Why are some drugs considered socially acceptable while others are demonized? What makes these definitions so widespread? Who benefits from these conceptualizations? The Drug Paradox examines both the empirically founded and the socially constructed facets of drugs and drug use, highlighting the incongruous aspects of laws, policies, and programming that aim to address behaviours around drugs. The authors explore this paradox, arguing that Canada’s punitive approach to addressing drug use continues to exist alongside harm-reduction strategies and that these competing approaches ultimately impede Canada’s ability to deal effectively with substance misuse.
Using a policy-oriented approach while also emphasizing the utility of a multifaceted biopsychosocial model, this text provides students with a foundation in the sociology of psychoactive substances in the Canadian context. It covers a broad range of issues—models of addiction, the history of Canada’s drug laws, media representation, government responses to substance use, and international perspectives on drug policy—and addresses various research areas that are important for students to consider when trying to make sense of the competing discourses on drugs in society. This timely textbook is ideal for use in sociology courses on drugs or drug use and will also appeal to those focusing on drug use from a criminology, public health, cannabis studies, or policy perspective.
FEATURES:
evaluates drugs and their use in Canadian society through a sociological lens
provides an up-to-date discussion of both legal and illegal drugs
each chapter includes a list of paradoxes and critical reflection questions
Chapter 1: The Drug Paradox: Canada’s Conflicting Approaches to Drugs and Drug Users
1.1 What Is the Drug Paradox?
1.2 Defining the Core Concepts
1.3 The Social Reality of Drugs and Drug Use
Chapter 2: The History and Politics of Canada’s Drug Laws
2.1 Prohibition Era
2.2 The Opium Act (1908)
2.3 Proprietary or Patent Medicine Act (1908)
2.4 The Opium and Drug Act (1911)
2.5 The Opium and Narcotic Drug Act (1929)
2.6 The Narcotic Control Act (1961)
2.7 Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (1996)
2.8 Marihuana for Medical Purposes Regulations (2013)
2.9 Access to Cannabis for Medical Purposes Regulations (2016)
2.10 A Framework for the Legalization and Regulation of Cannabis in Canada (2016)
2.11 Conclusion
Chapter 3: Explaining Substance Use I: Biological and Psychological Theories
3.1 The Moral Model Versus the Medical Model
3.2 Biological Explanations
3.3 Psychological Explanations
3.4 Conclusion
Chapter 4: Explaining Substance Use II: Sociological Theories
4.1 Control Theories
4.2 Strain Theories
4.3 Subcultural Theories
4.4 Integrated Explanations of Substance Use
4.5 Conflict Theories
4.6 Postmodern Explanations
4.7 Conclusion
Chapter 5: Classifying Drugs: Psychopharmacological Properties and Legal Classifications
5.1 What Is Psychopharmacology and Why Does It Matter to Sociologists?
5.2 Opioids (Narcotics)
5.3 Depressants
5.4 Stimulants
5.5 Hallucinogens
5.6 Cannabis (Marijuana)
5.7 Psychotherapeutic Agents and Performance-Enhancing Drugs
5.8 The Problem with Drug Effects and Legal Classifications
Chapter 6: The Socially Constructed Problem of Drugs and Drug Users
6.1 Bath Salts
6.2 Ecstasy
6.3 Crystal Meth
6.4 Cocaine
6.5 Prescription Stimulants: Attention-Enhancing Prescription Drugs
6.6 Cannabis
6.7 Solvents/Inhalants
6.8 Prescription Opioids
6.9 Heroin
6.10 Hallucinogens
6.11 Bringing Together the Objective and Subjective Realities
Chapter 8: Demographic Correlates of Substance Use in Canada
8.1 General Prevalence Rates of Substance Use in Canada
8.2 Demographic Correlates
8.3 Conclusion
Chapter 9: Relational Correlates of Substance Use in Canada: Peers and Families
9.1 Peers
9.2 Families
9.3 Conclusion
Chapter 10: Prevention Strategies for Drugs and Potential Drug Users in Education
10.1 Types of Prevention in Education
10.2 Drug Education in Schools
10.3 Models of Drug Education
10.4 Drug Educators: Teachers and Police
10.5 Ontario: The Case of Failed Drug Education
10.6 Future of Drug Education: The Good and the Bad
Chapter 11: Legal Responses to Drugs and Drug Users
11.1 Prohibition
11.2 Decriminalization
11.3 Legalization
11.4 Conclusion
Chapter 12: International Drug Policies
12.1 International Drug Conventions
12.2 Punitive Policies
12.3 Pragmatic Policies
12.4 Conclusion
Chapter 13: Canada’s Drug Policies
13.1 Advocates for Punitive Approaches
13.2Advocates for Pragmatic Approaches
13.3 What Is the Official Approach to Drugs and Drug Use in Canada?
13.4 The Missing Component in Canada’s Current National Anti-Drug Strategy: Harm Reduction
13.5 The Future
Appendix A: Canadian Cannabis Legalization Highlights (by Province/Territory) References Index
Biography
Tara L. Bruno is an Associate Professor of Sociology at King’s University College, Western University.
Rick Csiernik is a Professor of Social Work at King’s College, University of Western Ontario. Csiernik has authored and edited several popular Canadian Scholars titles including: Substance Use and Misuse, Third Edition (2021); The Essential Guide to Psychoactive Drugs in Canada, Second Edition (2019); Workplace Wellness (2014); Responding to the Oppression of Addiction (co-edited with William S. Rowe and Gabriela Novotna, 2023); The Drug Paradox (with Tara Bruno, 2018), and Homelessness, Housing, and Mental Health (co-edited with Cheryl Forchuk and Elsabeth Jensen, 2011). The author of more than 100 journal articles, their research interests include addiction, employee assistance programming and workplace wellness, social work education, and program evaluation. Rick has been recipient of both the King’s University College Award for Excellence in Teaching and the McMaster University Instructor Appreciation Award.
“This book is an essential primer for anyone trying to navigate the social, legal, and health aspects of modern drug use. The authors’ informed advocacy of a transition from punitive criminalization to a harm-reduction approach is timely and convincing.”— Dr. Patricia G. Erickson, Professor of Sociology and Criminology, University of Toronto, and Scientist Emerita, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
“In The Drug Paradox, Tara Bruno and Rick Csiernik provide the reader with a comprehensive sociolog-ical account of psychoactive substances in Canada. The authors do an excellent job of highlighting the complex and often contradictory nature of Canada’s drug policy by bringing to light many of the taken-for-granted assumptions of how drugs are classified as either illegal or legal substances. This book is fastidiously researched and is an excellent resource for both undergraduate and graduate students.”
— Dr. Steven Cook, Lecturer in Quantitative Methods and Criminology, Cardiff University
“This book is an enjoyable, thought-provoking look at psychoactive drug use and abuse that approaches the problem from a Canadian perspective through the combined lenses of pharmacol¬ogy, sociology, psychology, and law. The material is presented in a straightforward manner that transcends discipline, and the arguments are persuasive and certainly make one stop and think about the current state of psychoactive drugs in Canada.”— Dr. Andrew Horne, Department of Anesthesiology, Pharmacology & Therapeutics, University of British Columbia
Instructor Resources
The Drug Paradox includes the following instructor resources:
PowerPoint slides for each chapter
Instructors manual that includes lecture suggestions, test questions, short answer questions, assignments suggestions, take home assignments, and additional resources for each chapter
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