Background Cannabis use is becoming more accepted in mainstream society. In this paper, we use Zinberg’s classic theoretical framework of drug, set, and setting to elucidate how older adult cannabis users managed health, social and legal risks in a context of normalized cannabis use. Methods We present selected findings from our qualitative study of Baby Boomer (born 1946–1964) cannabis users in the San Francisco Bay Area. Data collection consisted of a recorded, in-depth life history interview followed by a questionnaire and health survey. Qualitative interviews were analyzed to discover the factors of cannabis harm reduction from the users’ perspectives. Results Interviewees made harm reduction choices based on preferred cannabis derivatives and routes of administration, as well as why, when, where, and with whom to use. Most interviewees minimized cannabis-related harms so they could maintain social functioning in their everyday lives. Responsible and controlled use was described as moderation of quantity and frequency of cannabis used, using in appropriate settings, and respect for non-users. Users contributed to the normalization of cannabis use through normification. Conclusion Participants followed rituals or cultural practices, characterized by sanctions that helped define “normal” or “acceptable” cannabis use. Users contributed to cannabis normalization through their harm reduction methods. These cultural practices may prove to be more effective than formal legal prohibitions in reducing cannabis-related harms. Findings also suggest that users with access to a regulated market (medical cannabis dispensaries) were better equipped to practice harm reduction. More research is needed on both cannabis culture and alternative routes of administration as harm reduction methods.

Cannabis substitution can be an effective harm reduction method for those who are unable or unwilling to stop using drugs completely. More research is needed on cannabis as a safer alternative.

We present findings from a qualitative study of 80 women and men who sold Ecstasy in private settings. In this paper we explore Ecstasy sellers' identity processes and pathways to dealing. Interviewees believed “real dealers” sold in public settings to people they did not know and relied on drug sales as their main source of income. We found that 76% of the sample resisted the dealer identity due to the stigma associated with dealing, Ecstasy's benign reputation, selling in private settings, and customer bases that comprised mainly friends. The majority of the sample “drifted” into dealing and did not consciously decide to sell. Additionally, most interviewees did not implement precautionary sales strategies that characterize drug dealing operations described in our own and other investigators' research on drug markets. Ecstasy sellers created new, more positive identity constructions for themselves, which is also an important focus of this paper.

Background-Little is known about how users build and share knowledge concerning the highs and lows of Ecstasy and the role that Ecstasy sellers play in the exchange of this information.

In this exploratory study of pregnant drug users who have experienced one or more violent events (physical/sexual or emotional) while pregnant, the authors detail how drug use is both a survival strategy and a source of vulnerability to violence. Using a qualitative methodology, 126 women were interviewed who were or had recently been pregnant (within six months postpartum) and had used marijuana, crack, cocaine, or heroin singly or in combination (including alcohol with one or more of the above). Data concerning demographics, family, relationships, reproductive, drug use and violence histories were collected with a structured questionnaire. Of the 126 interviewees, 79% (100) were selected on the basis of their violent experiences during pregnancy for an in-depth interview that focused on their drug use and violence histories. The authors detail the ways in which women's drug use was a form of recreation, as well as a coping and survival strategy. Drug use also caused them serious problems. Women were demonized for using drugs while pregnant but not given feasible or reasonable alternatives. Paloma Sales, Resarch Analyst at the Institute for Scientific Analysis, has worked on numerous other NIDA•funded projects including studies of drug use and health care. needle exchange, and young heroin users, She is cc-authorlnq a forthcoming (2001) article in Social Justice entilled, "Pregnant drug users: Scapegoats of the Reagan/Bush and Clinton era economics." Sheigla Murphy, Director, Center of Substance Abuse Studies, also at the Institute for Scientific Analysis co-authored (with Waldorf and Reinarman) Cocaine changes: The Experience of using and quitting