Tackling volatile substance abuse in Scotland
a training course for the social care workforce

Course content: Communication

Attitudes, behaviour and motivations of young people

There is a common misconception that those who become involved in volatile substance abuse are deviant young people who use volatile chemicals for the sole purpose of getting 'high'. This generalisation makes no allowance for the complex motivations behind the actions of many young people, for whom the sensation of being 'high' is neither pleasurable nor acceptable, but rather a means to an end.

As adults we must lose our preconceptions and break down any barriers between ourselves and the child to convey the key message that VSA is dangerous. The child who sniffs volatile substances is not necessarily the loner in the corner; he or she is not necessarily the bully or the child with an unhappy home life.

The one thing that must be clear is that there is no stereotypical child who sniffs volatile substances.

Young people are generally reticent about talking to adults about this issue and this will be all the more so if they feel threatened by the situation, that it is not in their interests or that you are prying or unsympathetic to their needs. You need to consider how your client will perceive the professional relationship and how this impacts upon how forthcoming and open they will be in their responses. You can encourage a positive approach by:

• Listening
• Being attentive and accepting
• Avoiding categorising or labelling the individual
• Moving the interview forward

Factors effecting communication

Who you are, your role and your purpose for investigating the issue will be issues that affect how a young person sees you and how they feel they can communicate with you. Young people are very aware that different roles have different responsibilities. They may prejudge the response of a worker because of their role.

Staffordshire University found that the young people interviewed thought residential workers were more informed than field social workers:

‘Social workers know who to refer you to, but I don't think they know how to help you, like talk to you about it, I don't think they know a lot about it.’

Young people felt social work responses to the 'discovery' of a young person using volatile substances was not supportive or needs based. For those young people living in a social services hostel for young care leavers, 'discovery' was linked to fears about eviction from the hostel and the potential of being homeless:

‘If they see you with a can, they're straight on your case, bang -you're busted, straight on out.’