| Drug Policy and Human Nature: Psychological Perspectives on the Prevention, Management, and Treatment of Illicit Drug Abuse 1996 Edition Contributor(s): Bickel, W. K. (Editor), Degrandpre, R. J. (Editor) |
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ISBN: 0306452413 ISBN-13: 9780306452413 Publisher: Springer OUR PRICE: $104.49 Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats Published: July 1996 Annotation: This insightful work addresses the problem of preventing, managing, and treating illicit drug use. It approaches drug use and abuse from several perspectives - including the scientific study of abused drugs, epidemiology, clinical drug treatment, and basic science - to illustrate the various reasons for abuse on both an individual and societal level. Drug Policy and Human Nature provides a thorough psychological analysis of the relationship between drugs, culture, and human nature and facilitates a more collaborative and effective approach to improving American drug policy. |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Self-help | Substance Abuse & Addictions - General - Medical | Public Health - Medical | Pharmacology |
| Dewey: 362.291 |
| LCCN: 00000000 |
| Series: Infectious Agents and Pathogenesis |
| Physical Information: 0.81" H x 6.14" W x 9.21" (1.45 lbs) 326 pages |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: The formation of drug policy is a complex phenomena influenced by a multi- tude of sources. Among others, these influences include historical factors, contemporary public opinion regarding the nature and magnitude of drug use and abuse, the portrayal of illicit drugs and drug use in the media, and lobbying efforts by special interest groups (e. g., The Drug Policy Foundation), including government agencies (e. g., the Justice Department and law enforcement). An additional source of influence are the activities of specialists directly engaged in studying drug use and treating drug dependence. This includes individuals involved in drug treatment, anthropological and cultural studies, policy analy- ses, basic psychological and pharmacological research, research on the epide- miology of drug use and dependence, and research on prevention. This influ- ence by specialists might be usefully distinguished from those influences first mentioned for two reasons: First, studies of drug use and dependence attempt to uncover empirical generalizations about drugs, and second, because these findings are empirical, there is a hope that they guide, at least to some extent, the actions of other forces that more directly determine drug policy. Psychology as an empirical discipline has long been interested in the use of psychoactive drugs. At the level of basic science in psychopharmacology, a most important contribution has been the demonstration that drugs of abuse function as reinforcers and thus enter into the same psychological processes as do other appetitive stimuli. |