Drug Addiction And Criminal Behavior

Submitted By nita36
Words: 722
Pages: 3
Open Document
Drug Addiction and Criminal Behavior Drug addiction can have profound effects on the lives of those who are addicted as well as those people who care about the well being of these drug users. The focus in this paper will be the examination of the association between drug addiction and subsequent criminal behavior by addicts.
Question and hypothesis
The research question will be; what are the factors that motivate drug users to commit crimes to further their addiction. Hypothesis, the researcher hypotheses will read as follows: H1: There is a relationship between drug addiction and criminal behavior, H2: There is a relationship between criminal behavior and drug addiction, H0: There is no relationship between addiction and criminal behavior
Research Design The intention of this researcher is to use survey design, because it provides a numeric representation of trends within a population. This researcher will study the resulting data by random sampling of the population and generalize the results. This study will use a random sample of recovering drug addicts who served time for crimes committed to further their addiction.
Drug use
In the U.S. more than a half a trillion dollars a year is spent as a direct result of substance abuse (Volkow, Baler and Goldstein, 2011). According to Volkow et al. a large percentage of this money goes to social projects associated with criminal activities and family services. Essentially these monies go to incarcerate, rehabilitate, and support those who committed crimes because of their dependencies on drugs, along with providing for the children who may have lost their only source of financial support.
Parents who use drugs may be more likely to have offspring that use drugs than parents who do not use drugs. These children who use drugs are likely to attract and retain friends who share the same bad social habits (Brook et al., 2011). The cost of continuing this chain of bad behavior has a twofold economic effect on society (a) reduces the number of productive adults in the workforce, (b) increase the costs associated with incarceration, and (c) perpetuates the next generation of criminal offenders.
This issue of substance abuse is not new, but little research exists about how to break this chain of drugs and criminal activity. This study is worthy of research because the health risks associated with drug use are well documented, as is the costs of treatments (include citations). The focus of this study will be members of a narcotics recovery group who have served time in jail/prison because of crimes directly related to their drug addiction. The role of the researcher in this proposed study will include contacting known members of support groups for assistance in examining this issue. Members will be asked to refer others that may be interested in contributing to this research effort.
Theoretical Framework This study is guided by two theoretical frameworks: Family Interactional Theory [FIT; Brook et al., 1990], and Developmental and Life-Course Criminology [DLC; e.g., Farrington,
Show More

Related Documents: Drug Addiction And Criminal Behavior

CJUS ESSAY

Intro Prof. Partee October 23, 2014 Crime Rate From Big Cities Compared to Small Towns What is the difference in crime throughout big cities compared to small towns? Many people would ask back is that even a question. I have done some research on that question, so here is what I have found. First I would reviewed the Federal Bureau of Investigation Uniform Crime Reports. The crime reports are based on the reporting yearly. Crimes in big cities compared to crimes in small towns are all the same…

Words 1283 - Pages 6

How To Decriminalize Drugs In Portugal

2001 the drug policy in Portugal decriminalized all drugs but providing an alternate method to deal with drugs. Portugal's policy states, “no criminal penalties exist for the use or possession of drugs for personal use--defined as a ten-day supply” (Abadinsky 2014:327). Furthermore, the new method of “harm reduction” would focus on treatment and prevention and not criminalizing and jailing people for drug possession. For example, a heroin addict would be able to receive and consume his/her drug and be…

Words 537 - Pages 3

War on Drugs Essays

watching the John Stossel documentary on The War on Drugs (Sidewinder77, 2009), it is evident that the 40 year war has created more crime than the intended purpose of reducing the drug problem in America. Is the point of the drug prohibition to reduce drug possession which would reduce the drug problem? Instead it has opened up different doorways to other crimes as a byproduct of prohibition. The Department of Justice says that the illegal drug market in the U.S. is dominated by 900,000 criminally…

Words 507 - Pages 3

Black Men: Arguments For The Legalization Of Drugs

Violet Obioha’s article “War on Black Men: Arguments for the Legalization of Drugs” argues that the legalization of drugs could greatly impact our country in positive ways by lowering crime rates, helping the tax revenue rise by focusing on other crimes rather than drug related crimes, helping the tax revenue by taxing illegal drugs after legalization, lessen drug users and ending the war on blacks due to drug related crimes and charges. Block and Obioha, claims that more blacks are being prosecuted…

Words 686 - Pages 3

Assignment 2 Defining and measuring crime Essay

Assignment 2: Defining and Measuring Crime A crime is an act so reprehensible that it is considered a wrong against society as a whole, as well as against the individual victim (Gaines & Miller, 2015). So if this is the definition of a crime then why does this definition get changed based on social and political climate change. Why do we have such a hard time defining crime? Who do the crime statistics reflect and what types of measurements are used to measure crime. We as a people have different…

Words 1052 - Pages 5

Deviance Crime And Social Control

Chapter 5 - Deviance, Crime and Social Control The Social Definition of Deviance and Crime Because norms vary widely, deviance is relative. People commit deviant acts only when they break a norm and cause others to react negatively. From a sociological point of view, everyone is a deviant in one social context or another. The Difference between Deviance and Crime Deviance involves breaking a norm and evoking a negative reaction from others. Crime is deviance that breaks a law, which is a norm…

Words 1263 - Pages 6

Measuring Crime

In order to measure crime, one must first identify the unit of analysis who (offender) committed the offenses, victim, then identify the types of crimes committed and incident. Each method provides the researcher with its own unique measurements. Each of the three methods has its own unique strengths and weaknesses, which must be identified in order to gain an accurate picture. The three methods of measuring crime are official statistics, victim surveys, and self-report surveys. The first method…

Words 651 - Pages 3

Domestic War On Drugs

The War on Drugs The domestic war on drugs began in the year 1971, during the Nixon presidency. Due to this legislation, the prosecution of drug charges was pushed to the forefront of law enforcement. Since this declaration, the question has arisen as to whether or not this program has been effective, if it should be terminated, and the possible solutions to the strain on the country it brought. The controversy surrounding the usefulness and necessity of law enforcement in drug crimes is a main point…

Words 933 - Pages 4

Peter Charleton's The War On Drugs: Making The Connection

“The ‘War on Drugs’ has been a failure” and argue in favour of reform as opposed to preserving the status quo. I also concede that there is no easy or guaranteed way to rid our world of its drug problems. Despite this, it must be realised that there are much more ethical and effective solutions to these problems than this futile war we wage. Peter Charleton’s “Drugs and Crime – Making the Connection: A Discussion Paper” is a paper that argues for preserving the status quo and keepings drugs criminalised…

Words 1196 - Pages 5

Juvenile Crime Statistics

Juvenile Crime Statistics Stephanie McMurray University of Phoenix CJA 374 Cory Kelly September 29, 2014 Juvenile Crime Statistics Crime can best be defined as an act committed that is against the law. Illegal acts committed are not exclusive to adults. Not all acts that are considered illegal apply to adults. Juveniles as defined by the law are persons not of the age that can be held responsible for criminal acts. The laws vary from state to state with regard to the age threshold for the juvenile…

Words 1019 - Pages 5