Crack Cocaine Dealing by Adolescents in Two Public Housing Projects: A Pilot Study

Drug trafficking among African American youth: Risk factors for future incarceration

“…The term "drug trafficking" refers to activities which include standing watch to warn dealers of the police, holding drugs or money, guarding the supply (stash) of drugs, or conducting sales transactions in which drugs are exchanged for money (Dembo, Hughes, Jackson, & Mieczkowski, 1993;Black & Ricardo, 1994;Li, Stanton, Feigelman, Black, & Romer, 1994;Stanton, Romer, Ricardo, Black Feigelman, & Galbraith, 1993).…”

the motives and mechanics of operating an illegal drug enterprise

“…Crack cocaine has some of the more prominent negat ive e ects of commonly abused drugs and has been linked to increasingly high rates of violent crime (Fagan 1989;Mieczkowski 1992 ;Dembo et al 1993;Johnson, Golub, and Fagan 1995;Dunlap and Johnson 1996). It stands to reason, then, that those dealing crack cocaine must operate in a manner consistent with it's consequences.…”

“…It stands to reason, then, that those dealing crack cocaine must operate in a manner consistent with it's consequences. With the introduct ion of inexpensive crack cocaine in the 1980s, system s of distribution have emerged as a consequence of the market demand (Dembo et al 1993 ;Inciardi, Lockwood, and Pottieger 1993;Chitwood, Rivers, and Inciardi 1996) that vary from methods used when dealing in other substances. Consequent ly, a highly lucrative market for drug dealers has been established (Miller 1995).…”

“…Previous literat ure has identi ed the pro t motive as a major motive for drug dealing ; however, much of the research has not separated nancial need from issues of greed. Instead, a pro t motive comprised of several variables is typically used (Dembo et al 1993;Mieczkowski 1994;Tunnell 1993). Yet, there is a distinct di erence between dealing motivat ed by necessity and dealing motivat ed by greed alone.…”

“…Included among the reasons dealers sell drugs is not only for nancial gain, but also as an alternat ive to low-paying jobs, from a desire for status and power, out of hedonism, and out of the need to support a drug habit (Biernacki 1979;Flores 1981;Adler 1985;Mieczkowski 1986Mieczkowski , 1990Mieczkowski , 1994Murphy, Waldorf, and Reinarman 1990;Faupel 1991;Lyman and Potter 1991;Weisheit 1991b ;Myers 1992;Dembo, Hughes, and Jackson 1993;Tunnell 1993;Hagedorn 1994;Ha ey and Tewksbury 1996;Shover 1996;Curcione 1997). Were there merely one factor that motivat ed drug dealers, it would be relatively simple to address, and in e ect curb, the domestic supply of drugs.…”