Social psychology focuses on connecting thoughts and behavior to social influences. This field of psychology has been applied to various social phenomena, as it provides valuable insight into how the presence of others impacts people’s behavior. The present essay will focus on how social psychology was successfully used to explain the social phenomenon of drug abuse in youths.
Youth drug abuse is a persistent issue in many countries. As reported by Noori (2015), the rates of drug use among Afghan youths are growing, mainly due to social challenges such as unemployment, poverty, and low levels of education. In studying drug abuse, social psychology focuses on how social interactions and experiences influence the development, sustainment, prevention, and treatment of drug addiction. As a result of social psychology research in the area, two essential predictors of drug abuse in youths have been found. First of all, peer pressure has a crucial influence on drug abuse in youths (Russell, Trudeau, & Leland, 2015). According to Russell et al. (2015), “Youth who begin their substance use as young as age 8 are often pressured by peer culture to do so” (p. 1325). Another critical factor impacting drug abuse is drug addiction in the family. Children who come from substance-using families are more likely to develop an addiction (Russell et al., 2015). Thus, the application of social psychology to the phenomenon of youth drug abuse helps to explain how social factors impact the prevalence of and risk for drug abuse.
An emergent notion in social psychology is that individual and family educational attainment influences a person’s attitude towards drugs, and thus affects the probability of drug abuse. According to Olasupo and Idemudia (2017), there is a negative correlation between the levels of educational attainment and hazardous drug abuse. The relationship between family educational attainment and drug abuse is more complex. According to research by Kendler, Maes, Sundquist, Ohlsson, and Sundquist (2014), family socioeconomic status influences the probability of drug addiction. Families with high educational attainment also have a higher socioeconomic status, and thus family education has an indirect effect on drug addiction and abuse in youths.
Nevertheless, there are also some situations where social psychology may not be so successful at explaining a particular phenomenon. For example, religion is a socio-cultural phenomenon that influences people’s thoughts, attitudes, and behavior. Social psychology justifies the need for religion by stating that it is used to cope with uncertainty (Schneider, Gruman, & Coutts, 2012). However, the concept of religion is too complicated to be explained with existing scientific knowledge. According to Anderson (2015), there are a number of challenges in studying religion from a social psychology perspective, including the plurality of religions and the lack of proper ways to operationalize religious belief. Thus, while social psychology can successfully provide an explanation for some social phenomena, others require further research and may never be explained by social psychology alone.
Overall, social psychology has been used scientifically to successfully explain the phenomenon of youth drug abuse by discovering social predictors influencing it. For instance, factors such as family substance abuse, educational attainment, socioeconomic status, and peer pressure all influence drug abuse. However, there are also some complex social and cultural phenomena that cannot be elucidated by existing research. In particular, religion remains a rather unexplained concept in social psychology.
References
Anderson, J. R. (2015). The social psychology of religion: Using scientific methodologies to understand religion. In B. Mohan (ed.), Construction of social psychology (pp. 173-185). Lisboa, Portugal: InScience Press.
Kendler, K. S., Maes, H. H., Sundquist, K., Ohlsson, H., & Sundquist, J. (2014). Genetic and family and community environmental effects on drug abuse in adolescence: A Swedish national twin and sibling study. American Journal of Psychiatry, 171(2), 209-217.
Noori, L. (2015). Drug addiction: An ugly social phenomenon. The Kabul Times. Web.
Olasupo, M. O., & Idemudia, E. S. (2017). Religiosity, gender, and educational attainment as predictors of drug abuse in South Africa: A logistic regression approach. Bangladesh E-Journal of Sociology, 14(2), 64-73.
Russell, B. S., Trudeau, J. J., & Leland, A. J. (2015). Social influence on adolescent polysubstance use: The escalation to opioid use. Substance Use & Misuse, 50(10), 1325-1331.
Schneider, F. W., Gruman, J. A., & Coutts, L. M. (2012). Applied social psychology: Understanding and addressing social and practical problems (2nd ed.). London, England: Sage.
Drug and substance abuse is an issue that affects entirely all societies in the world. It has both social and economic consequences, which affect directly and indirectly our everyday live. Drug addiction is “a complex disorder characterized by compulsive drug use” (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2010).
It sets in as one form a habit of taking a certain drug. Full-blown drug abuse comes with social problems such as violence, child abuse, homelessness and destruction of families (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2010). To understand to the impact of drug abuse, one needs to explore the reasons why many get addicted and seem unable pull themselves out of this nightmare.
Physiology and Psychology of Addiction
Many experts consider addiction as a disease as it affects a specific part of the brain; the limbic system commonly referred to as the pleasure center. This area, which experts argue to be primitive, is affected by various drug substances, which it gives a higher priority to other things. Peele (1998) argues that alcoholism is a disease that can only be cured from such a perspective (p. 60). Genetics are also seen as a factor in drug addiction even though it has never been exclusively proven.
Other experts view addiction as a state of mind rather than a physiological problem. The environment plays a major role in early stages of addiction. It introduces the agent, in this case the drug, to the abuser who knowingly or otherwise develops dependence to the substance. Environmental factors range from violence, stress to peer pressure.
Moreover, as an individual becomes completely dependent on a substance, any slight withdrawal is bound to be accompanied by symptoms such as pain, which is purely psychological. This is because the victim is under self-deception that survival without the substance in question is almost if not impossible. From his psychological vantage point, Isralowitz (2004) argues that freedom from addiction is achievable provided there is the “right type of guidance and counseling” (p.22).
Prescription Drug Abuse
A doctor as regulated by law usually administers prescription drugs. It may not be certain why many people abuse prescription drugs but the trend is ever increasing. Many people use prescription drugs as directed by a physician but others use purely for leisure. This kind of abuse eventually leads to addiction.
This problem is compounded by the ease of which one can access the drugs from pharmacies and even online. Many people with conditions requiring painkillers, especially the elderly, have a higher risk of getting addicted as their bodies become tolerant to the drugs. Adolescents usually use some prescription drugs and especially painkillers since they induce anxiety among other feelings as will be discussed below.
Stimulants
Stimulants are generally psychoactive drugs used medically to improve alertness, increase physical activity, and elevate blood pressure among other functions. This class of drugs acts by temporarily increasing mental activity resulting to increased awareness, changes in mood and apparently cause the user to have a relaxed feeling. Although their use is closely monitored, they still find their way on the streets and are usually abused.
Getting deeper into the biochemistry of different stimulants, each has a different metabolism in the body affecting different body organs in a specific way. One common thing about stimulants is that they affect the central nervous system in their mechanism. Examples of commonly used stimulants include; cocaine, caffeine, nicotine, amphetamines and cannabis. Cocaine, which has a tremendously high addictive potential, was in the past used as anesthetic and in treatment of depression before its profound effects were later discovered.
On the streets, cocaine is either injected intravenously or smoked. Within a few minutes of use, it stimulates the brain making the user feel euphoric, energetic and increases alertness. It has long-term effects such as seizures, heart attacks and stroke. Cocaine’s withdrawal symptoms range from anxiety, irritability to a strong craving for more cocaine.
Cannabis, also known as marijuana, is the most often abused drug familiar in almost every corner of the world, from the streets of New York to the most remote village in Africa. Although its addiction potential is lower as compared to that of cocaine, prolonged use of cannabis results to an immense craving for more.
It produces hallucinogenic effects, lack of body coordination, and causes a feeling of ecstasy. Long-term use is closely associated with schizophrenia, and other psychological conditions. From a medical perspective, cannabis is used as an analgesic, to stimulate hunger in patients, nausea ameliorator, and intraocular eye pressure reducer. Insomnia, lack of appetite, migraines, restlessness and irritability characterize withdrawal symptoms of cannabis.
Depressants
Unlike stimulants, depressants reduce anxiety and the central nervous system activity. The most common depressants include barbiturates, benzodiazepines and ethyl alcohol. They are of great therapeutically value especially as tranquilizers or sedatives in reducing anxiety.
Depressants can be highly addictive since they seem to ease tension and bring relaxation. After using depressants for a long time, the body develops tolerance to the drugs. Moreover, body tolerance after continual use requires one use a higher dose to get the same effect. Clumsiness, confusion and a strong craving for the drug accompany gradual withdrawal. Sudden withdrawal causes respiratory complications and can even be fatal.
Narcotics
Narcotics have been used for ages for various ailments and as a pain reliever pain. They are also characterized by their ability to induce sleep and euphoria. Opium, for instance was used in ancient China as a pain reliever and treatment of dysentery and insomnia. Some narcotics such as morphine and codeine are derived from natural sources.
Others are structural analogs to morphine and these include heroin, oxymorphone among others. Narcotics are highly addictive resulting to their strict regulation by a majority of governments. Narcotics act as painkillers once they enter the body.
They are used legally in combination with other drugs as analgesics and antitussives but are abused due to their ability to induce a feeling of well being. Their addiction potential is exceptionally high due to the body’s tolerance after consistent use, forcing the user to use and crave for more to get satisfaction. Increase in respiration rate, diarrhea, anxiety, nausea and lack of appetite are symptoms common to narcotic withdrawal. Others include; running nose, stomach cramps, muscle pains and a strong craving for the drugs.
Hallucinogens
Hallucinogens affect a person’s thinking capacity causing illusions and behavioral changes especially in moods. They apparently cause someone to hear sounds and see images that do not exist. Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), which commonly abused hallucinogen, has a low addiction potential because it does not have withdrawal effects. They also affect a person’s sexual behavior and other body functions such as body temperature. There are no outright withdrawal symptoms for hallucinogens.
References
Isralowitz, R. (2004). Drug use: a reference handbook. Santa Barbara, Clif.: ABC-CLIO. Print.
US as well as other countries have formulated numerous strategies to help in the fight against drug abuse, production, trade, distribution, and addiction. This is a critical provision in the realms of rehabilitating drug addicts and banning business regarding illicit drugs (illegal trade).
It is notable that the country (United States) has made remarkable steps with its ‘War on Drugs’ initiative despite the challenges. The country (in conjunction with other associated states) has managed to establish, ratify, and embrace programs that promote the fight against drug trade and abuse among the youth, adults, and other vulnerable groups in the society.
It is agreeable that US’s ‘War on Drugs’ has been an effective substance abuse prevention plan despite the hiccups that the program faces and its inability to attain some of its designated mandates within the specified durations among the poor (Caulkins, 2005).
Since the inception of the program, several considerable results have been realized towards the prevention of drug peddling and abuse by some sections of the society. Additionally, US have managed to jail some of the drug users and peddlers. It remarkably reduced the trade, distribution, and use of cocaine and other illicit drugs among the people.
There are remarkable results exhibited among the middle and wealthier people (in the reduction of drug use); nonetheless, there have been negligible results among the poor people who have not comprehended the disadvantages associated with drug abuse and addiction.
Major Arguments
Evidently, it is crucial to understand the importance of fighting drug abuse and addiction in the context of establishing and nurturing a healthy and productive nation. It is agreeable that US’s ‘war on drugs’ has registered considerable results in the fight against drug peddling, distribution, abuse, and addiction. This has been a critical substance abuse prevention plan in the US’s context.
The government has managed to reduce the drug consumption rates and trading incidences by arresting and jailing drug dealers and the concerned abusers in the international context.
Nonetheless, it has been challenged to incorporate education programs that could enlighten the society about the atrocities of drug abuse, trade, and addiction. Otherwise, this program has had remarkable challenges among the poor communities as indicated earlier. It is crucial to consider such provision with regard to the efforts meant to prevent drug use.
In the US’s contexts, several presidents have managed to establish and embrace varied programs meant to curb the aspects of drug use and addiction. For example, George Bush managed to reduce the abuse of cocaine with nearly 22%. This was a considerable move under the ‘war on drugs’ initiative.
Despite this, it is agreeable that the initiative (war on drugs) has not eradicated drug abuse and addiction instances as mandated during its inception. This is a critical occurrence following the increasing drug abuse instances and other relevant provisions in the entire context.
Evidently, there have been several challenges faced by the ‘war on drugs’ initiative as indicated earlier. This has hampered its success remarkably despite the efforts to eradicate the aspects of drug abuse, addiction, and other relevant factors. It is crucial to note such providences in the contexts of international drug trade.
Similarly, it is delightful that ‘war on drugs’ has made considerable landmarks in the fight against drug use, production, trade, and distribution following its ability to reduce the instance of drug peddling mentioned earlier. Since the law prohibits any business/dealings regarding illicit drugs, it is crucial to note that the initiative has helped in establishing and embracing such laws.
It forms a critical organ in proposing, initiating, and establishing laws/policies governing drug abuse and addiction. Despite the challenges and other considerable concerns characterizing this initiative, it is agreeable that ‘war on drugs’ has been an effective substance abuse prevention plan.
It is just that the public has not cooperated with the stipulations of this initiative. It is evident that such plans demand public corporation in order to realize substantial results. Nonetheless, the initiative has made considerable accomplishments as indicated earlier despite the challenges. This is a notable progress made by the initiative despite the hiccups.
Concurrently, 10-15% of prohibited heroin and 30% of illegal cocaine have been intercepted in the recent past. Higher figures have been expected although other stakeholders mandated to eradicate such drugs have not accomplished their obligations as expected. This is a critical consideration in various contexts. It is crucial to note that some efforts to fight drug abuse and addiction instances have been thwarted by none-responsiveness (Kellogg, 2003).
Additionally, the public has not cooperated fully as demanded from them. ‘War on Drugs’ has favored domestic law endorsement efforts in order to eradicate drug abuse and addiction in US and internationally; nonetheless, the initiative has registered considerable resistance from drug cartels and other shipment agents who dominate the business.
This is an important observation in the context of fighting drug abuse, trade, and the alleged addiction. Importantly, it is censurable that US’s ‘war on drugs’ has been an effective substance abuse prevention plan despite challenges. It only needs a critical restructure in its entire frameworks in order to realize any considerable result in its endeavors.
Some of the policies governing the initiative have become obsolete, a fact that has rendered the ‘war on drugs’ ineffective at some points. Nevertheless, the initiative has made remarkable accomplishments in its era. It is arguable that there are some difficulties in eradicating the aspects of drug abuse, peddling, and addiction as indicated earlier.
This has made some organizations, individuals, activists, and other relevant entities to declare ‘war on drugs’ as a failure in its mandates (Williams, 2012). It is important to understand the entire aspects of this provision. Several sources have indicated that ‘war on drugs’ has failed to accomplish most of its obligations especially in the societies of low class (poor people).
This is agreeable; however, it is crucial to consider several factors regarding this issue as well as some of the accomplishments already achieved by the program. Based on these arguments, it is important to agree that US’s ‘war on drugs’ has been an effective substance abuse prevention plan despite the challenges as indicated earlier. Its formulation and other relevant obligations have ensured that the abuse, sale, and illegal trading in drugs are minimized.
It is crucial to agree that US established the initiative majorly to eradicate consumption and trade on illegal drugs. This is a crucial provision due to its ability to discern the issues related to drug use and addiction. The increase in violence and crimes associated with drug abuse has become a massive concern in US and beyond.
There are critical factors regarding this factor. Additionally, ‘war on drugs’ has endeavored to fight these problems regardless of the situation. Since drug peddlers, users, and other cartels have been formulating new trends in order to counter the efforts put by the government, the program has not accomplished its full mandates as expected (Blair, 2011). Nevertheless, what it has attained is quite substantial when considered critically.
There are claims that the use of cocaine, heroin, and crack increased considerably during the ‘war on drugs’ era. Additionally, the aspects of crime and other related atrocities escalated remarkably; however, these cannot thwart the entire accomplishments of this initiative.
Despite the challenges, the achievements of this substance abuse prevention plan have been considerable. At least it has restricted trade on illicit drugs, enlightened masses on the problems associated with drug abuse and addiction, initiated the prosecution of drug peddlers/cartels, and prohibited the prevalence on drug abuse.
Conclusion
It is vital to agrees that US’s ‘war on drugs’ has been an effective substance abuse prevention plan despite the drawbacks and its inability to accomplish some of its mandates. Since its inception, the initiative has mandated to eradicate trades on illicit drugs, discourage drug consumption and addiction, and prosecute drug dealers in order to avoid shipments and trafficking of illegal drugs including cocaine, heroin, crack, and other addictive substances.
Although there are considerable claims that ‘war on drugs’ has not managed to eliminate drug use, trafficking, and associated addictions, it is still agreeable that its plans have made some remarkable achievements. By endeavoring to prohibit trade on illicit drugs, the initiative, ‘war on drugs’, forms substantial drug abuse prevention machinery.
It is crucial to consider this provision in various contexts including drug abuse and addiction phenomena. Another prominent consideration in this context is the obligations bestowed on the organ. Nonetheless, fighting drug use, trade, and addiction has been a challenging task both to the government and other relevant/concerned organizations.
Drug abuse has become a major challenge to the United States of America for a very long period of time now. During the 19th century, drugs such as cocaine, morphine, and heroin were discovered and this marked the beginning of incidences of drug abuse and rampant addiction (Abadinsky, 2008). At the beginning of the 20th century, America introduced stringent rules restricting the use of illegal drugs.
This action was taken due to the potential threat posed by uncontrolled drug abuse. Owing to the scope that drug dealing had taken, both domestic and international laws were enforced to regulate the growing of crops such as coca and opium (Crutchfield, 2000). These laws succeeded significantly in minimizing the impact of drug abuse. The paper discusses the history of drug abuse in the US from the year 1950 to 2000.
The Boggs Act of 1951 and the Media
By the end of the World War II (WWII), drug abuse in America had decreased significantly until it was no longer a major social issue (Crutchfield, 2000). However, a few years later the problem reemerged and hence the need for immediate action. In 1951, the Boggs Act was introduced as a one of the most important drug law.
It reflected the basis for effective drug legislation in America where the media perceived and reported an increase in drug abuse. This would imply that any such information resulted in the introduction of a new law to fight criminals. The new penalties would be harsher than the preceding ones and this was set for every single category of offense.
During this period, the perception of increased drug abuse was drawn from the content of the media reports like in movies and television. For instance, it would be noted that there was an increased use of drugs among high school students. Subsequently, the Boggs Act of 1951 would allow the quadrupling of the penalties associated with every single offense category (Shahidullah, 2008).
In particular, the application of the Boggs Act was more inclined to justifying and ensuring the prohibition of marijuana (Abadinsky, 2008). Law enforcers, while giving the rationale for the prohibition claimed that, despite being highly addictive, the drug caused insanity, increased criminality, and even death to the user. This claim, however, was quickly refuted by a renowned medical doctor who was a witness in case and he said that marijuana could produce passivity in the users.
Another witness added a twist to the whole case when he said that marijuana was the major cause of heroin addiction. This, for the Boggs Act of 1951, was a sufficient rationale for the prohibition of marijuana and other related drugs (Staley, 1992). It was the perceived use of drugs by the ‘foreign enemies’ to subvert the American youth that inspired the tightening of drug legislations.
1956 and the Daniel Act
The second drug law within this period was introduced in 1956 and was known as the Daniel Act which was named for the then Texas senator, Price Daniel (Shahidullah, 2008). The new law was similar to the Boggs Act of 1951 in that it employed the same formula of using perceived increase in drug use in the country. As a result, it provided the rationale for the introduction of a new criminal law. In 1956, there were reports of organized crime in the US.
This was through televised Senate hearings presented by the then senator of Tennessee, Estes Kefauver (Crutchfield, 2000). This, at the end of the day, created the perception that there was increased drug use in America. That the organized criminals were in the country and were making a lot of money through drug deals. Consequently, the Daniel Act was enacted and came with harsher penalties than those of the Boggs Act in every of the offense categories.
The two acts, the Boggs Act of 1951 and the Daniel Act of 1956 formed the basis upon which states formulated and passed their own versions of acts. Between 1958 and 1969, the Commonwealth of Virginia, and Virginia itself had passed laws with the heavy penalties for crimes involving the possession of marijuana, or any other prohibited drug (Staley, 1992).This was occasioned by the fact that during the 1960s, drugs such as marijuana, psychedelics, and amphetamines were the most abused drugs.
In fact, the mandatory least sentence that one would serve was twenty years and the accused was not eligible for parole. This could not be compared with the sentence served by first degree murder in the state of Virginia which had mandatory sentence set at five years less while rape case attracted a mandatory least sentence of ten years. On the other hand, one convicted of selling marijuana would serve a mandatory least sentence of forty years (Crutchfield, 2000).
The 1969 Dangerous Substances Act
In 1969, another drug law known as the Dangerous Substances Act was introduced and was quite unique in that it did not apply the formula used by the preceding drug legislations. Just like in the previous years, there was perceived increase in drug abuse but the penalties were lowered (Staley, 1992).
It was also during this time that the “taxing” mythology was dismissed. Apart from nicotine and alcohol, the 1969 Dangerous Substances Act targeted the users and sellers of all other drugs. The 1969 act classified all drugs except nicotine and alcohol under the following: the drug’s medical importance and the drug’s potential for misuse (Crutchfield, 2000).
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration
The 1970s also continued to witness the explosion of the drug culture and the US government responded by developing new drug laws and specialized agencies to deal with the continuing problem. In 1973, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration was established to ensure that the federal laws on drugs were fully enforced (Shahidullah, 2008).
It was during this period that cocaine reentered the market. In the 1980s, there was reemergence in the use of crack which proved very addictive and its users were characterized by excessive violence. This period was also filled with perceptions of increased use of drugs. Consequently, the government declared war not only on the drugs with high potential for abuse but also on the drug users and dealers (Abadinsky, 2008).
Any Progress?
The fight against drugs and drug users continued to the 1990s albeit with little success. One drug law after another with revised penalties was introduced. By 1990, about a third of the minority population of the City of Baltimore alone who were male aged between 20 and 29 were being supervised by the court for drug cases (National Urban League, 1989). This proportion is significantly high in spite of the strict drug laws which had been in place for sometime then.
The Year 2000
Despite the declaration of war against drugs and its users, there has been evidently minimal success in the endeavor. After about half a century, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s toughest challenge is the dynamism exhibited by organized crime (Shahidullah, 2008).
In the earlier years, the criminals conducted drug deals on American soil, however, the year 2000 witnessed the emergence of highly networked and powerful drug traffickers with headquarters spread strategically in foreign countries and controlling drug business in the U.S. Therefore, it is evident that the fight against drug abuse in America has a long and complicated history and new approaches of combating the ever growing drug problems need to be identified if the war is to be won in the modern information age.
References
Abadinsky, H. (2008). Drug use and abuse: a comprehensive introduction (6th ed). Belmont, CA: Cengage, Thomson-Wadsworth
Crutchfield, R. D. (2000). Readings in Crime: drug use and abuse (2nd ed). Pine Forge Press
National Urban League (1989). The state of Black America by 1989. The State of Black America, 13. Transaction Plc.
Shahidullah, S. M. (2008). Crime legislations in America: laws, institutions, and programs. University Press of America
Staley, S. (1992). Understanding drug policy and the decline of America cities. Transaction Plc.
Toronto Mayor Rob Ford Said He Lied about Crack Cocaine Use Because He Was Embarrassed
Mayor lied about the use of crack cocaine
The article titled “Toronto Mayor Rob Ford said he lied about crack cocaine use because he was embarrassed” talks about the use of cocaine by a public figure.
It was published on February 10, 2014. The article talks about the reasons why the mayor of Toronto lied about his habit of using crack cocaine. The article was written in order to offer an explanation why the mayor lied about his illegal habit of using crack cocaine. Cocaine is an illegal drug that is abused by many people. This article shows the extent of drug abuse among people in America.
Drug use is illegal. However, a person who is supposed to be spearheading the war against drug use and abuse was caught smoking crack cocaine. The article shows the extent to which leaders go to break laws instead of protecting them. I think the article was written in order to encourage people who use cocaine to come clean about their habit and ask for help. It was difficult for the mayor to deny his problem because it could have led to his removal from office.
According to the article, the mayor lied about his habit of using crack cocaine because he was embarrassed (Foxnews.Com par1). Admitting to such a habit is very difficult especially for a political figure like a mayor. The mayor confirmed this through a video posted on YouTube. According to the author of the article, the mayor defended himself by claiming that everybody in the world lies about one thing or another.
However, he admitted that he was embarrassed for lying about his habit (Foxnews.Com par1). The mayor was very categorical on his use of crack cocaine. He denied allegation that he was an addict. According to him, even though he used crack cocaine, he was not an addict. In addition, he said that admitting to using cocaine was a humiliating experience for him because he had to do it to the whole world (Foxnews.Com par3).
According to a report released last year, the mayor was reported to be an addict. Apparently, he was captured on camera smoking weed. The mayor refuted these accusations because drug use was illegal. It is important for leaders to take responsibility of their actions because they are expected to be role models to the young people.
The article is interesting because it covers an issue that is debated among many fields in the world. It is discouraging to hear a leader deny a habit that could lead to his downfall. Many young people today use illegal drugs for several purposes and are embarrassed to admit. The mayor is supposed to be a role model to young people.
However, his habit of using crack cocaine is not a reason to look upon him as a role model. The population most affected comprises young people who are affected by the drug because of denial. Denial of such a habit causes problems to many people because it leads to addictions that have negative effects on the lives of users. Many addicts do not seek help because of embarrassment.
Many young people today abuse crack cocaine because of its availability and affordability. I chose this article because the use of cocaine is prevalent among many people, both old and young. Both young and old people use drugs. In addition, I chose it because it highlights a problem that needs to be solved. Leaders are supposed to protect laws and not break them. Young people are more likely to use illegal drugs because they see their leaders using them.
Oryx Press (1993) states that harm reduction is the number of policies designed by the public to cater for the healthy needs of its citizens. The main aim of these policies is to reduce harmful health effects arising from drug use and abuse.
The principle of harm reduction is very important because not even a single country or society has managed to eradicate drug use even though attempts have always been made.
The principle recognizes the importance of helping drug addicts out of the activity but also sees the importance of protecting their rights to health matters if the country is to realize economic development. In order to attain its goals, several services are involved in harm reduction principle. They include needle exchange, methadone maintenance and safe injection room.
The practice of exchanging old used needles for new ones is referred to as needle exchange. The use of one needle for every individual helps in reducing transmission of diseases like HIV, Hepatitis C and other diseases transmitted through contact with infected blood among drug users.
Drug users are at high risk of engaging in risky health activities like sexual activities with multiple parties due to the influence of drugs. The best way to prevent the spread of such diseases from one drug user to another is using needle for each drug user. The assumption that people consuming the same drug should be injected with the same needle should be discouraged.
In addition to sharing the same drug, an individual may have such deadly diseases. Health costs associated with drug consumption are minimized through harm reduction practices. High mortality rate that leaves children without parents is minimized. The principle leads to an increase in population of a society by reducing death rates (Oryx Press, 1993).
According to Inciardi and Harrison, (1999), methadone is a drug that was initially used to help- out heroin addicts. The drug contains nicotine components. Proper use of the drug helps to relieve pain. However, misuse of the drug has had negative effects on the health of its users.
Failure to use it as per the doctor’s prescriptions has negative health effects. For instance, in Florida, deaths resulting from the misuse of the drug increased rapidly between 2000 and 2002. The main component of alcohol is ethanol. In many countries, production, sale and consumption of alcohol is allowed by the government.
However, there are laws governing the age at which an individual is allowed to take alcohol. In most countries, the minimum age is 18 years. Like alcohol, tobacco consumption is also allowed in many countries. Tobacco is consumed mainly through smoking cigarettes. In some countries like Cuba, tobacco is a major cash crop earning the country a lot of income.
The form of cocaine that can be smoked is known as crack cocaine. This type of cocaine is the most addictive. Its use affects the normal functioning of the brain by causing euphoria. The drug can be injected directly into the blood stream of the user. Other effects include increased pulse rate and high blood pressure.
Its use among expectant mothers may lead to miscarriages. Heroin derived from morphine is a highly addictive drug. Effects of the drug affect the system of the brain so that it can no longer perceive pain. Theretofore, sociologically, the order of the above drugs according to their dangerousness is as follows.
The most dangerous is heroin, followed by crack cocaine, methadone, tobacco and finally alcohol. Most societies do not view tobacco and alcohol use as dangerous. However, these drugs also have negative effects. They are associated with lung and liver diseases, which cause death to large numbers of drug users.
A high cost is incurred during treatment of the diseases and the funds that could have been used to serve useful purposes are used to purchase the drugs. If legalized, tobacco and alcohol will be among most dangerous drugs. People should therefore be discouraged from drug abuse (Inciardi & Harrison, 1999).
References
Oryx Press. (1993). Drug, alcohol, and other addictions: a directory of treatment centers and prevention programs nationwide. London: Oryx Press.
Inciardi, A. & Harrison, D. (1999). Harm reduction: national and international perspectives. New York: Sage.
Thesis Statement: Adding the concept of religious spirituality to drug abuse treatment programs can help to decrease the amount of relapses by patients.
Introduction
In his examination of the effectiveness of current drug abuse treatment programs, Olmstead et al. (2012) noted that the rate of relapses among patients was quite high, often reaching 50% or more in some instances.
Particularly, this high rate of relapses was determined by Olmstead et al. (2012) as a direct result of a degree of failure on the part of drug abuse treatment programs to sufficiently address the primary reason why people turn to drugs and the lack of a sufficient method of relapse prevention once patients leave the program.
Reason for Failure
This failure to add some form of effective preventive method for relapse has been noted by various researchers to occur due to the fact that even the classification of external preventive programs has very little influence to ensure a sufficiently effective preventive capacity when the origin of the problem is the internal decision making process of patients.
Pearson et al. (2012) note that it is often the case that patients need to develop their own internal realization backed by psychological reasoning when it comes to abstaining from drug use.
What is necessary is the development of sufficiently strong internal reasoning mechanism and support system to ensure that the factors causing a particular individual to use drugs in the first place do not manifest.
Religious Spirituality as a Possible Solution
One possible method that has gained a considerable degree of progress in a variety of drug abuse treatment programs is the use of religious spirituality.
It was determined in the article “Patients consider spirituality and self-help approaches vital in TC” that religious spirituality can not only aid in the process of drug abuse rehabilitation but even act as a preventive measure to ensure that relapses do not occur (Dermatis, Guschwan, Galanter, & Blun 2004).
The reason behind its effectiveness is quite simple, religious spirituality acts as a means of altering individual’s perception in such a way that people view their life as not just their own but rather as the one connected to an almighty external creator (i.e. God).
Moreover, spirituality, in certain cases involving religious groups and organizations, helps instill a sense of belonging on patients within a religious community they are involved in, often acting as a support to prevent drug related relapses (Dermatis, Guschwan, Galanter, & Blun, 2004).
What you have to understand is that a great number of current drug abuse cases are often related to such feelings experienced by individuals as depression, worthlessness, and.
Such behavioral symptoms are often correlated with a lack of sufficient support and social interaction which makes the use of drugs to seem ideal to act as a form of escape from such situations.
By adding religious spirituality to drug abuse treatment programs, this creates the initial foundation due to which addicts could find an alternative to drugs abusing by immersing themselves in the feeling of being a part of community and belonging to a greater unit.
Such a solution would prevent the potential for patients to relapse since it addresses the internal psychological state in order to ensure that patients develop their own realization regarding the ill effects of drug use (Pearson et al. 2012).
As such, this paper has the assumption that adding the concept of religious spirituality to drug abuse treatment programs can help decrease the amount of relapses by patients.
References
Dermatis, H. Guschwan, M.T. Galanter, M. & Blun, G. (2004). Patients consider spirituality and self-help approaches vital in TCs. DATA: The Brown University Digest of Addiction Theory & Application, 23(7), 1-7. Web.
Olmstead, T. A., Abraham, A. J., Martino, S., & Roman, P. M. (2012). Counselor training in several evidence-based psychosocial addiction treatments in private US substance abuse treatment centers. Drug & Alcohol Dependence, 120(1-3), 149-154.
Pearson, F. S., Prendergast, M. L., Podus, D., Vazan, P., Greenwell, L., & Hamilton, Z. (2012). Meta-analyses of seven of the National Institute on Drug Abuse’s principles of drug addiction treatment. Journal Of Substance Abuse Treatment, 43(1), 1-11.
The main aim of this research is to determine whether spirituality has an effect on drug abuse treatment programs. Articles for the research were all published in renowned journals, and a key word search of spirituality and drug abuse led to them.
Some articles were too prescriptive while others did not focus on an intervention. The 3 articles did not possess these two qualities.
Analysis of the articles
Heinz et al. (2010) carried out an analysis of the relationship between spirituality and substance abuse treatment.
The hypothesis of the study was that spirituality is appropriate in the formal treatment of addiction; the study confirmed this hypothesis.
The researchers defined the dependent variable (treatment of addiction) as a treatment program consisting of 25 methadone-addicted males. They measured it on the basis of success of treatment outcomes.
The authors also defined the independent variable (spirituality) as a deep relationship between oneself and a transcendent being. They measured it by the responses given by the participants.
Data collection was through a focus group approach of the 25 addicts. The research lacked a control group, which undermined its ability to be randomized.
The study did not consist of an ethnically diverse group, so its relevance to other populations may be questionable. Nonetheless, it supports the assumption that spirituality is central to recovery from drug abuse.
White and Laudet (2006) main research hypothesis was that spirituality played a significant role in addiction counseling; they confirmed the hypothesis. The dependent variable was addiction counseling, and they measured it through success or failure rates in recovery.
The group defined the independent variable (spirituality) by how a person experiences it and the intensity or authenticity of the experience. A spiritual well being scale, a self assessment scale, as well as a religious background survey, were the methods of measuring the independent variable.
A study of addicted subjects enabled data collection. It came from a range of journal studies on the same. This was a comprehensive survey of existing information on the topic. Control groups existed in some articles while others did not.
The divergence of the study groups used indicates that the findings can be randomized. The authors belonged to a theoretical camp in which counselors believe that scientific methods can be applied to the definition and measurement of spirituality during the treatment of addiction (Piedmont, 2004).
Galanter et al. (2006) had a research hypothesis which stated that spiritual orientation is a vital part of recovery; they confirmed the hypothesis. They defined the dependent variable as abstinence from an addictive drug and measured it by the presence or absence of the addiction.
In the analysis, they defined as having a relationship with God. Galanter et al. (2006) measured it through a six-item spirituality scale that they created. The studies involved substance abusers and non addicts in a methadone treatment facility, general hospital, community therapeutic area and a psychiatric service.
The self reported assertions of the participants were the method of data collection. Since there were control groups in each facility consisting on none addicts, the research can be generalized.
It may also be randomized as the self rating scale was for all users. The authors belong to the group of practitioners who believe that spirituality improves recovery for some patients (Galanter, 2005).
Conclusion
The above findings indicate that most authors largely focus on whether spirituality matters in substance abuse. In this research, it will be necessary to look into how it can be used.
References
Galanter, M. (2005). Spirituality and the healthy mind. Oxford: OUP.
Galanter, M., Dermatis, H., Bunt, G., Williams, C., Trujillo, M. & Steinke, P. (2006). Assessment of spirituality and its relevance to addiction treatment. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment 33, 257-264.
Heinz, A., Disney, E., Epstein, D., Glezen, L, Clark, P. and Preston, K. (2010). A focus-group study on spirituality and substance-abuse treatment. Substance Use Misuse 45(2), 134-153
Piedmont, R. (2004). Spiritual transcendence as a predictor of psychosocial outcome from an outpatient substance abuse program. Psychology of Addictive Behaviour, 18, 213-222.
White, W. & Laudet, A. (2006). Spirituality, science and addiction counselling. Counsellor, 7(1), 56-59
Liverpool hospital in Sydney is a leading public healthcare facility that has served the people of Liverpool for the last two centuries. Over the years, the hospital has been undergoing various phases of upgrading to ensure that it is able to meet people’s health needs.
Besides, the hospital has embraced technology in full measure, upgrading its quality of services to its clients. Being situated at the heart of Liverpool, the hospital has the capacity to serve over 800 patients at once.
The Liverpool Queens hospital has decided to put up an alcohol and drug-abuse rehabilitation center within the facility. The construction of the facility is projected to begin in January 2013, lasting to the end of February the same year.
This will be good news to those around the neighborhood as the problem of alcohol and drug-abuse has been reportedly rampant among young adults. The hospital receives over twenty cases of alcohol and drug-abuse related ailments every day, a trend that is causing a lot of worry.
The hospital, in response to this distress, has decided to bring help closer to the people of Liverpool by the construction of the annex facility.
The Alcohol and Drug-Abuse Center (ADAC) will provide full therapy to patients. This means that it will employ some of its staff to identification of cases within the community that need medical care.
This will be done by putting up a call center, where persons can freely and confidentially report on cases of drug users and addicts. The hospital’s social workers will then be dispatched to get these people and persuade them to come for treatment.
Once in the hospital, the patients will be counseled, nourished, and given rehabilitation care as well as medical care.
Successful rehabilitated people will be reintegrated back to the society through a number of measures, among them finding employment for them and reuniting them with their friends and family members.
This initiative will be highly beneficial to the community. Children will be able to succeed through high school and college without being in high risk for drugs. Security will be improved for the community.
Most alcohol and drug users pose a threat to the security of the community because of driving while drunk, theft and robbery, and carjacking among others. The morality for the community will also be on the increase as vices related to alcohol and drug use such as prostitution will be reduced.
Lastly, the community’s health will be generally improved through the intervention. Alcohol and drug abuse is one of the leading causes of the spread of sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV and hepatitis C. A rehabilitation center would see these transmissions decline, thus improving the general health of the community.
The project will cost the hospital an estimated $850,000, plus or minus 10%. Most of these funds will be solicited locally and from the government. The hospital will also contribute to the costs, as well as providing land and capital asset facilities.
Drug abuse has been, and still is, a great challenge facing the human society. In spite of the efforts that have been made to curb the vice, it is still impossible to completely phase out the issue of drug abuse from the society.
Measures are thus being taken to reduce the use of drug abuse in the society, mitigate the effects that drug abuse has on its patients and also try to cure people who are completely addicted to drugs.
Drug abuse and mental illnesses are, in a way, interconnected and thus psychotropic medications are usually used in the treatment of drug abuse patients.
It is common knowledge that most drug abuse patients start abusing drugs due to mental illnesses. Thus a person who has a certain mental problem will be more likely to abuse drugs than another person who does not have a mental problem.
For instance, a person who has Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) will be prone to drug abuse because he/she may reason that if he/she uses drugs, he/she will be able to forget the incident that made his/her succumb to PTSD.
This also applies to other categories of mental patients because they seem to take drugs as their haven from the trauma that they go though due to the mental illness.
It is thus apparent that the use of psychotropic medications in curing these patients will be effective since it will be easier for the patients to quit taking drugs when their mental condition is healed.
This is because the mental illness is, literally, the one that sustains the abuse of drugs and thus after it is healed; the patient will have no reason to continue abusing the drugs. On the other hand, if a person is a drug addict, he/she is very susceptible to mental illnesses.
It thus follows that some drug addicts end up developing mental illnesses that they did not have prior to drug abuse. Therefore, a doctor wishing to treat the drug addiction will find psychotropic drugs very useful.
This is because the drugs will be able to reduce or completely treat the mental illness and thus making the patient able to listen well to counsel (“Drug Abuse”, 2009, p. 1).
In the two circumstances discussed above, a number of psychotropic medications can be used. This is because in both cases, mental illnesses co-exist with the problem of drug abuse.
The drugs may not have the capacity to impact on the issue of drug abuse intrinsically but they are very helpful because, as stated above, they make the patient willing to attend counseling sessions and listen to the counselors attentively.
This, in turn, makes it easier for the addict to be healed through counseling. Some of these psychotropic drugs include lithium, Neuroleptics and tricyclic antidepressants may prove to be very useful for specific conditions (Millman, 2005, p. 75).
As evidenced in the discussion above, psychotropic medications have a very great role to play in the treatment of drug addicts. This is because of the aforementioned co-existence of drug addiction and psychological problems in the patients of drug abuse.
Despite their usefulness, the doctor making the prescriptions should be very careful when prescribing these medications since most of them work for certain mental illnesses.
For instance, antidepressants are effective for patients with depression while MAO inhibitors and tranquilizers may cause undesirable effects on drug addicts.
Reference List
Millman, R. (2005). Substance Abuse: a comprehensive textbook. Philadelphia. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
Youth and the United Nations. (2009). Drug Abuse. Web.