Tsehaynew Getaneh
The main objective of the study was to investigate the nature, causes, and practice of risk behaviors among undergraduate students in Dilla and Hawassa universities, Ethiopia. A total of 210 regular students were selected using a multi-stage random sampling technique from both Universities. The data were analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistics using SPSS Version 20. The results showed that about 39.7% of participants were practicing risky behaviors ranging from mild to high levels. An independent samples t-test revealed that Hawassa University student’s level of risk behavior (M=18.53, SD=16.63), peer pressure (M=13.93, SD=8.48) and self esteem (M=30.79, SD=4.05) were significantly higher than those of Dilla university student’s level of risk behavior (M=12.62, SD=14.39), peer pressure (M=10.14, SD=6.57) and self esteem(M=28.80, SD = 4.02) at [t (1,182) = 2.986, p<.05], [t (1,182)= 3.967, p<.05] and [t (1,182)=.00, p<.05] respectively. Moreover, moderate to high levels of peer pressure and stress was experienced by participants about 38.6% and 42.9% of the participants respectively. About 48.4% of the participants have been found to have moderate to low levels of self-esteem. Risk behaviors were positively and significantly correlated to age(r=.146, p<.05, peer pressure(r=.616, p<.01), and stress levels(r=.148, p<.05. Multiple regression analysis also showed that students’ self-esteem, stress, peer pressure, and background variables account for 41% of the variance in the practice of risk-taking behavior (R2=.419, Adjusted R2 =.387, F (7,126)=13.002,p<.05). Besides, the one way ANOVA revealed that the level of self-esteem of first-year students was significantly higher than those of second year and third-year students. Thus, personal factors play important role in influencing the practice of risky behavior among undergraduate students.