Drugs Alcohol...chapter 2

Drugs in American Society - Erich Goode, Tenth Edition

Chapter Outline

  • Rates and Patterns of Drug Use: The Basics

    • Three eras of drug use

    • Alcohol consumption from the 1790s to 1919

    • Alcohol consumption during Prohibition

    • Repeal: Alcohol consumption from 1933 to present

    • Drug use trends over time: 1960–1979

    • Drug use from the 1980s to present

    • Summary

Rates and Patterns of Drug Use: The Basics

  • Judgmental Heuristics

    • Flawed informal rules of thumb used to reach conclusions.

    • Availability Heuristics: Biased thinking based on what readily comes to mind.

  • Four Crucial Concepts

    • Overall prevalence rates

    • Continuance or “loyalty” rates

    • Consumption levels

    • Life-cycle rates

Overall Prevalence Rates

  • Definition: Percentage of a population that has used a specific drug within a specific time period.

    • Varies considerably among different drugs.

    • Measured by lifetime, past year, or past month use.

  • Key Findings

    • Alcohol is the most popular psychoactive substance.

    • Marijuana has the highest number of users among illicit drugs.

    • Some drugs like heroin and crack cocaine have fewer users but significant criminal repercussions.

Continuance Rates

  • Importance: Indicates the number and proportion of regular users.

    • Users tend to stick with some drugs longer than others.

  • User Loyalty

    • Alcohol has the highest user loyalty among legal drugs.

    • Marijuana has the highest loyalty among illegal drugs.

    • Legal drugs generally have higher continuance rates than illegal drugs.

  • Measurement:

    • Comparing lifetime use with past month use.

    • Comparing past year use with past month use.

  • Trends:

    • More deviant or illicit drugs see higher discontinuation rates.

    • Conventional or licit drugs have more regular users.

Consumption Levels

  • Definition: Total volume of a drug used over a specific time period.

    • Prevalence does not necessarily equate to heavy use.

  • Key Observations

    • More people drink alcohol than smoke tobacco.

    • Cocaine has higher prevalence rates than heroin.

Life-Cycle Rates

  • Trends by Age:

    • Low among youth (ages 12-17).

    • High among young adults (ages 18-25).

    • Lower in older adult years (ages 26-34).

    • Continues to decline after age 35.

  • Media Reports:

    • Occasionally report spikes in drug use among typically low-use age segments.

    • Illegal drug use is closely related to age, while legal drug use is more evenly distributed.

Trends over Time: An Introduction

  • Importance of Data:

    • Valid, reliable, and systematic data are essential for analyzing trends in drug use.

Three Eras of Drug Use

  • Natural Era:

    • Early consumption of psychoactive plants (e.g., marijuana, coca leaves).

    • Introduction of distillation for more potent alcoholic beverages.

  • Transformative Era:

    • Began in the 19th century with chemical extraction leading to more potent substances.

  • Synthetic Era:

    • Early 20th century saw the creation of drugs entirely from chemicals not found in nature.

Alcohol Consumption: 1700s to 1919

  • Temperance Movement:

    • Initiated by Benjamin Rush’s 1784 treatise on alcoholism as a disease.

    • Formation of over 200 anti-liquor chapters by 1830.

  • Consumption Trends:

    • Stable rates of drinking before Prohibition, declining significantly during it.

Alcohol Consumption during Prohibition

  • Volstead Act:

    • Outlawed sale and distribution of alcohol.

    • Consumption declined significantly during this period.

  • Data Sources:

    • Pre- and post-Prohibition figures based on taxable sales and indirect indicators (e.g., liver disease rates).

Repeal: Alcohol Consumption, 1933–Present

  • Trends:

    • Alcohol use rose in the 1930s, peaked in the late 1970s, and declined in the 80s and 90s.

    • Consumption rose again in the early 21st century but leveled off by 2010.

Drug Use Trends over Time: 1960s to 1979

  • Retrospective Estimates:

    • Projections based on age and drug use initiation.

    • 1970s marked a high point of tolerance towards drug use.

  • Legal Changes:

    • Decriminalization of small marijuana quantities reflected public acceptance.

Drug Use: The 1980s to Present

  • Decline and Rise:

    • Sharp decline in drug use post-1978-1980, followed by a rise in the early 1990s.

    • Significant increase in marijuana use among adolescents.

Summary

  • Prevalence Rates:

    • Legal drugs are more popular than illegal ones.

    • Illegal drug use can lead to significant crime and social costs.

  • Historical Trends:

    • Alcohol consumption was high in early America, declined due to temperance, and rose again post-Prohibition.

    • Drug use increased in the 90s, influenced by changing attitudes and the populari