Alcohol and its consumption is a major topic for public policy-making. Growing awareness of alcohol-related health problems among the general public has led to high levels of interest in alcohol consumption and its impact on society. This innovative collection of new perspectives on this critically important issue is informed by a leading group of international social scientists. Topics covered include alcoholism, the family, minimum pricing, paternalistic controls, and Socially Responsible Investment programs. Together, these essays reveal illuminating new insights into how public policy might be improved.

This book was originally published as a special issue of "Contemporary Social Science."

In older cultures, the use of intoxicant drugs was integrated into the rhythms of social existence and bounded by rituals and taboos that ensured their dangerous forces were contained and channelled. In modern western societies, by contrast, the state and the institutions of society have washed their hands of any responsibility for assimilating the desire for intoxication into social existence, and by doing so have sponsored a free-for-all that has often had disastrous consequences for individuals and communities alike. Why We Take Drugs provides a timely intervention in the growing debate about the wisdom of the ongoing 'war on drugs'. Rather than adopting the assumption that drug and alcohol use is a problem that poses a threat to society, this book makes a case for the idea that society is a problem for intoxicant drug use and that it is society that poses a threat, by denying those who seek intoxication a legitimate and socially sanctioned space in which to experience these altered states. Scholarly yet approachable, it provides a new understanding of the meaning and role of intoxicant drug use in contemporary society, setting an in-depth phenomenological analysis of intoxication as an embodied experience within a wide sociological, anthropological and historical context. These ideas are brought to life by intimate and revealing accounts of ordinary drug users' experiences with a wide range of substances. This book will appeal to a wide range of students and scholars throughout the social sciences, particularly in the areas of drug and alcohol studies, body studies, cultural studies, anthropology and philosophy.

First published in 1991. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

The consumption of drugs and alcohol, and the pleasures and problems arising from this consumption, can be understood as embedded and constitutive elements of social, family, and recreational life. At the same time, they are key sites of intervention for a broad array of state and non-state actors focused on regulation, treatment, and recovery. This edited volume showcases current research on the complex social and cultural geographies of drugs and alcohol. Taking an avowedly critical approach, the authors draw from a variety of theoretical traditions to explore the socially and spatially embedded nature of alcohol and drug consumption, regulation and treatment, and the ways in which these give rise to particular lived experiences, while foreclosing on others. Together, the chapters question taken-for-granted assumptions about the nature of, and motivations for, drug and alcohol use, and pay direct attention to both the intended and unintended consequences of regulation and treatment initiatives. Despite and, in part, because of this critical stance, chapters hold immediate implications for drug and alcohol policy and public health interventions. This book was originally published as a special issue of Social and Cultural Geography.

This book focuses on the use of drugs in our lives and how we respond to them. Whereas drug policy typically centres on the problems of illicit drugs or licit drugs used in illicit ways or circumstances, Contemporary Drug Policy instead considers the wide variety of substances we call drugs as a normal part of our personal and social experience and asks how and when drugs benefit us as well as how and when they are harmful. The evidence is clear that at some times, in some circumstances, and in some places drugs are a problem. This book does not ignore these issues but shifts our attention to making policies that also recognize their legitimate and constructive place in society. It focuses on asking questions, challenging assumptions, and developing responses to drugs based on evidence from scientific study as directed by critical criminological theory rather than mainstream theory or unfounded assumptions. Different from other books on drug policy, this book does not offer answers or solutions. Rather it shows how critical criminological theories can lead scientific research in new directions supportive of policies that offer both solutions to problems that are found to be related to drugs and an appreciation for the benefits that drugs can bring to people and society. This book will be of interest to those studying or researching drug policy as well as professionals involved in policy making processes.

Mutual-help groups have proliferated, diversified and adapted to emerging substance-related trends over the past 75 years, and have been the focus of rigorous research for the past 30 years. This book reviews the history of mutual support groups for addiction that have arisen as adjuncts or alternatives to Twelve Step Programs, including secular mutual support groups like Secular Organization for Sobriety, Smart Recovery and Women for Sobriety, and faith-based mutual support groups like Celebrate Recovery. It also considers the mutual support groups attended by families and friends of addicts. These mutual support groups are examined in terms of their histories, theoretical underpinnings and intended communities. The structures common in mutual support groups have influenced the rise of a new recovery advocacy movement and new recovery community institutions such as recovery ministries, recovery community centers, sober cafes, sober sports clubs, and recovery-focused projects in music, theatre and the arts. This volume explores how collectively, these trends reflect the cultural and political awakening of people in recovery and growing recognition and celebration of multiple pathways of long-term addiction recovery. This book was originally published as a special issue of the Journal of Groups in Addiction and Recovery.

Crack cocaine users have significant health problems, and place a significant burden on social services, the criminal justice system and drug treatment agencies. Among policymakers, professionals and the wider section of society, they are the most poorly understood drug-using group and have the worst retention rate in prison drug programmes and community drug agencies. This book is about their addictions and the realities of their lives. Based on ethnographic research (observation and interviewing) conducted in south London, it aims to highlight their day-to-day struggles as they attempt to survive in a violent and intimidating street drug scene while trying to make changes to their lives. The book unpacks the myths and stigma of their drug use, highlighting their fragile position in society in an effort to better understand them. With the help of several key characters, the book uses their words and experiences to take the reader on a journey through their crack addiction from a life in and out of crack houses, their experiences with law enforcement and welfare agencies to their life aspirations. The findings have important policy implications, and are relevant and accessible to academics and students in the field of criminology, sociology, psychology, and research methods. The research is equally relevant for central and local government policymakers, and frontline healthcare and drug agency staff.

The world's wealthiest nations have expended vast blood and treasure in tracking and capturing traffickers, dealers and consumers of narcotics, as well as destroying crops and confiscating shipments. Yet the global trade in illicit drugs is thriving, with no apparent change in the level of consumption despite decades of prohibition. This Adelphi argues that the present enforcement regime is not only failing to win the 'War on Drugs'; it is also igniting and prolonging that conflict on the streets of producer and transit countries, where the supply chain has become interwoven with state institutions and cartels have become embroiled in violence against their rivals and with security forces. What can be done to secure the worst affected regions and states, such as Latin America and Afghanistan? By examining the destabilising affects of prohibition, as well as alternative approaches such as that adopted by the authorities in Portugal, this book shows how progress may be made by treating consumption as a healthcare issue rather than a criminal matter, thereby freeing states to tackle the cartels and traffickers who hold their communities to ransom.

Khat, marijuana, peyote-are these dangerous drugs or vilified plants with rich cultural and medical values? In this book, Lisa Gezon brings the drug debate into the 21st century, proposing criteria for evaluating psychotropic substances. Focusing on khat, whose bushy leaves are an increasingly popular stimulant and the target of vehement anti-drug campaigns, she explores biocultural and socioeconomic contexts on local, national, and global levels. Gezon provides a multidisciplinary examination of the plant's direct physical and psychological effects, as well as indirect social and structural effects on income and labor productivity, identity, gendered relationships, global drug discourses, and food security. This sophisticated, multi-leveled analysis cuts through the traditional battle lines of the drug debate and is a model for understanding and evaluating psychotropic substances around the world.

Khat, marijuana, peyote--are these dangerous drugs or vilified plants with rich cultural and medical values? In this book, Lisa Gezon brings the drug debate into the 21st century, proposing criteria for evaluating psychotropic substances. Focusing on khat, whose bushy leaves are an increasingly popular stimulant and the target of vehement anti-drug campaigns, she explores biocultural and socioeconomic contexts on local, national, and global levels. Gezon provides a multi-disciplinary examination of the plant's direct physical and psychological effects, as well as indirect social and structural effects on income and labor productivity, identity, gendered relationships, global drug discourses, and food security. This sophisticated, multileveled analysis cuts through the traditional battle lines of the drug debate and is a model for understanding and evaluating psychotropic substances around the world.

This textbook surveys the current knowledge on substance use disorders (SUD), summarizing scientific evidence from numerous fields. It uses a biopsychosocial framework to integrate the many factors that contribute to addictions, from genetic predispositions, neurological responses caused by drugs, co-occurring psychiatric disorders, personality traits, and developmental conditions to cultural influences. Real-life vignettes and first-person accounts build understanding of the lived experience of addiction. The currently accepted practices for diagnosis and treatment are presented, including the role of 12-step programmes and other mutual-assistance groups. The text also investigates the research methods that form the foundation of evidence-based knowledge. The main body text is augmented by study guideposts such as learning objectives, review exercises, highlighted key terms, and chapter summaries, which enable more efficient comprehension and retention of the book's material.

"War and Drugs" explores the relationship between military incursions and substance use and abuse throughout history. For centuries, drugs have been used to weaken enemies, stimulate troops to fight, and quell post-war trauma. They have also served as a source of funding for clandestine military and paramilitary activity. From the Opium Wars through the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, themes of colonialism, capitalism, and anticommunism have constructed the foundation for the current crisis of international drug trafficking and addiction. In addition to offering detailed geopolitical perspectives, this book explores the intergenerational trauma that follows military conflict and the rising tide of substance abuse among veterans, especially from the Vietnam and Iraq-Afghan eras. Addiction specialist Bergen-Cico raises important questions about the past and challenges us to consider new approaches in the future especially to that longest of U.S. wars: the erstwhile War on Drugs.

In a remarkable and broad-ranging narrative, Yangwen Zheng's book explores the history of opium consumption in China from 1483 to the late twentieth century. The story begins in the mid-Ming dynasty, when opium was sent as a gift by vassal states and used as an aphrodisiac in court. Over time, the Chinese people from different classes and regions began to use it for recreational purposes, so beginning a complex culture of opium consumption. The book traces this transformation over a period of five hundred years, asking who introduced opium to China, how it spread across all sections of society, embraced by rich and poor alike as a culture and an institution. The book, which is accompanied by a fascinating collection of illustrations, will appeal to students and scholars of history, anthropology, sociology, political science, economics, and all those with an interest in China.

From over-the-counter cough syrups and prescribed painkillers to street economies of heroin and fentanyl, opioid substances and uses have ignited global debates about national drug policy reform. This book is the first to focus on these issues in South Africa, through a range of disciplinary perspectives.

In twelve chapters, scholars from community medicine, pharmacology, social science and the humanities, along with civic actors and researchers, present their evidence-based arguments and insights, and explore possibilities for harm reduction approaches in South Africa. Chapters cover three core areas: dilemmas of drug policy; contradictions of care and treatment; and the issue of stigma.

Opioids in South Africa invites wider conversation, asking us to imagine policy responses that can better protect the constitutional dignity, health and access to healthcare of people using drugs as well as of their families and communities.

David Nutt regularly hit the headlines as the UK's forthright Drugs Czar (Chair of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs), not least when fired by the Home Secretary in 2009 for his 'inconvenient' views. In Nutt Uncut he explains how he survived ill-judged political and media vilification to establish the respected charity Drug Science, with the aim of telling the truth about drugs. The book describes his life, distinguished career and scientific achievements, including his research into the human brain and the effects that both lawful and criminally illegal substances (including psychedelics) have on the brain and behaviour. It also catalogues with expert precision the risks of harm to drug users and others of a range of well-known drugs. Surveying the state of medical knowledge around various currently prohibited substances - from hard drugs to LSD, cannabis, ecstasy, magic mushrooms and poppers - Professor Nutt ranks their potential harms and benefits (e.g. in treating anxiety, depression or pain) leading him to challenge the distorted logic of a blanket ban on anything psychoactive except alcohol, tobacco and caffeine. Nutt Uncut contains far, far more about the usually hidden world of drugs, their use, abuse and role as a political bargaining counter - making it of interest not just to the many experts and others who already support the author's campaign for a frank, evidence-based approach to drugs but also anyone who wishes to learn about what he describes in Chapter 11 as 'policy madness.'

Learn to create a positive research/action alliance similar to that of DePaul University and the Oxford House community This book reviews important research conducted in a 13-year collaborative partnership between Oxford House (a community-based, self-run residential substance abuse recovery program) and DePaul University. It also presents practical guidelines for developing effective action research collaborative programs that can cultivate and maintain mutually beneficial community/research partnerships.Creating Communities for Addiction Recovery: The Oxford House Model presents and examines: practical guidelines for developing effective action research collaboratives focusing on the development of trust, respecting the personal experiences of the community members and the group, commitment to serving the community, validating findings with organization members, and accountability the experiences and attitudes of Oxford House community members in light of their participation in the collaborative research projects described in the book the essentials of designing and creating an efficient and productive yet homey residential community environment for addicted persons the factors that make Oxford Houses in the United States and Australia safe and sober settings for persons in recovery the differential growth among self-governed substance abuse recovery homes for men and for women with a focus on the impact of state loan programs and the utilization of technical assistance in relation to the expansion of women's houses as compared with men's the economic advantages of the Oxford House model as compared with other treatment and incarceration alternatives the roles of ethnicity and gender in substance abuse recovery the structural social support of Oxford House men and the impact of parenthood on these men's substance use patterns and recovery attempts the medical care (need and utilization) patterns of a substance abusing and recovering population how Oxford House's African-American community functions as a source of abstinent social networks the sense of community among women and women with children living in Oxford Houses with emphasis on how the presence of children impacts the household perspectives of leadership by women (some with children, some without) affiliated with Oxford HousesThe information in this book shows that the rules of the game have changed.Substance abusers now can take charge of their own recovery in effective and efficient ways, and practitioners can find low-cost housing options for their clients with substance abuse problems. As a part of your professional/teaching collection, Creating Communities for Addiction Recovery can help you or your students take understand and make effective use of this rapidly evolving paradigm of community-based recovery.

How much do we really know about our number one drug of choice? This book, the first natural, cultural, and artistic history of our favourite mood enhancer tells us more, by looking at how caffeine was discovered, its early uses, and the unexpected parts it has played in medicine, religion, painting, poetry, learning and love.
The World of Caffeine is a captivating tale of art and society containing many fascinating stories including:
* how Balzac's addiction to caffeine drove him to eat coffee and may have killed him
* how a mini Ice Age may have helped bring coffee, tea and chocolate to popularity in Europe
* how caffeine, in its various forms, was used as cash in China, Africa, Central America and Egypt.

Discover the role culture, family, and environment have in the prevention of Latino substance abuse Information about the substance abuse behaviors among Latino populations has been limited. Substance Abusing Latinos: Current Research on Epidemiology, Prevention, and Treatment fills this void by presenting the latest research on the epidemic of substance abuse now afflicting the Latino community. Ethnic differences are reviewed, including specific studies covering gang members, low-income urban women, risky behaviors, and language preference indicators of acculturation. This book does more than simply present the researchit discusses effective treatment strategies to help practitioners provide quality, culturally competent care to lacking Latino populations. Latinos, the largest minority in the United States, have an increasing alcohol and illicit drug use problem. Culture, acculturation, and language hold powerful sway in the research of Latino/a substance abuse. Substance Abusing Latinos: Current Research on Epidemiology, Prevention, and Treatment delves deeply into troubling issues such as gang membership, sexual abuse, the lack of healthy family role models, the effects of different levels of acculturation, the lack of health insurance, and rampant involvement with the criminal system. The research is used as a foundation to focus on the latest advances of substance abuse prevention and culturally competent intervention programs. Each chapter is extensively referenced to reinforce research. Substance Abusing Latinos: Current Research on Epidemiology, Prevention, and Treatment explores: substance abuse among gang members in a small city childhood sexual abuse and drug use among low-income Puerto Rican women a comparison of risky behaviors of African-American and Cuban-American adolescent juvenile offenders acculturation status and substance use prevention with Mexican and Mexican-American youth culturally competent intervention with families of Latino youth at risk for drug abuse psychiatric, family, and ethnicity-related factors that can impact treatment among Hispanic substance abusing adolescents HIV/AIDS prevention practice with substance abusers Substance Abusing Latinos: Current Research on Epidemiology, Prevention, and Treatment is essential reading for educators, students, practitioners working with Latino/a populations, and substance abuse researchers.

Discover the role culture, family, and environment have in the prevention of Latino substance abuse Information about the substance abuse behaviors among Latino populations has been limited. Substance Abusing Latinos: Current Research on Epidemiology, Prevention, and Treatment fills this void by presenting the latest research on the epidemic of substance abuse now afflicting the Latino community. Ethnic differences are reviewed, including specific studies covering gang members, low-income urban women, risky behaviors, and language preference indicators of acculturation. This book does more than simply present the researchit discusses effective treatment strategies to help practitioners provide quality, culturally competent care to lacking Latino populations. Latinos, the largest minority in the United States, have an increasing alcohol and illicit drug use problem. Culture, acculturation, and language hold powerful sway in the research of Latino/a substance abuse. Substance Abusing Latinos: Current Research on Epidemiology, Prevention, and Treatment delves deeply into troubling issues such as gang membership, sexual abuse, the lack of healthy family role models, the effects of different levels of acculturation, the lack of health insurance, and rampant involvement with the criminal system. The research is used as a foundation to focus on the latest advances of substance abuse prevention and culturally competent intervention programs. Each chapter is extensively referenced to reinforce research. Substance Abusing Latinos: Current Research on Epidemiology, Prevention, and Treatment explores: substance abuse among gang members in a small city childhood sexual abuse and drug use among low-income Puerto Rican women a comparison of risky behaviors of African-American and Cuban-American adolescent juvenile offenders acculturation status and substance use prevention with Mexican and Mexican-American youth culturally competent intervention with families of Latino youth at risk for drug abuse psychiatric, family, and ethnicity-related factors that can impact treatment among Hispanic substance abusing adolescents HIV/AIDS prevention practice with substance abusers Substance Abusing Latinos: Current Research on Epidemiology, Prevention, and Treatment is essential reading for educators, students, practitioners working with Latino/a populations, and substance abuse researchers.

In this ground-breaking book, Michael Clemmens offers a new model of treatment for long-term recovery which goes beyond the traditional "disease" paradigm. Working from the belief that a fuller life for the recovering addict is grounded on a foundation of abstinence, the author explores a "self-modulation" approach which leads to a change in the behavior from within the individual while developing and expanding connection with others.

Learn to create a positive research/action alliance similar to that of DePaul University and the Oxford House community This book reviews important research conducted in a 13-year collaborative partnership between Oxford House (a community-based, self-run residential substance abuse recovery program) and DePaul University. It also presents practical guidelines for developing effective action research collaborative programs that can cultivate and maintain mutually beneficial community/research partnerships.Creating Communities for Addiction Recovery: The Oxford House Model presents and examines: practical guidelines for developing effective action research collaboratives focusing on the development of trust, respecting the personal experiences of the community members and the group, commitment to serving the community, validating findings with organization members, and accountability the experiences and attitudes of Oxford House community members in light of their participation in the collaborative research projects described in the book the essentials of designing and creating an efficient and productive yet homey residential community environment for addicted persons the factors that make Oxford Houses in the United States and Australia safe and sober settings for persons in recovery the differential growth among self-governed substance abuse recovery homes for men and for women with a focus on the impact of state loan programs and the utilization of technical assistance in relation to the expansion of women's houses as compared with men's the economic advantages of the Oxford House model as compared with other treatment and incarceration alternatives the roles of ethnicity and gender in substance abuse recovery the structural social support of Oxford House men and the impact of parenthood on these men's substance use patterns and recovery attempts the medical care (need and utilization) patterns of a substance abusing and recovering population how Oxford House's African-American community functions as a source of abstinent social networks the sense of community among women and women with children living in Oxford Houses with emphasis on how the presence of children impacts the household perspectives of leadership by women (some with children, some without) affiliated with Oxford HousesThe information in this book shows that the rules of the game have changed.Substance abusers now can take charge of their own recovery in effective and efficient ways, and practitioners can find low-cost housing options for their clients with substance abuse problems. As a part of your professional/teaching collection, Creating Communities for Addiction Recovery can help you or your students take understand and make effective use of this rapidly evolving paradigm of community-based recovery.

A Brief History of Cocaine, Second Edition provides a fascinating historical insight into the reasons why cocaine use is increasing in popularity and why the rise of the cocaine trade is tightly linked with the rise of terrorism The author illustrates the challenges faced by today's governments and explains why current anti-drug efforts have had only a limited effect on this global market. This updated edition reexamines the impact of cocaine production, trade, and consumption on society beginning in the 16th century. It shows how the commercialization of cocaine was driven by cartels of Swiss and German pharmaceutical companies and private enterprises across Europe, Asia, and the United States. The author shows how government policies slowly transformed from trade, shipping, and manufacturing regulations, with little or no success in stemming the flow of drugs. The book describes how anti-drug laws, treaties, and costly initiatives involving crop substitution, crop suppression, interdiction, and international cooperation were first attempted more than 400 years ago and why these strategies failed for Colonial Spain and later backfired on the League of Nations. The author shows how economic necessity among growers, the environmental impact of pesticides, the potential for genetic engineering of coca plants, and other loopholes have actually been counterproductive, undermining the current efforts to curb the cocaine trade. Featuring new and reorganized chapters, A Brief History of Cocaine, Second Edition contains the latest data and statistics relating drug trafficking to terrorism, and explains recent trends in worldwide production, consumption, cost competition, and international transport. This book offers a well-rounded historical perspective that is ideal for criminal justice practitioners, teachers, students, and anyone interested in this topic.

The phenomenon of psycho-active drugs, and our reactions to them, is one of the most fascinating topics of the social history of mankind. Starting with an analysis of the 'policy of fear' in which law enforcement is 'haunted' by drug money, Drugs and Money offers a radical reconsideration of this highly contentious issue.
In this intriguing book, Petrus C. van Duyne and Michael Levi expose an ever-unfolding series of problems:

• the proliferation of mind-influencing substances
• the complications of international drug regulation
• the interaction between markets and economic actors, with the consequent amassing of huge amounts of crime-money.

The social, cultural and economic aspects of this crime-money are explored, alongside the ongoing threat it poses to the legitimate economy and the state.

Reconnect with dually diagnosed individuals using stories they can identify with! Addicted and Mentally Ill: Stories of Courage, Hope, and Empowerment is a powerful tool to recommend to your clients who are dually diagnosed. This book presents vignettes about people with mental illness and addiction whose situations are representative of what goes on in a dual-diagnosis in-patient setting. This nonclinical, easy-to-read resource will give you, your patients, and their family members unique insight on dual diagnosis and how co-occurring mental illness and addiction can be treated with the minimum amount of blame, shame, or poor decision-making. Addicted and Mentally Ill focuses on the most significant issues surrounding these individuals, such as: dual diagnosis and the family systemhow family can help or hinder treatment the reasons why dually diagnosed clients resist treatment the fear of losing self-identity in treatment the misunderstandings about dual diagnosisfrom the perspectives of the client, family members, and professionals in medicine and social work the role of hope, empowerment, and spirituality in recovery in dual diagnosis what the patient/client and family members can do to improve treatment options Addicted and Mentally Ill is unique for its storytelling format, consisting of brief tales and short explanations you can recommend to clients and families with limited clinical knowledge or time. This innovative tool answers many of the questions that dually diagnosed individuals may have and helps them learn of the issues surrounding their illness as well as their addiction. For those professionals who provide direct counseling to these clients or patients, this book offers an interesting and nonthreatening way to help them learn about treatment options. The stories in Addicted and Mentally Ill confront the life problems specific to dually diagnosed individuals, including: alcohol, drugs, and self-medication the difficulties of building trust in group therapy settings psychotropic medications illnesses such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, depression, and personality disorders suicide

The British system of dealing with drug addiction is notable for its flexibility and its capacity to adapt to changing circumstances. Because of this it has attracted considerable international interest, although it is rarely fully understood or accurately represented.
Presenting a comprehensive account of the development of policies and treatments, Heroin Addiction a brings together the perspectives of policy makers, practitioners and social commentators. The book contributes to a proper understanding of how policy and practice has evolved so that lessons for future policy and practice may be identified.
Volume I of Heroin Addiction focuses on the evolution of the drugs problem in the UK, examining the social and economic consequences from historical and contemporary perspectives. It is a unique source of reference for students, researchers, healthcare professionals and drug agencies both in the UK and overseas.