Impact of Drug Use on Crime - Research Proposal Example

Topic: Impact of drug use on crime: Introduction The relationship between drugs and crime can only be as complex. In most of the studies that have been conducted by researchers, there have been a high percentage of criminals who have been found to have used drugs. Although the vast volume of data available to the research bodies shows that there is a relationship between the drugs and crimes, the relationship cannot be explained as absolute (Benson, 1996). Drug use is a social problem rather than a personal problem. First, the dependency on drugs has many other social life problems that accompany it. In most of the cases, the issue of drug use results in drug dependency and long-lasting problems. These problems may include unemployment, criminality, relations problems and physical complaints. In this regard, the drug users are a burden to the society and the justice system. To understand drug use as a social problem, we need to understand what sociology means. Sociology is the study where the human interactions with one another and with other institutions are looked at. Sociological imagination refers to the ability of the social forces to influence the lives of people, either private or public. Since drug use is a social problem, sociology helps us understand how these drug users interact and on the sociological imagination part, ways of influencing the drug users using social forces are used (University of North Carolina, 2015).Therefore, the use of drugs has an impact on the type of crime committed. Literature review One of the influences of drugs on crime is the type of crime committed. One of the crimes related to drug use is the pharmacological crime. This type of crime is one in which the offender commits the crime under the influence of drugs (Bryan, Del Bono, & Pudney, 2013).  In this case, this can be in two categories, one in which the suspect is under the influence of drugs and the other one is where the victim is under the influence of drugs. In the first case, the suspect is under the influence of the illegal drugs. It is less likely to state that the use of some drugs such as heroin and cannabis increases the aggression levels (Bean, 2014). . However, when these drug users withdraw from using these drugs, they experience symptoms that may lead to increased aggression. These increased aggression levels are to violent crimes. According to studies, the withdrawal from these drugs leads to psychiatric and physical effects that induce the aggressive behavior. In the other case involves a commitment of a crime to the Victim under the influence of drugs. However, most of the crimes go unrecorded as they are not. For instance, sexual assault that takes place when the victim is under the influence of drugs is not reported. Similarly, robbery taking place when the victim is under the influence of drugs, are not reported (Benson, 1996).Thus, these examples give a clear indication of how drugs influence the crime. The other type of crime committed in the due to the influence of drugs is the acquisitive crimes. Acquisitive Crimes are those that are in order for the drug use to gain money to purchase the expensive drugs. In this case, most of the crimes committed include burglary, street robbery, handling stolen goods and shoplifting. Most of the dependent users of drugs commit crimes to obtain money for their drugs. Although most of the crimes committed in this type of manner are opportunistic, some of them require the use of specialized skills. For instance, embezzlement and frauds are examples of white collar crimes that require the use of skills and are in a professional environment (Chalub & Telles, 2006). Therefore, this type of crime shows the impact of drugs on crimes. Another impact of drugs on crime is the systemic crimes. The systemic crimes are those that are crimes that require violent acts. Thus, these crimes are committed in the process of acquiring and selling these illegal drugs. Therefore, this type of violence forms a part of drug acquisition, distribution, and the use. In most of the cases, the violence occurs as a form of strategy to control. This control may be the territorial control or clashes with the police where the systems of law are challenged, banking and government systems are corrupted (Organization of American States & Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission , 2012). Theory To understand the theories of drug abuse in the sociological context, there are three divisions that are there. These categories include social-conflict, structural-functional, and symbolic interaction. The structural-functional paradigm adopts a broad view of the society in what the society is like a complex system where the subsystems work together and in coordination to achieve solidarity and stability. In this case, human beings are believed to survive under these conditions. As a result, unity, stability, and cohesiveness are core to the existence of a society. When chaos, alienation, and instability are there in a given society, the normal functioning of the society is disrupted. Given the understanding of the structural functionalist theory, it is possible to understand the perspective of this theory in drug use. According to the functionalist, drug use is as a result of the weak social system. When the society becomes complex as many changes occur, the norms and values of the society become unclear and ambiguous to the society members. As a result, a state where norms are absent occurs. Anomie at the societal level results inconsistencies and social strains to the society members and hence drug abuse. For instance according to research that was conducted, in the period between 1930 and 1960, alcohol consumption was very high due to the rapid changes that were taking place in the society (Mooney, Knox, & Schacht, 2000). In the absence of norms, there are inconsistencies reading to the drug use in a given society. For instance, when the public health officials are firm on campaigning against the alcohol and tobacco use, the advertisement plays a role of glorifying alcohol and tobacco. Consequently, the government subsidizes the cost of these industries. When these circumstances present themselves, a weak society will fall prey to the acts of the advertisers and hence drug use (Mooney, Knox, & Schacht, 2000). At the individual level, anomie may exist. In this case, an individual may feel isolated and estranged over the appropriate and inappropriate behaviors. For instance, an adolescent teen in a divorce or separated from friends may lack someone to advise them. Thus, this adolescent may be vulnerable to drug use because of the prevailing conditions. Therefore, according to structural functionalist, the use of the drug is as a result of perceived lack of bond between an individual and the society and the weakening norm on what is appropriate and inappropriate (Mooney, Knox, & Schacht, 2000). According to the other theories, the use of the drug is as a result of other factors and not the bond between an individual and the society. According to the social conflict theory, drug use occurs as a result of power differentials. These differentials are created by the capitalist systems and people who feel alienated turn to drug use. In the case of symbolic interactions’ perspective, drug use is a result of the social meaning associated with drugs. If a drug user experience is described as pleasurable, reoccurrence is high. Data and methods In a research in the Caribbean countries, data was collected from four counties. These were Nevis, Saint Kitts, Dominica, and Saint Lucia. The sample was from prisoners who were 18 years and above who included remand and convicted prisoners. This sample was to examine the relationship between drugs and crime. This gives an ample size to make a conclusion. In another study conducted in order to define and measure the relationship between drug-related crimes. The researchers were able to come up with three relationships between drug use and crime. These include pharmacological use, systemic use, and acquisitive use crimes. Conclusion From the above description, there is a relationship between drug use and crime. In this case, the drugs impact the type of crime committed. The understanding of the impact of drugs and crime is important for the decision and policy makers. Since there is a linkage between drug use and crime, then controlling drug use can be good way of controlling crimes related to drug use. Since the researchers have been able to establish the link between drug use and crime, there is still a room for more research to establish a direct relationship between drug use and crime. References Benson, B., L. (1996). Illicit drugs and crime. Retrieved from file:///C:/Users/user/Desktop/WIRA/Illicit%20Drugs%20and%20Crime%20_%20Policy%20Reports%20_%20The%20Independent%20Institute.html Bean, P. (2014). Drugs and crime. Routledge. Bryan, M. L., Del Bono, E., & Pudney, S. (2013). Drug-related crime (No. 2013-08). ISER Working Paper Series. Chalub, M., & Telles, L. E. (2006). Alcohol, drugs and crime. Revista Brasileira de Psiquiatria, 28, s69-s73. Mooney, L. A., Knox, D., & Schacht, C. (2000). Understanding social problems (2nd ed.). Cincinnati, OH: Wadsworth Organization of American States & Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (2012). Exploring the relationship between drugs and crime: a comparative analysis of survey data from prisoners: University of North Carolina (2015) what is sociology? Retrieved from file:///C:/Users/user/Desktop/WIRA/What%20is%20Sociology_%20_%20Department%20of%20Sociology.html Read More