What is the Worst Thing you could get Hooked on?: Popular Images of Addiction Problems in Contemporary Sweden

Abstract

Aims To investigate potentially crucial aspects of Swedes' perceptions of nine different addictions. Data and Methods Population survey, sent out to 2,000 adult Swedes (18–74 years), focusing on the perceived severity of, responsibility for, options to recover from, and character of addiction to cigarettes, snuff, alcohol, cannabis, amphetamine, cocaine, heroin, medical drugs, and gambling. Results There are large differences in the ways in which various addiction problems are perceived. Whereas tobacco use, and to some extent gambling, are seen as relatively harmless “habits”, not particularly easy to get hooked on but easy to quit, the use of drugs such as heroin, amphetamine, and cocaine is seen as a major societal problem, and users are seen both as “sinners” who need to mend their ways and as powerless “victims”. In between comes the use and misuse of alcohol, cannabis and medical drugs, about which perceptions are more divided. Conclusions Respondents tend to downplay the risks and dangers with addictive habits that are common and familiar in mainstream culture, and to dramatise the risks and dangers with such habits that are uncommon or “strange”. This may have unfortunate consequences for addicts' options to find a path out of their predicaments.

The risks of cannabis and other illicit drugs: Views among French and Finnish addiction treatment providers

“…Profession, gender and education produced some differences. The results resembled those of the similar general population survey in Sweden, indicating that the risks of familiar addictions are downplayed, whereas the risks of uncommon addictive behaviors are overstated (Blomqvist, 2009;Blomqvist, Koski-Jännes, & Cunningham, 2014).…”

“…The questionnaire used for this study was originally developed by Jan Blomqvist (2009) in Sweden. The translation of the questions was conducted and double checked with due care, first for a comparative general population survey and then for this survey.…”

How should substance use problems be handled? Popular views in Sweden, Finland, and Canada

“…Although the "Brickman models" have been found to be useful in exploring how addictions are conceptualized in various contexts (e.g. Blomqvist, 1998Blomqvist, , 2009Edman and Blomqvist, 2011;Koski-Jä nnes et al, 2012a), previous studies have also pointed to certain ambiguities. Thus, it is evident that various ways of operationalizing the models will give differing results as concerns the overall support for a certain model, which means that the models are perhaps most useful in comparative studies.…”

“…Blomqvist, 2004), as opposed to a rather strong public opinion in Canada in favour of legalizing cannabis (Kennedy, 2012). As concerns addiction to cigarettes, previous analyses have shown that Swedes tend to regard smoking less as an addiction than as a "bad habit", for which the individual is personally responsible, and which s/he is principally able to quit (Blomqvist, 2009(Blomqvist, , 2012. Possibly Canadians are, perhaps due to larger media attention, and a stronger influence from the American "disease" notion of addiction, and the Surgeon General's (The Reports of the Surgeon General, 1988) description of smoking as an expression of "nicotine dependence", more inclined to see smoking as a problem, for which society should take responsibility.…”

“…Previous analyses of the national surveys, used for this paper, have shown large differences between the ways in which various addictions are perceived in a certain country, as well as between the ways in which various national populations perceive the same addiction (e.g. Blomqvist, 2009;Holma et al, 2009;Hirschovits-Gerz et al, 2011;Cunningham et al, 2012). Comparisons of lay peoples' and professionals' perceptions have shown relatively few differences (Koski-Jä nnes et al, 2012a, b;Samuelsson et al, 2013), whereas clients' views have been found to depart more from those of lay people and professionals The comparisons made in previous studies have typically focused the perceived addictiveness of various substances, as well as the rated social severity of, and assumed options to recover from -with or without treatment -various addictions.…”