Critically analyze the reasons why people take drugs.

In this essay you will need to explore reasons why people take drugs, examine prevalence

rates, and evaluate theories of addiction. You could also include attitudes to drug taking,

within different arenas such as public, government and media.

Introduction

Substance use refers to “the use of any substance in a chemical form”. It includes substances

such as cigarettes, cannabis, amphetamines, magic mushrooms, crystal meth, cocaine, illegal

drugs, prescription drugs, morphine, injecting heroin, inhalants, alcohol, and solvents. The

commonly used drugs include painkillers such as paracetamol, ibrufen, etc[ CITATION Hus1 \l 1033

]. WHO (2004) regarded substance abuse as perilous use of psychologically active chemicals

including illicit drugs and alcohol. According to WHO, psychoactive chemical or substance can

result in dependence syndrome. Dependence syndrome is a combination of physiological,

cognitive and behavioural characteristics that may result from repetitive use of a chemical. It

comprises of high urge to have drug along with problems in its controlled use. Moreover, a

person with this syndrome continuously takes in the substance despite its injurious outcomes.

Other issues related to this condition include high priority given to use of particular drug in place

of other duties followed by physical withdrawal state[ CITATION Mac \l 1033 ]. It is believed that

all the psychoactive substances have harmful outcomes, which may increase with increased use

of the substance. The substance use can result in social, psychological, physical, legal or

financial consequences, which can be felt by colleagues, family, friends, society and the

user[ CITATION Hug \l 1033 ].

History of substance use

Substances have been discovered, cultivated, distributed and used for centuries. Drug use and

abuse is as old as mankind itself. Human beings have always had a desire to eat or drink

substances that make them feel relaxed, stimulated, or euphoric[ CITATION Mai \l 1033 ]. The start

of farming about 6000 B.C. and the later discovery of fermentation were closely followed by the

production of alcohol. However, drug abuse has now been defined and redefined in terms of

social, cultural, political and economic perspectives[ CITATION All \l 1033 ].

As time went by, "home remedies" were discovered and used to alleviate aches, pains and other

ailments. Most of these preparations were herbs, roots, mushrooms or fungi. They had to be

eaten, drunk, rubbed on the skin, or inhaled to achieve the desired effect. These were all naturally

occurring substances[ CITATION Gal \l 1033 ]. No refinement had occurred, and isolation of

specific compounds (drugs) had not taken place. Certain of these preparations were discovered to

produce euphoria, exaltation, and trance-like states. Many of these were also used in religious

rites. Drugs also were used to see visions or gain insights, to dull the pain of ritual mutilation in

initiation ceremonies, to enhance the strength and pain resistance of warriors to prepare them for

battle, or to programme them to kill[ CITATION JLa \l 1033 ] . Other uses of drugs included use as

pain or hunger suppressants, to help cope with thin air at high altitudes, to relax during

celebrations. Over time, people have isolated the psychoactive chemicals in plant and animal

materials. Some have been motivated by a desire to achieve "bigger and better" highs. Others

have sought to alleviate medical conditions or disease[ CITATION Sha \l 1033 ].

Prevalence of drug abuse

It was estimated that 8621 hospital admissions took place in Whales and England due to drug

associated problems in the year 2015-2016, which is 6% higher than previous year and 11%

more than year 2005-2006. The poisoning by illicit drugs caused 15,074 hospital admissions in

year 2015-2016, which is 6% higher than the previous year and 51% higher than year 2005-2006

[ CITATION Gal \l 1033 ]. The deaths caused due to drug abuse were estimated to be 2,479, in the

year 2015, which is 10% more than year 2014 and 48% higher than year 2005. It has been

estimated that 1 in 12 individuals with age range 16 to 59 years has consumed illicit drug for the

year 2015, which makes an approximation of 2.7 million persons [ CITATION Gal1 \l 1033 ].
Figure 1. Death rates related to drug abuse in England and Whales from 1995 to 2015

issued by UNODC in the World Drug Report 2017.

Reasons of using drugs

There can be various reasons of drug abuse including substance misusing or substance dependent

parents, poor family structure/cohesion, inconsistent parenting/boundaries, history of physical,

sexual or emotional abuse, experimentation in adolescence, depression, stress, for relaxation,

issues of identity/ attachment/ belonging, displaced people, peer pressure, adopted/fostered

unsettled childhood, ffinancial issues, emotional poverty, social exclusion, unemployment, poor

educational attainment[ CITATION Pry \l 1033 ]. Other reasons can be chaotic home environment,

easy availability, drugs gives pleasure, ineffective parenting, little mutual attachment and
nurturing, aggressive classroom behaviour, academic failure, poor social coping skills,

affiliations with deviant peers, perceived external approval of drugs, history of mental

illness[ CITATION Sha \l 1033 ].

It is noticed that majority of the substance abusers are individuals belonging to lower social class

who, instead of regarded as outcome of social inequalities, are recognized as a social problem.

However, the cause of and the effects/ consequences of problem drug use are frequently similar

& difficult to disentangle. E.g. Drinks because of unresolved life events-bereavement, loneliness,

relationship break up, drinks to get to sleep[ CITATION Eng \l 1033 ].

People take drugs because they want to change something about their lives. They think drugs are

a solution. But eventually, the drugs become the problem. Some of the reasons young people

have given for taking drugs include to fit in, to escape or relax, to relieve boredom, to seem

grown up, to rebel, to experiment. Difficult as it may be to face one’s problems, the

consequences of drug use are always worse than the problem one is trying to solve with them.

The real answer is to get the facts and not to take drugs in the first place[ CITATION McK \l 1033 ].

While anyone can develop problems from using drugs, vulnerability to substance addiction

differs from person to person. While your genes, mental health, family and social environment

all play a role, risk factors that increase your vulnerability include abuse, neglect, or

other traumatic experiences, mental disorders such as depression and anxiety, early use of

drugs[ CITATION Pyc \l 1033 ].

There’s a fine line between regular drug use and drug abuse and addiction. Very few drug

abusers or addicts are able to recognize when they’ve crossed that line. While frequency or the
amount of drugs consumed do not necessarily constitute drug abuse or addiction, they can often

be indicators of drug-related problems[ CITATION Sha1 \l 1033 ].

If the drug fulfills a valuable need, one may find himself increasingly relying on it. One may take

illegal drugs to calm or energize or make oneself more confident. However, he may start abusing

prescription drugs to relieve pain, cope with panic attacks, or improve concentration at school or

work. If a person is using drugs to fill a void in your life, he is more at risk of crossing the line

from casual drug use to drug abuse and addiction. To maintain a healthy balance in life, one

needs to have positive experiences and feel good about life without any drug use[ CITATION

Red \l 1033 ].

Drug abuse may start as a way to socially connect. People often try drugs for the first time in

social situations with friends and acquaintances. A strong desire to fit in to the group can make it

feel like doing the drugs with them is the only option. Problems can sometimes sneak up, as drug

use gradually increases over time[ CITATION NIC \l 1033 ]. Smoking a joint with friends over

the weekend, or taking ecstasy at a rave, or painkillers when back aches, for example, can change

from using drugs a couple of days a week to using them every day. Gradually, getting and using

the drug becomes more and more important[ CITATION Mey \l 1033 ]. As drug abuse takes

hold, the person may miss or frequently be late for work or school, job performance may

progressively deteriorate, and he may start to neglect social or family responsibilities. The ability

to stop using is eventually compromised. What began as a voluntary choice has turned into a

physical and psychological need. Eventually drug abuse can consume a person’s life, stopping

social and intellectual development. This only reinforces feelings of isolation[ CITATION Jos \l

1033 ].
 Figure 2: Factors leading to Addiction

Theories of addiction:

Normalisation theory (Parker et al 1998, updates by Aldridge et al 2013)

Parker and colleagues, University of Manchester/ NW England, conducted cross-sectional and

longitudinal surveys of young people. According to this study, drug use has become normalised

amongst young people in the past 15 years. It has a relationship to youth culture through dance

culture and post-modern trends. The five dimensions pointed out in this theory include

availability of/ access to drugs, rates of trying, rates of use, accommodating attitudes by non-

users, cultural accommodation[ CITATION Wes \l 1033 ] . Parker et al.(1998) explained that for
many young people taking drugs has become the norm. Over the next few years, and certainly in

urban areas, non-drug trying adolescents will be a minority group. In one sense they will be the

deviants. The increase in drug abuse is indicative of a post-modern Britain, characterised by the

fracturing of moral authority, increasing globalisation, an emphasis on consumption rather than

production, a reshaping of class and gender relationships. The findings showed perceived growth

of middle class drug use, and narrowing of gender gap[ CITATION Phi \l 1033 ].

The disease model of addiction

According to this model, addiction is rooted in the brain. Drug addiction may have genetic

predisposition, and hereditary routes. It involves neurones and neurotransmitters, and brain tissue

in the limbic system. A powerful motivation to use drugs exists which is a compulsion beyond

pleasure or expectation. The drug abuser adopts sick-role. Alcohol or drug addiction is a unique

and irreversible and progressive disease which can’t be cured. Due to the inability of the

individual to control consumption, abstinence is the only option or medical

intervention[ CITATION Ric \l 1033 ].

Moral theory

The moral theory dates belief system, and prevailed until 19th century. It has deviation from the

acceptable religious and socio-cultural norms. According to this theory, individual is responsible

for the initiation and development of addiction-related problems, although he is perceived as

weak willed / sinful/ deviant[ CITATION Red \l 1033 ]. The drug abuser may have personality traits

of thrill seeking, risk taking, anti social, personality disorders. According to moral theory, there

is a biological basis for addiction. The individual is a ‘bad person’ where the ‘victim-blaming’

approach is evident. The focus of intervention is the control of behaviour through social
disapproval, spiritual guidance, moral persuasion or imprisonment/punishment [ CITATION Hus1 \l

1033 ].

Genetic theory/Neuro-pharmacalogical theory

Studies on family, adoption and twins have suggested that alcohol or drug addiction is the result

of genetic or induced biological abnormality of a physiological or structural nature. However,

degree to which genetic factors play a role is unclear. Addiction may be due to increased

dopamine transmission in the limbic system by different mechanisms. Other

chemicals/neurotransmitters such as serotonin may be involved in process of addiction [ CITATION

JLa \l 1033 ].

Psychological theory

In behavioural theory, the use of substances is viewed as an acquired behaviour (via classical and

operant conditioning) and social learning. Drugs can act as positive reinforcement in that they

cause pleasurable sensation. Maintenance of drug behaviour is the result of past association with

a drug taking environment/situation. The drug abuser can be treated through relapse prevention

programmes (e.g.CBT). Freudian theory saw the consumption of drugs (alcohol) as providing

relief from the conflict generated by oral fixation, or repressed homosexuality [ CITATION All \l

1033 ].

Free will model

Addicts are making logical choices. He is considered to be social and looks at reasons/ causes for

use, not substance itself. Free will theory can encompass self-medication theory. There can be
political, cultural eg. gender, class, ethnicity, environment, or holistic treatment looking at

addressing individual needs[ CITATION JLa \l 1033 ].

Bio psychosocial theory

There are multiple pathways to addiction and the significance of these individual pathways

depends on the individual. Bio psychosocial theory focuses on biological and psychological

processes, but social factors are also included through learning, perceiving and interpreting the

world around us as well as through the person’s social relationships and larger cultural

environment. It includes social class, gender, ethnicity, place, age, time, & subcultural context to

be considered[ CITATION Hug \l 1033 ].

Attitudes towards drug taking

Previous research has suggested that the media conveys a mainly negative impression which

‘demonises’ and ‘marginalises’ drug users and misrepresents them, their usage of drugs and the

ways in which it affects them. It often happens that people who are experiencing alcohol

consumption or drug problems are viewed as less worthy and are compared with those who have

‘other physical/mental health needs’[ CITATION Mac \l 1033 ]. A large number of academics, policy

makers, and public health workers view substance use of any kind as problematic. The

problematic view for use and ‘abuse’ includes terms such as addiction, peer pressure,

conformity, personality defects, psychological maladaption, deviance, anomie, desperation,

fragmented communities, poor upbringings & broken homes. These are the sorts of views which

would inform prohibitionist or abstinence based policy perspectives on drugs i.e. Drugs are bad,

wrong, unhealthy, immoral and should not be used [ CITATION All \l 1033 ]. The work of Richmond

& Foster (2003) indicated that mental health professionals have negative attitudes towards
substance misuse. This also impacts on the quality of care provided to mentally ill substance-

using service users. Research on attitudinal perspectives towards drug users has come up with

orthodox views, which label them as bad, having problems, anti-social etc. However, this does

not apply to the majority who had ever used drugs or who were recreational users. Media reports

and official publications have frequently portrayed drugs users as lacking self-esteem, unable to

resist peer pressure, seeking oblivion, rejecting traditional norms, anti-social and willing to

violate laws[ CITATION Mac \l 1033 ].

Another point of view regarding drugs is entirely different. Many persons consider drugs as fun.

They think that drugs can be used relatively safely. They propose that thousands of people use

drugs of varying kinds unproblematically. This type of view would be one which is more likely

to favour policies of harm reduction, decriminalisation or legalisation. According to Guardian

(2010) ‘Parents are adopting more open attitude to alcohol, drugs and sex’[ CITATION Pry \l 1033 ].

In the qualitative interviews, recreational users were just as likely as non-users to condemn ‘out

of control’ drug related behaviour. Recreational users are slightly less trusting of authority and

more anti-police. Interestingly, recreational drug users appeared slightly more resistant to peer

pressure than non-users. ‘Positive’ attitudes to reducing harm and helping others with drug

problems (e.g. potential addiction) existed amongst recreational drug using subcultures [ CITATION

Hug \l 1033 ].

Conclusion

The individuals with problem of substance use mostly feel ashamed and stigmatized. This feeling

gets aggravated by unsuccessful attempts made by individual to quit their habit. The culture and

religious beliefs may also increase this sense of shame and guilt. Therefore, it is compulsory to
address the issue of substance use. The individuals suffering from this issue deserves supportive

and sympathetic services.

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