Assembling the dominant accounts of youth drug use in Australian harm reduction drug education

Farrugia, Adrian

doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2014.04.019

Cited by 39 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…This points to the need to understand steroid use as distinct from, rather than simply equated with, other drug use. As the data show, the experiential purpose (Farrugia 2014) of using particular drugs differs in relation to a range of factors beyond the 'risk effects' to include lifestyle and identity factors. Steroid use needs to be understood beyond mere conflation with other 'morally suspect substances' (Keane 2005), as this can mask the more complex reasons related to identity and masculinity that frame understandings and engagements with substances in very specific ways.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

‘Steroids, it’s so much an identity thing!’ perceptions of steroid use, risk and masculine body image

Ravn

Coffey

2015

Journal of Youth Studies

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This paper explores how taste and distaste, body image and masculinity play into young people's perceptions of risk related to steroid use. Data are drawn from a qualitative study on risk-taking among 52 Danish youths enrolled in high school or vocational training. A number of 'risky' practices such as drug use, fights, speeding, etc. were discussed. In contrast to these practices, which were primarily described in relation to 'physical risks', steroid use was understood as part of an 'identity' or 'lifestyle' in a way these other risks were not. Few interviewees had used steroids, and the large majority distanced themselves from the practice. Reasons for not wanting to use steroids were related to (1) perceiving the drug to be part of a broader lifestyle and identity that they are not interested in committing to or embodying and (2) finding the body image, physicality and associations with steroid use 'fake', 'gross' and distasteful. We draw on recent developments in feminist sociological theory related to the gendered body as both a performance and process to understand steroid use as a practice through which the body and self is produced. More than a one-dimensional 'risky' practice, we argue that gendered and embodied identities are crucial to understanding the dynamics of steroid use. IntroductionThis paper explores how notions of taste and distaste, body image and normative masculinities play into young people's perceptions of risk related to steroid use. Drawing on data from a qualitative study about youth risk-taking and risk perceptions, we investigate the meanings associated with one specific practice, namely steroid use. The discussions around steroid use in the interviews differed significantly from discussions of other risk-taking practices such as recreational drug use, street level fighting or speeding. These practices were mainly discussed in relation to risks specific to participating in the activity (such as being injured in fights or car crashes, getting sick from poor-quality ecstasy pills or becoming addicted to specific drugs). In contrast, the risks associated with steroids were perceived to extend beyond the 'physical' risks of use, and were understood in a broader context of associations between masculinities, bodily appearances and identities.Importantly, only one of the participants had used steroids themselves, meaning that in contrast to other studies describing steroid-users' own perspectives (Monaghan 2001b;

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

‘Steroids, it’s so much an identity thing!’ perceptions of steroid use, risk and masculine body image

Ravn

Coffey

2015

Journal of Youth Studies

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“…In addition to local contexts shaping the normalization of particular substance use trends, youth substance use perspectives and experiences in this study were also informed by the neoliberal conceptualization of individual responsibility for substance use and associated harms [ 23 ]. In The City and The Valley, substance use was framed as a poor decision by both users and non-users, mirroring the “individual deficit” perspective frequently taken up in substance use education and public health messaging [ 19 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Further, prevention programming frequently presents alcohol and drug information in a manner that may not resonate with the intended youth audience, for example highlighting potential negative consequences as a deterrent strategy or “scare tactic”, rather than acknowledging and addressing social contexts of use [ 21 , 22 ]. Prevention approaches also fail to acknowledge that youth frequently use substances for pleasure and enjoyment of intoxication, instead framing substance use as a sign of distress or lack of common sense [ 23 , 24 ]. Consequently, youth perspectives on current substance use prevention programs demonstrate a lack of trust in formal sources of alcohol and drug information, with higher trust in information from peers [ 22 , 25 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Developing harm reduction in the context of youth substance use: insights from a multi-site qualitative analysis of young people’s harm minimization strategies

2017

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BackgroundYouth substance use programming and educational strategies are frequently informed by prevention approaches that emphasize abstinence goals, which often do not resonate with youth in their lack of acknowledgment of young people’s social context and how young people perceive positive effects of substance use. Further, approaches to drug prevention have been critiqued as adopting a one-size-fits-all approach and therefore inadequate in addressing substance use in the context of population variation and inequities. In response to the limitations of current approaches to prevention, programming informed by harm reduction principles that aims to minimize harms without requiring abstinence is emergent in school settings. However, youth perspectives informing harm reduction are limited in both research and program development.MethodsThis paper draws on data from the Researching Adolescent Distress and Resilience (RADAR) study, which utilized an ethnographic approach to bring youth voice to the literature on mental health and substance use. Qualitative data collection included individual interviews (n = 86) with young people aged 13–18 across three communities—representing urban, suburban, and rural geographies—in British Columbia, Canada. A multi-site qualitative analysis of interview data was conducted to identify themes across and within each research site.ResultsAcross all three sites, young people’s individual experiences of substance use were shaped by geographic, socio-cultural, and political contexts, with youth describing their use in relation to the nature of substance use in peer groups and in the broader community. To manage their own substance use and reduce related harms, youth employed a variety of ad hoc harm minimization strategies that were reflective of their respective contexts.ConclusionsThe findings from this study suggest the importance of harm reduction approaches that are contextually relevant and responsive to the lived experiences of youth. Youth perspectives in the development of harm reduction programming are needed to ensure that approaches are relatable and meaningful to young people, and effective for promoting the minimization of substance-related harms.

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“…To achieve this, they must first abandon the differentiation of subjects and objects, humans and nonhumans, inside and outside, macro (molar) and micro (molecular) in favour of a new ontology capable of explaining how these entities come to being and connect together in various ways (Duff, ). In other words, they have to disrupt traditional boundaries to see the world differently – a world constantly in flux, composed through complex connections between heterogeneous elements that exist interdependently and non‐hierarchically on a single plane (Farrugia, ). These connections contribute to what Deleuze & Guattari () call assemblages.…”

Section: Rethinking Side Effectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Body–drug assemblages: theorizing the experience of side effects in the context of HIV treatment

Gagnon

Holmes

2016

Nursing Philosophy

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Each of the antiretroviral drugs that are currently used to stop the progression of HIV infection causes its own specific side effects. Despite the expansion, multiplication, and simplification of treatment options over the past decade, side effects continue to affect people living with HIV. Yet, we see a clear disconnect between the way side effects are normalized, routinized, and framed in clinical practice and the way they are experienced by people living with HIV. This paper builds on the premise that new approaches are needed to understand side effects in a manner that is more reflective of the subjective accounts of people living with HIV. Drawing on the work of Deleuze and Guattari, it offers an original application of the theory of ‘assemblage’. This theory offers a new way of theorizing side effects, and ultimately the relationship between the body and antiretroviral drugs (as technologies). Combining theory with examples derived from empirical data, we examine the multiple ways in which the body connects not only to the drugs but also to people, things, and systems. Our objective is to illustrate how this theory dares us to think differently about side effects and allows us to originally (re)think the experience of taking antiretroviral drugs.

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Assembling the dominant accounts of youth drug use in Australian harm reduction drug education

Cited by 39 publications

References 41 publications

‘Steroids, it’s so much an identity thing!’ perceptions of steroid use, risk and masculine body image

‘Steroids, it’s so much an identity thing!’ perceptions of steroid use, risk and masculine body image

Developing harm reduction in the context of youth substance use: insights from a multi-site qualitative analysis of young people’s harm minimization strategies

Body–drug assemblages: theorizing the experience of side effects in the context of HIV treatment

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