CHAPTER 1 Q&A

1. What constitutes a drug?

a. Any substance that modifies (by enhancing, inhibiting, or distorting) mind and/or
body functioning
b. Psychoactive drugDrug compounds (substances) that affect the central nervous
system and/or alter consciousness and/or perceptions
i. Licit (Legal) Examples may include coffee, tea, alcohol, tobacco, and overthe-counter drugs.
ii. Illicit (Illegal) Examples may include marijuana, cocaine, LSD, etc.
2. What are the most commonly abused drugs?
a. Alcohol (ethanol)
b. Nicotine (all forms of tobacco)
c. Stimulants
i. Amphetamines, cocaine, crack, caffeine, nicotine
d. Hallucinogens/Psychedelics
i. LSD, Mescaline, Peyote, Psilocybin (magic mushrooms)
e. Depressants
i. Barbiturates, Benzodiazepines, Valium, Alcohol
f. Cannabis
i. Marijuana and hashish
g. Anabolic Steroids
i. A synthetic form of the male hormone testosterone
h. Inhalants/Organic Solvents
i. Inhalants such as gasoline, model glue, paint thinner, certain foods, herbs,
and vitamins
i. Narcotics/Opiates
i. Opium, Morphine, Codeine, Heroin
3. What are designer drugs?
a. Structural analogs are drugs that result from altered chemical structures of current
illicit drugs
i. Involves modifying the basic molecular skeleton of a compound to form a
new molecular species
b. Designer Drugs/Synthetic Drugs or Synthetic Opioids
i. New categories of hybrid drugs such as Ecstasy
ii. These relatively recent types of durgs are created as structural analogs of
substances already classified under the Controlled Substances Act.
4. How widespread is drug use?
a. Its all across the U.S. No city can hide from drug use.
5. What is the extent and frequency of drug use in our society?
a. 40% of Americans have used or are using marijuana at some point in their life.
6. What are the current statistics and trends in drug use?
a. Abuse of prescription drugs has continued

b.
c.
d.
e.
f.

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8.

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11.

Age 18-20 report the most illicit drug use

Native American/Alaskan Natives had higher rates of drug use (2006)
Males were more likely to use illicit drugs over females
College graduates were less likely to use than high school drop-outs
Unemployed have a greater tendency to use more illicit drugs than those that are
gainfully employed
g. Large metro areas have higher rates of use than non-metro areas
h. 33% of state prisoners, 25% of federal prisoners committed their offenses while
under the influence of drugs
What types of drug users exist?
a. Experimenters
i. Begin using drugs because of peer pressure and curiosity, and they confine
their use to recreational settings
b. Compulsive users
i. Devote considerable time and energy into getting high, talk incessantly
(sometimes exclusively) about drug use, and become connoisseurs of street
drugs
c. Floaters or chippers
i. Focus more on using other peoples drugs without maintaining as much of a
personal supply
How does the media influence drug use?
a. Advertising
i. Alcohol industry spends more than $1B annually on adverts
ii. The advertising budget for Budweiser beer exceeds the entire budget for
research on alcoholism and alcohol abusers.
iii. Alcohol companies spent $4.9B on tv adverts between 2001-2005
iv. Since the Friends Dont Let Friends Drive Drunk Ad Council campaign
began, 79% of Americans have stopped a friend from getting behind the
wheel while intoxicated.
What attracts people to drug use?
a. The experience of pleasure or heightened good feelings
b. To relieve stress, tension, or anxiety
c. Forget ones problems and avoid or postpone worries
d. Relax after a tension-filled day of work
e. To fit in with peers or as a rite of passage
f. Enhance religious or mystical experiences
g. To relieve pain and some symptoms of illness
When does drug use lead to drug dependence?
a. Physically speaking if a person is taking drugs to avoid withdrawal symptoms,
theyre dependent on the drug.
b. Psychologically if a user continues to take a drug in order to experience the effects
of it and/or to relieve withdrawal symptoms they may be psychologically
dependent.
When does drug addiction occur?

a. When use is excessive

b. Constantly being preoccupied with the substances availability and supply
c. Denial of excess use
d. Reliance of drug
12. What are the costs of drug addiction to society?
a. Illness
b. Shortened lifespan
c. Broken home
d. Fetal alcohol syndrome
e. Criminal behavior
f. Drugs in the workplace
g. Cost of assistance programs (employee assistance programs *EAPs+)
13. What can be gained by learning about the complexity of drug use and abuse?
a. If we learn why people abuse and use drugs, we can learn how to prevent the
behaviors to begin with.