Evaluation of parents' awareness and knowledge levels on substance addiction within the framework of the ecological approach

Substance addiction is a multifaceted problem that not only threatens an individual's physical and mental health but also negatively impacts family relationships and social structure. Adolescents are the group most prone to substance abuse. The role of the family, the immediate environment, is crucial in protecting adolescents against substance abuse. In this context, parents' knowledge and awareness of substance abuse is considered a key variable in protecting their children from substance abuse abuse. Therefore, this thesis aims to assess substance abuse abuse awareness and knowledge within the context of parents by focusing on family interactions within the individual's microenvironment. The research is structured using the Ecological Approach, which evaluates events from an "individual within their environment" perspective. This model allows for an understanding of the factors that lead an individual to substance abuse by considering them within the context of family interactions and environmental factors at the microsystem level. Because the existing literature contains a limited number of studies comprehensively addressing parents' knowledge and awareness of substance abuse, this research was conducted to contribute to addressing this gap. The primary objective of the study is to assess parents' knowledge and awareness of substance abuse and to identify the current situation. This quantitative study, conducted with parents living within the Antalya province, found that participants' general awareness of substance abuse was high, while their knowledge level was low. While increased knowledge was observed to positively impact awareness, this increase was not always reflected in attitudes and behaviors. Furthermore, it is noteworthy that parents lack knowledge about the functioning of AMATEM and its activities. The research findings indicate that sociodemographic variables such as age, gender, income, marital status, and education level are not direct determinants of knowledge and awareness; however, these variables can produce significant results when interacting with environmental conditions. Key Words: Substance Addiction; Environment, Parent, Social Work, Ecological Approach