Definitely, maybe not? The Normalisation of Recreational Drug use amongst Young People

Abstract

Increasing numbers of social scientists, policy makers and other social commentators suggest that drug use has become a relatively common form of behaviour among young people who accept it as a `normal' part of their lives. Although there is quite strong empirical evidence that the proportion of young people using drugs at some point in their lives is growing, there is little evidence to support the contention that it is so widely accepted as to be normal. Drawing on quantitative and qualitative data, we develop a critique of what we term the `normalisation thesis'. In doing so we argue that this thesis exaggerates the extent of drug use by young people, simplifies the choices that young people make, and pays inadequate attention to the meaning that drug use has for them. Crucially, we argue that in their reliance on large-scale survey data the main proponents of the normalisation thesis pay insufficient attention to the normative context within which drug use occurs.

Understanding recreational ecstasy use in the United States: A qualitative inquiry

“…By prioritising their responsibilities including employment, education, and family relationships, participants appeared to frame their consumption of ecstasy around these activities and believed their drug use to be another activity that fit into their leisure or recreational time. Accordingly, they did not identify with drug users who are often typified as reckless, irresponsible, or unable to negotiate their existence in mainstream society (Shildrick, 2002;Shiner & Newburn, 1997). Instead, participants' experiences were mirrored in the literature focusing on ecstasy, demonstrating its users to be conscientious and controlled in their patterns of use (Baggott, 2002;Gamble & George, 1997;Hansen, Maycock, & Lower, 2001;Panagopolous & Ricciardelli, 2005;van de Wijngaart, Braam, de, Bruin, Fris, Maalaste, & Verbraeck, 1999).…”

The normalisation thesis – 20 years later

“…The normalisation thesis has been explored by researchers in the UK, in other parts of Europe, Australia, New Zealand and the USA. Some of this work has supported the normalisation thesis or at least elements of it (Bahora, Sterk, & Elifson, 2009;Newcombe, 2007;Taylor, 2000), some has argued that normalised drug use is limited to particular sections of the population (Duff, 2003(Duff, , 2005Holt, 2005;Hutton, 2010;Pearson, 2001), and some has contested it (Blackman, 2007;Gourley, 2004;Shildrick, 2002;Shiner & Newburn, 1997). Further work has focused on differentiated normalisation and reasserted the significance of social class and gender (MacDonald & Marsh, 2002;Measham, 2002;Shildrick, Simpson, & MacDonald, 2007); as well as on the micro-politics of normalisation (Hathaway, Comeau, & Erickson, 2011;Pennay & Moore, 2010;Rodner Sznitman, 2008) and the tensions between agency and structure in drug careers (Measham & Shiner, 2009).…”

Drug use and social control: The negotiation of moral ambivalence

“…While this formula highlights the 'rationality' involved in drug use decisions, it also reflects the on-going struggle between the pleasure principal and the reality principal: the instinctual desire for pleasure being regulated by an awareness of likely consequences, giving rise to 'sensible' decisions (see Parker et al, 2002). The psycho-social conflict involved in this struggle has been documented in several qualitative studies: Shiner and Newburn (1997) found that young drug users share many of the same concerns about such behaviour as non-users, but develop neutralisation techniques similar to the rationalisations described by Becker (1963); Hathaway et al (2011: 465) note how conventional notions of cannabis as risky or deviant feature prominently in adult users' understanding and experience, creating an internalised sense of stigma that they seek to resolve through a process of 'normification', which means 'performing the expected (normative) behaviours that keep social interactions flowing'; Järvinen and Ravn (2014) suggest that the crucial 'moral' distinction in cannabis careers is between occasional and regular use, describing how regular users seek to conceal the extent of their use and may develop more restrictive views as their use becomes 'excessive'; Duff and Erickson (2014: 221) found long-term cannabis users often spoke about learning from harmful experiences of heavy-use, 'either cutting back their consumption, ceasing use altogether for a time or elaborating personal "rules" for consumption ';and Sandberg (2012) identifies three discursive repertoires among adult cannabis usersneutralisation, celebration and normalisation -which, he argues, can be understood as responses to stigmatisation.…”