SYLLABUS
SOCIOLOGY 3397 - ALCOHOLISM, ADDICTIONS AND RECOVERY
FALL SEMESTER, 2003
Fall Semester 2003, 9:00 – 10:00 a.m. MWF. AH (Agnes Arnold), Room 108. Section 11969
Dr. Russell L. Curtis, Jr. Office: 494 PGH Office Phone: 743-3951 E-Mail: rcurtis@uh.edu
TEXTS:
Raymond Goldberg. 2002. Taking Sides: Clashing Views on Controversial Issues in Drugs and
Society. Guilford, Conn.: Dushkin/McGraw Hill. 5th Edition.
James A. Inciardi and Karen McElrath. 2001. The American Drug Scene. Los Angeles:
Roxbury Publishing Company. 3rd.
Knapp, Carolyn. 1997. Drinking: A Love Story. New York: Delta Press. 1st.
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I.
Conceptions and Definitions:
(Aug. 25, 27, & 29, 2003)
Discussion and Lecture Topics:
Definitions; Concepts; Historical Shifts in Terminology. How the legal
issues have shifted. How “Constructionism” in sociological analysis is extremely
useful in understanding our definitions and judgments – both moral and legal –
about drugs and alcohol.
Alcohol consumption has existed for as long as we can trace human
societies. Drug use has always been a part of the fabric of American society.
Addiction is an expansive process that encapsulates everything from alcohol
consumption, crack cocaine use, the acquired need for heroin, dysfunctional
dependencies on food and various emotions (e.g. anger, depression, etc.) and the
excessive uses of physical exercise. The uses of mood and cognitive altering
substances is part of the fabric of American society. It is fair to say that
American has a drug problem because America is in love with drugs.
In this section, we examine the issues of the course, the definitions of
terms, and the introductions of a variety of policy issues. Clearly, alcohol and
drug usage (one and the same) are integrally related with all of our institutions
including religion, the criminal justice system, education, the economy, marriage
and the family, and sport among others. Definitions of “substances” and “use”
and conceptions of usages (moral and legal) are related to the fundamental
institutions of American society.
Readings:
Inciardi and McElrath: “Theoretical Perspectives on Drug Use and Addiction,” 13. Weil, “Why People Take Drugs,” 4-13. Lindesmith, “A Sociological Theory
of Drug Addiction,” 14-26. Anslinger and Cooper, “Marijuana: Assassin of
Youth,” 89-94 (Note: this was written in the 1930’s!!). Lindesmith, “’Dope
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Fiend’ Mythology, 119-126. Preble and Casey, “Taking Care of Business – The
Heroin Addict’s Life on the Street,” 139-152.
Goldberg: “Introduction,” xiii-xx. Issue 11, “Do the Consequences of Caffeine
Outweigh the Benefits?” 188-201. Issue 14, “Should Nonsmokers Be Concerned
About the Effects of Secondhand Smoke?” 228-239.
Note: September 1, 2003 is Labor Day Holiday
II.
Historical Patterns Associated
with U.S. Alcohol and Drug Use
(Sept. 3, 5, 8, 2003)
Discussion and Lecture Topics:
We examine the historical shifts in the trafficking and consumptions of
alcohol and drugs, from Rorabaugh, The Alcoholic Republic and from Lender and
Martin, Drinking in America: A History which traces the consumption, sale, and
temperance and prohibition movements from the 1621 to current times.
Readings:
Inciardi and McElrath: Siegal and Inciardi, “A Brief History of Alcohol,” 52-57.
Peele and Brodsky, “Gateway to Nowhere: How Alcohol Came to Be
Scapegoated for Drug Abuse,” 58-63. Musto, “America’s First Cocaine
Epidemic,” 189-193 (Note: occurrences in late 1800’s, early 1900’s!). Miller,
“History and Epidemiology of Amphetamine Abuse in the United States,” 216230
III.
Ideological Patterns Associated
with Alcohol and Drug Use
(Sept. 10, 12, 15, & 17, 2003)
Discussion and Lecture Topics:
Two Themes are examined. First are the factors underlying the huge use
of drugs in the United States. Studies indicate that while the U.S. constitutes less
than 5% of the world’s population, we use more than 50% of the world’s cocaine
and 70% of the world’s “street drugs.” Why do we lead in other advanced
industrial nations in drug use? How is this use related with our value structure?
How is this related with the use of “legitimate” drugs, sold by the billions at our
drug stores? How is illegal drug use associated with the pharmaceutical industry?
Second, we will trace the changes in how alcohol and drug consumption
and sale are defined, especially as labels of “alcoholic” and “addict,” are applied.
These themes are examined in films from 1930 to the present and the shifts from
“morality” to “therapy,” and from “idealization” to “cynicism” in interpretation.
We will also look at racial profiling that is inherent in the films (over 40) that
contain drugs and alcohol as a primary theme. These show stigmatizations that
contradict the realities of drug use from research.
Readings:
Inciardi and McElrath: Jenkins, “The ‘Ice Age”: The Social Construction of a
Drug Panic,” 231-248. Reuter, “Why Can’t We Make Prohibition Work Better?
Some Consequences of Ignoring The Unattractive,” 418-427.
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Goldberg: Issue 8, “Are the Adverse Effects of Smoking Exaggerated?” 141-155.
Issue 10, “Should Doctors Promote Alcohol for Their Patients?” 178-187. Issue
12, “Are Too Many Children Receiving Ritalin?” 202-211.
IV.
Socialization to Drug Use
(September 19 & 22, 2003)
Lectures and Discussions:
Two broad sets of socialization processes are described. First is the
childhood and developmental precedents that have been linked with subsequent
drug and alcohol abuse. The interpretations of strong findings for “generational”
patterns of substance abuse.
Second is the socialization to drug or substance use itself, e.g., how does
one become a marijuana user? Is there a “gateway” effect?
Readings:
Goldberg: Issue 6, “Is Drug Addiction A Choice?” 98-113. Issue 13, “Should
Advertising for Prescription Drugs Be Regulated?” 212-227.
Inciardi and McElrath: Hirsch, Conforti and Graney, “The Use of Marijuana for
Pleasure: A Replication of Howard S. Becker’s Study of Marijuana Use,” 27-35.
Worth, “Making It Uncool: Laughter Is Our Best Weapon in the War on Teen
Smoking,” 79-84. Waldorf, “Becoming a Heroin Addict,” 127-138. Pierce,
“Gen-X Junkie: Ethnographic Research With Young White Heroin Users in
Washington, D.C.,” 153-166. Rosenbaum, “Safety First: A Reality-Based
Approach to Teens, Drugs, and Drug Education,” 374-83.
Knapp: Chapters 1 (“Love”), 2 (“Double Life”), 3 (“Destiny”), 4 (“Hunger”), 5
(“In Vodka Veritas”) and 6 ( “Sex”). Pp: 1-101, covering the drinking through
childhood, adolescence and early adulthood of Knapp’s drinking career.
Review for the First Examination, September 24, 2003
First Examination: Friday, September 26, 2003
Review of First Examination: September 29, 2003
V.
Types of Drugs: Psychopharmacological,
Political and Social Issues
(October 1, 3, & 6, 2003)
Lectures and Discussions: The variable histories of alcohol consumption, tobacco
use (with huge rise following W.W.II), and the epidemiology of drug use both
historically and regionally including amphetamines. The linkages of “legal” and
“illegal” drugs: direct – the drugs are generated by pharmaceutical labs such as
LSD in the early treatment of mental and alcoholic patients and Ritalin now used
as a street drug; The uses of syntheses compounds from existing labs.
Readings:
Inciardi and McElrath: Begin this section for sure by reading the following
prefaces to various sections in the volume: “Alcohol and Tobacco,’ 49-51;
“Marijuana,” 85-88; “Narcotics, Injection Drug Use, and HIV/AIDS,” 113-118;
“Cocaine and Other Stimulants,” 185-188; and “Hallucinogens and Other
Psychoactive Drugs,” 249-251.Articles in Inciardi and McElrath for this section:
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Grinspoon and Bakalar, “Marijuana: The Forbidden Medicine,” 95-101. Elwood,
“’Fry’: A Study of Adolescent’s Use of Embalming Fluid with Marijuana and
Tobacco,” 102-112. Hunt, “Rise of Hallucinogen Use,” 252-264. Saum, Mott,
and Dietz, “Rohypnal, GHB, and Ketamine: New Trends in Date-Rape Drugs,”
265-281. Beck and Rosenbaum, “Emergence of Adam and Ecstasy: Distribution
and Criminalization of MDMA,” 282-292. Sloan, “It’s All the RAVE: ‘Flower
Power’ Meets ‘Technoculture’,” 293-300.
VI.
Variation of Substance Use and Abuse by Societal Groups and Strata
A.
Variations by Socioeconomic Classes
(October 8 & 10, 2003)
Lecture and Discussion Topics:
The history of use and abuse among the upper class elites; the various patterns of
use and abuse by class (e.g. the anomaly of more drinking at the Upper SES
ranks); the anomalous patterns of diffusion, depending on the drugs in question;
the linkages with medical institutions that feed the general public sector and then
the underground (e.g. street Ritalin) distributions of drugs – as linked with class
of the persons in the diffusion networks.
Readings:
Inciardi and McElrath: Wechsler, Lee, Kuo, and Lee, “College Binge Drinking in
the 1990’s: A Continuing Problem,” 64-78.
VII.
B.
Variations by Race and Ethnicity
(October 13 & 15, 2003)
Alcohol consumption and drug use by race & ethnicity as these behaviors interact
with income and education. Introduction to issues of differential punishments of
Blacks, Hispanics, and Whites; standardized rates of alcohol and substance use.
Inciardi and McElrath: Inciardi and Surratt, “African-Americans, Crack, and
Crime,” 194-204.
C.
Variations by Gender
(October 17, 2003)
Lectures and Discussions: The comparatively low rates of alcohol consumption
and intravenous drug by females and, subsequently, the smaller per cent of
women in recovery settings. Interactions of drug use by race: African-American
women and crack cocaine. The attractions of prescription drugs by gender.
Readings:
Inciardi and McElrath: Keire, “Dope Fiends and Degenerates: The Gendering of
Addiction in the Early Twentieth Century,” 36-48. Maher and Daly, “Women in
the Street-level Drug Economy: Continuity or Change?,” 353-369.
Drugs, Crime and the Legal System
(Oct. 20, 22, 24 & 27, 2003)
Lectures and Discussions:
The uses of the ”drug problem” and the productions and constructions of
the drug problem as a product for political gain (a new “rally ‘round the flag”
phenomenon). Alarms and therapeutic concerns and the increasing and
decreasing severity of drug laws: the legal career of marijuana. Therapeutic
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concerns. Anomalies of decreasing use decreases in severity, a contradiction of
the assumption that sanctions depress use (especially for marijuana in the 1970’s).
Readings:
Goldberg: “Should Pregnant Drug Users Be Prosecuted?,” 7695. “Should Marijuana Be Legal for Medicinal Purposes?,” 156-177.
Inciardi and McElrath: Surratt and Inciardi, “Cocaine, Crack, and the
Criminalization of Pregnancy,” 205-215. (Note: deals with an aspect of the “fetal
rights” movement). Nurco, Kinlock and Hanlon, “The Drugs-Crime Connection,”
304-318. Inciardi and Pottieger, “Drug Use and Street Crime in Miami: An
(Almost) Twenty-Year Retrospective,” 319-342. Goldstein, “The Drugs/Violence
Nexus: A Tripartite Conceptual Framework,” 342-352. Inciardi, “Legalizing
Drugs: Would it Really Reduce Violent Crime?,” 428-439. James Q. Wilson,
“Against the Legalization of Drugs,” 440-449.
Review for the Second Examination, October 29, 2003
Second Examination: Friday, October 31, 2003
Review of Second Examination: November 3, 2003
VIII.
Prevention and Recovery Responses to Substance Abuse
A.
Programs of Prevention:
(November 5 & 7, 2003)
Lectures and Discussions:
Discussions of educational programs. Do governmental “facts” help or harm,
especially given the histories of contradictory depictions of alcohol consumption
and the constructions of “reefer madness.” Discussions of role shock efforts.
Readings:
Goldberg: Issue 7, “Is Harm Reduction a Desirable National Drug Control Policy
Goal?,” 114-140 Issue 16, “Is Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) an
Effective Program?,” 258-277. Issue 17, “Should Employees be Required to
Participate in Drug Testing?” 278-291. Issue 19, “Are Antidrug Media
Campaigns Effective?,” 310-335.
Knapp: Chapters 7 (“Drinking Alone”), 8 (“Addiction”), 9 (“Substitution”) and 10
(“Denial”) - chronicles Knapp’s progression to full blown alcoholism.
Beautifully written account of a tragic process.
TERM PAPERS ARE DUE: NOVEMBER 17, 2003
B.
Programs of Recovery and Treatment
(Nov. 10, 12, 14, & 17, 2003)
Lectures and Discussions:
Treatment centers and 12th step groups as peer therapy among similarly
addicted persons; the recovery system as a type of kinship family; recovery as a
mix of professional therapy, religion, and social movements. Discussions will
focus primarily on Knapp, Drinking: A Love Story, assigned below. We will also
discuss: Denzin, The Recovering Alcoholic; Karp, Speaking of Sadness (on
depression); and Hamill, A Drinking Life. All of these volumes address careers
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of substance use, disrupted life styles, isolation, self-awareness, initial coping
efforts, and external change agents.
Readings:
Goldberg: Issue 15, “Is Total Abstinence the Only Choice for Alcoholics?,” 240257. Issue 18, “Does Drug Abuse Treatment Work?,” 292-310.
Inciardi and McElrath: Broadhead, Hulst and Heckathorn, “Termination of an
Established Needle Exchange: A Study of Claims and their Impact,” 167-184.
This article deals with “contextualized, framed recovery” like methadone
maintenance, etc., where (a) a recognition of the addiction is admitted and (b) a
safer variation of this lifestyle is pursued – i.e. a partial recovery. N.I.D.A.
Report, “Advances in Therapeutic Community,” 384-398. Dole and Nyswander,
“Methadone Maintenance: A Theoretical Perspective,” 399-404
Knapp: Chapters 11 (“Giving Over”), 12 (“A Glimpse”), 13 (“Double Life II”),
14 (“Hitting Bottom”), 15 (“Help”), and 16 (“Healing”). Tremendous story.
IX.
America’s Drug Policies: Political and Cultural Dialogues
(Nov.19, 21, 24 & Dec. 1)
Lectures and Discussions:
Attentions to the “war on drugs,” patterns of legal drug use among
Americans, the official attributions of responsibilities to other countries (as drug
sources) and to “blaming the victim” patterns with respect to individual users.
Films such as Traffic and Fear and Loathing in Los Vegas will be reviewed.
Readings:
Goldberg: Issues 1: “Should Drugs be Legalized,” 2-15. Issue 2, “Should the
U.S. Put More Emphasis on Stopping the importation of Drugs, 16-37. Issue 3,
“Will a Lower Blood Alcohol Level for Drunk Driving Reduce Automobile
Accidents?” 38-55. Issue 4, “Should A Needle Exchange Programs Be
Supported?,” 56-75.
Inciardi and McElrath: Essay on “Policy Considerations,,” 405-407. Nadelmann,
“Commonsense Drug Policy,” 408-417.
X.
A Future Look:
A.
(Dec. 3 & 5, 2003)
Potential New Drugs and Epidemiology of Uses
Lectures and Discussions: The new ability to alter and avoid detections. The
future in view of the greater permeability of U.S. borders as a result of NAFTA.
B.
Potential Policies
Lectures and Discussions:
The legalization of marijuana? The reversal of decreasing spending on
criminal justice solutions and increased spending on treatment and preventive
measures? Will the U.S. examine the fundamental issues underlying the fact that
we constitute less than 5% of the world’s population but use over 50% of the
world’s cocaine and 70% of the world’s “street drugs”??? What will the
fundamental solutions entail?
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Review for the Third or Final Examination, December 5, 2003
Third or Final Examination: December 12, 2003: 8:00 - 11:00 a.m.
Note: Third or Last Examination Covers the Last One-Third of the Course
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
INFORMATION AND PROCEDURES: SPRING SEMESTER, 2002
Three multiple choice examinations, each covering one-third. Dates indicated above.
Examinations cover both lectures and reading materials and consist of four-option,
multiple choice items. Questions will often center on materials combining both
lectures and readings. All important concepts and studies are covered on the exams.
A.
I work totally in cooperation with the Office for Students with Disabilities.
B.
Missed exams are given grades of "F" in the absence of documentation.
Total readings: 850 pages; averaging 15 pages per day, M-F, during Semester.
Important: continual tardiness and absences will result in instructor drops (WP or WF).
Office Hours for Spring, 2002: M, T, W, & Th.: 1:30-2:00; Otherwise: by arrangement
A TERM PAPER IS REQUIRED.
A.
The topic for Fall Semester, 2003 is the analyses of gender associations, patterns
and differences in substance (alcohol and/or drugs) use and abuse. An aspect of
the assignment is that you are to focus sharply and, relatedly, that you examine a
highly specific aspect of this general topic. Here are some ideas and suggestions:
(1).
Focus on a specific link between a drug (it’s use, it’s rumors, etc.) as
associated with men and with women: Examples: males are far more
likely than females to be “heavy drinkers” and alcoholics. Statistics
indicate that males are far more likely to use opiates and uppers than do
females. However, there is the view that females are more likely to abuse
prescription drugs. Is this true?
(2).
What are the historical accuracies of the alleged use of this drug by gender
and what are the aspects of rumor and unfounded panic that ensued?
Example: the use of cocaine and other drugs by middle and upper class
females during the early part of the 10th century (1900 – 1920).
(3).
How do economic factors interact with these patterns? For example, what
are the differences between lower class and upper class women in
substance use and abuse? What are the favorite drugs of housewives in
West University, Tanglewood, River Oaks and Southampton as contrasted
to lower income areas of the Houston area? Or are these differences more
matters of appearance than of reality?
(4).
What are the socialization differences between men and women in their
earlier uses of alcohol? What does the research literature say about the
initial sites of introduction to the substance. Do women learn to drink and
use drugs at home and men experience first use outside of home?
(5)
Are there instances of “gender profiling” in the laws pertaining to the use
of the substance associated with a given racial/ethnic group? Are women
less likely to be given a DWI or DUI than males after being interrogated
by the police?
(6)
How does race interact with gender in criminal sentences? What per cents
of women in prison for drug use are black, white, and brown??
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(7)
8.
9.
What are the differences in effective treatments and/or recovery rates for
males and for females?
(8)
Is AA and treatment centers overwhelmingly a “male world”?
(9)
What are the profiles of use of and recovery from “process addictions” for
men and for women? By process addictions are meant such compulsive
uses and misuses of gambling, sex, food, and others.
(10) Most arrests for dealing drugs are overwhelmingly for males. What are
the characteristics of females who deal drugs and who are apprehended for
sales and distributions?
B.
In your analyses, you should include the following:
(1).
earliest reported linkage of drug usage by males and females
(2)
consumption statistics over time by gender
(3)
Were there instances where the “establishment” produced legal
constructions of “drug problems” that led to social and legal acts?
C.
A full coverage of the literature and a “reference” section at the end are required.
D.
Lengths: excluding references, 7-10 pages. (Longer is encouraged!)
E.
Plagiarized papers: don’t even think about it.
F.
Format: the ASA (American Sociological Association) format is required.
G.
The papers are read by the instructor and are due on April 15, 2002.
H
No primary sources from the internet!! Reliable and good research is found
primarily in the library. Use Sociological Abstracts and books.
No extra work can be offered to advance a student's average.
Consultations: Office: 494 PGH; Phone - 743-3951; email – rcurtis@uh.edu. In addition
to regular office hours, I will make arrangements for students on the bases of their other
work, personal schedules (persons with children), or personal needs (e.g. students with
disabilities). Please note: I will make every effort to see or speak with you.