Drug use more common among young people exposed to crime

Siri Thor

29.06.2026 - Exposure to crime among young people is associated with the use of alcohol, drugs, doping substances, nicotine and gambling. This is shown in a new analysis from CAN.

“Students who reported that they had been exposed to crime were more likely than those who had not been exposed to report using alcohol, drugs, doping substances and nicotine, as well as gambling,” says Siri Thor, investigator and researcher at CAN.

The association was particularly clear in relation to drug use.

“In the in-depth analyses, we found that students who had been exposed to crime were more than three times as likely to have used drugs,” says Siri Thor.

As schools are expected to take on an even stronger role in crime prevention in the future, and since young people’s exposure to crime often takes place in school environments and among peers, this is an important topic for further study.

“The results may indicate that exposure to crime and the use of alcohol, drugs, doping substances, nicotine and gambling are part of a broader pattern of vulnerability and risk among young people,” says Siri Thor.

In total, 28 percent of school students reported that they had been exposed to crime. The proportion was slightly higher among girls (30 percent) than among boys (26 percent). The analysis is based on CAN’s 2025 national school survey among students in grade 9 and the second year of upper secondary school.