JUVENILE DELINQUENCY THE CORE 5E Chapter 10: Drug Use and Delinquency Marijuana and Hashish  Marijuana  Produced from the leaves of cannabis sativa  Hashish  Concentrated form of cannabis made of unadulterated resin from the female plant  Main ingredient in both is tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)  A mild hallucinogen  Most commonly used drug by teenagers  Large amounts causes distortions that produce hallucinatory effects  Not physically addictive, but long term effects debatable Cocaine, Crack & Heroin  Cocaine  Alkaloid derivative of the coca plant  Most powerful natural stimulant that produces euphoria, restlessness, and excitement  It can be sniffed, snorted, or injected  Immediate feeling or rush is short lived  Crack  Processed street cocaine  Gained popularity in the mid-1980s  Relatively inexpensive  Can provide a powerful high and is highly addictive  Heroin  Most dangerous commonly abused drug Alcohol  Drug of choice for most teenagers  64% of high school seniors reported abusing it in the past year  70% say they have tried it  By the 12th grade, 51% reported having been drunk  Negatively impacts society  Factor in nearly half of all murders, suicides, and accidental deaths  1.4 million drivers are arrested each year for D.U.I.  840,000 more are arrested for alcohol-related offenses  The economic cost is staggering: $185 billion lost lost each year  Impact on Health  Long term use is linked to depression and physical ailments, ranging from heart disease to cirrhosis of the liver  Perceived Benefits  Reduces tension, enhances pleasure, improves social skills, and some claim it transforms experiences for the better Other Drugs  Anesthetic Drugs  Central nervous system depressants  Most widely abused is phencyclidine (PCP), aka angel dust  Inhalants  Some youths inhale vapors that cause a euphoric feeling that is followed by disorientation, slurred speech, and drowsiness  Sedatives and barbiturates  Depress the central nervous system, creating a sleeplike condition  Tranquillizers  Reduce anxiety and promote relaxation  Overuse can lead to addiction, and withdrawal can be painful and hazardous Other Drugs • Hallucinogens • Provide vivid distortions of the senses without greatly disturbing the viewers consciousness • Examples of common hallucinogens: • Mescaline • LSD • Stimulants • Synthetic drugs that increase blood pressure, breathing rate, bodily activity, and elevate mood • Methedrine is the most widely used dangerous amphetamine • aka “meth”, “speed”, “crystal meth” • Economic cost of meth use in the U.S. exceeds $23 billion a year Other Drugs  Steroids  Anabolic steroids are used to gain muscle bulk and strength  Black market sales approach $1 billion annually  Cause health problems such as liver ailments, tumors, kidney problems, sexual dysfunc ...

1. JUVENILE
DELINQUENCY
THE CORE 5E
Chapter 10:
Drug Use and
Delinquency
Marijuana and Hashish
sativa
unadulterated resin from the female plant
(THC)

2. hallucinatory effects
ddictive, but long term effects debatable
Cocaine, Crack & Heroin
restlessness,
and excitement
Immediate feeling or rush is short lived
-1980s

3. Alcohol
year
ders, suicides, and
accidental deaths
-related offenses
each year
use is linked to depression and physical
ailments, ranging from heart disease to cirrhosis of the
liver

4. skills, and some claim it transforms experiences for the
better
Other Drugs
is
followed by disorientation, slurred speech, and drowsiness
condition
and
hazardous

5. Other Drugs
• Hallucinogens
• Provide vivid distortions of the senses without greatly
disturbing the viewers consciousness
• Examples of common hallucinogens:
• Mescaline
• LSD
• Stimulants
• Synthetic drugs that increase blood pressure, breathing rate,
bodily activity, and elevate mood
• Methedrine is the most widely used dangerous amphetamine
• aka “meth”, “speed”, “crystal meth”
• Economic cost of meth use in the U.S. exceeds $23
billion a year
Other Drugs
ds are used to gain muscle bulk and strength

6. problems, sexual dysfunctions, hypertension and depression
ugs are synthetically created in labs for the
purpose of temporarily circumventing existing drug laws (ex:
bathsalts)
tes in
their
lifetime
Figure 10.1 trends in annual prevalence of illicit
drug use
13-year-old Died of Drug Overdose –
Current Example
Drug Use Today

7. nual survey carried out by the Institute for Social Research
at the
U. of Michigan
in
1996 and 1997
nd smokeless tobacco use
Drug Use Today
• Pride (Parents Research Institute from Drug Education)
Survey:
• Found that 2009-2010 school year experienced small to
moderate reductions in drug activities
• Substantial decreases over the last 10 years
• National Survey on Drug Use and Health:
• Drug and alcohol use has stabilized or declined
• “Heavy drinking” reported by 7% of youth 12 and over (17
million people)
• 2% of youth aged 12 to 17 were heavy drinkers and 8%
engaged in binge drinking

8. • Marijuana use is currently more common among male youths
than female youths
Table 10.1 annual drug use,
2000–2001 versus 2009–2010, grades 6–12
Are Survey Results Accurate?
o fully cooperate
-abusing students are more likely to be absent from
school
during testing periods
-dependent portion of the adolescent population is
omitted from the sample
acy of reporting may be affected by social and
personal traits:
-parent homes are less likely to
admit
taking drugs

9. Why Do Youths Take Drugs?
on, and
hopelessness
-
esteem,
poor socioeconomic status, and stress of living in a harsh, urban
environment
relationship between class and crime is
inconclusive
between drug use and social class
Why Do Youths Take Drugs?
• Peer Pressure
• Adolescent drug abuse is highly correlated to the behavior of
best

10. friends, especially when parental supervision is weak
• Youth’s association with friends who are substance
abusers increases the probability of drug use
• Relationship is reciprocal
• Peer networks may be the most significant influence on
long term substance abuse
Why Do Youths Take Drugs?
punishment and parental neglect
nces:
children were
more likely to have alcohol and drug arrests as adults
Americans
use

11. Why Do Youths Take Drugs?
adoptive
parents are found to be more more likely to develop alcohol
problems than natural children of adoptive parents
s twice as likely as fraternal twins to have
similar drug-
usage
as 6
years of age
Why Do Youths Take Drugs?
ds
-prone personality,
which
indicates that the cause of substance abuse may be traced to a

12. compulsive need for mood-altering drugs
suffer from psychotic disorders
antisocial
personality disorders
Why Do Youths Take Drugs?
in life
and persist throughout
distressed, and suffer from other social problems
family/school/work/community)

13. Why Do Youths Take Drugs?
ness
concern than other theories
use, as
opposed to an overly reactionary, negative stance
Medicating Our Children –
Current Example

14. Pathways to Drug Abuse
• Gateway drugs:
• Substances that lead to use of more serious drugs
• Drinking with an adult present is a significant
precursor of later substance abuse and delinquency
• Serious drug users typically start with alcohol
• Drug dealing and drug use:
• Adolescents who distribute small amounts of drugs usually
do not commit any serious delinquent acts
• Frequent dealers often have adults who front for them – sell
them drugs for cash
• Frequent dealers are more likely to sell drugs in parks,
schools, or other public places
• Most small-time dealers hold conventional jobs
Drug Dealing and Delinquency
• Most serious drug-involved youths distribute multiple
substances and commit property and violent crimes
• Represent only 2% of the teenage population but commit 40%
of
robberies/assaults and 60% of all felony thefts/drug sales

15. • Few gender or racial differences exist
• Turbulent environment of drug dealing is more lucrative
when ran by flexible organizations, rather than
rigidly-ruled gangs
Persistent Offenders
into adulthood
inal activities
an early
age
f drugs and commit crimes frequently
legitimate

16. and rewarding adult activities
Drug Use and Delinquency
definitively
established and can take a number of forms:
lowered by
substance abuse
f Justices Arrestee Drug Abuse
Monitoring
(ADAM) tracked trends in drug use among arrestees in urban
areas
males and 30% of
juvenile females tested positive for marijuana
ion of methamphetamines, males more likely
than females to
test positive for the use of all other drug

17. are
associated with drug use and distribution
Explaining Drug Use and Delinquency
t is far from certain whether:
other
factor
associations between substance abuse and delinquency:
alcohol
almost never take other drugs
g use
on pot

18. delinquent acts
Drug Control Strategies
• Billions of dollars spent annually to reduce the importation
of drugs, deter drug dealers and treat users
• A number of strategies deter drug use by stopping the flow of
drugs
into the country, apprehending dealers, and cracking down on
street-level drug dealers
• Another approach is educating potential users and convincing
them
to “say no” to drugs
• A third approach is to treat users so they can cease buying and
using drugs
Law Enforcement Efforts
those

19. who are thinking of entering the drug trade
rings
treet-level busts of dealers/users can be too much of a
hassle
drained police resources
Education Strategies
• Educational programs aimed at reducing teenage
substance abuse
• Begins in kindergarten and extends through the 12th grade
• According to the National Youth Anti-Drug Media
Campaign, most 7th-12th graders “agree a lot” that

20. anti-drug ads made them less likely to try or use drugs
Community Strategies
to youths at the highest risk
-based programs to
prevent
substance abuse and delinquency is provided by the Boys and
Girls Clubs of America:
ation to parents in the community to assist
youth in
learning about the dangers of substance abuse and strategies for
resisting the pressures to use drugs and alcohol
Treatment Strategies
• More than 130,000 youths ages
12 to 17 are admitted to treatment
facilities in the U.S.
• 52% are referred through the juvenile justice system

21. • Several approaches are available to treat users
• Multi-systemic therapy (MST)
• Focuses on direct attention to family, peer, and
psychological problems through problem solving and
communication skills
• Outdoor activities, wilderness training, and after school
community programs
• UCLA’s Comprehensive Residential Education, Arts, and
Substance Abuse Treatment Program
Diagnosing & Treating Children –
Current Example
Harm Reduction
without fear of punishment, for anyone who
wishes to overcome their habit and live a drug free life
part of a
treatment and detoxification program

22. educate
users about how HIV is contracted and spread
drug
treatment
rn that this approach condones/promotes drug use
without
recognizing the dangers
drug use
What Does The Future Hold?
appears willing to go to great lengths to keep fighting
the drug war
core
reasons for the majority of drug problems:

23. would decriminalize drug use to
reduce the association between drug use and crime
-term this approach could have grave
consequences
Summary
principle explanations for why some youths take
drugs
youth
delinquency
fferent strategies