economic challenges, and digital technology use, while European studies emphasized psychological traits and public health policies. Substance use patterns also varied, with alcohol and cannabis dominating in South Asia, and heroin in European studies. The study identifies research gaps, in terms of South Asian working populations. Areas for future directions include culturally nuanced interventions and stigma reduction through policy-driven frameworks. These results underscore the importance of culturally tailored strategies for targeting determinants of substance use across different populations.