CJ 4002 Lecture 7: drugs notes 7 02/07

• School: Temple University
• Department: Criminal Justice
• Course: CJ 4002
• Professor: Steven Belenko

Document Summary

Drug abuse and addiction - scope of the problem. 21. 5 million people aged 12+ had substance use disorder in past year. 17 million alcohol disorder, 7. 1 million illegal drugs. Marijuana substance use disorder is the most common. If we can understand why people use and abuse drugs, we can. Develop more effective drug control and drug enforcement policies. Inform research on more effective prevention and treatment. Drug abuse and drug dependence de ned in the dsm-iv. Dsm-v now uses substance use disorders, ranked as mild, moderate, or severe. Drugs alter brain chemistry (e. g. dopamine reward system) to cause tolerance, withdrawal, and produce cravings. Addiction requires interaction among agent (the drug), host (the user) and the environment. Genetics/biology not determinative by itself - psychological and sociological factors play roles in initiation and progression of drug use and addiction. Agent - type of drug, route of administration, price and availability. Host - genetics, changes in brain chemistry, vulnerability, other risk factors.