Comprehending Drug Use: Ethnographic Research at the Social Margins (Studies in Medical Anthropology)

Comprehending Drug Use, the first full-length critical overview of the use of ethnographic methods in drug research, synthesizes more than one hundred years of study on the human encounter with psychotropic drugs. J. Bryan Page and Merrill Singer create a comprehensive examination of the whole field of drug ethnography-methodology that involves access to the hidden world of drug users, the social spaces they frequent, and the larger structural forces that help construct their worlds. They explore the important intersections of drug ethnography with globalization, criminalization, public health (including the HIV/AIDS epidemic, hepatitis, and other diseases), and gender, and also provide a practical guide of the methods and career paths of ethnographers. (20091120) Front Cover 1 Title Page 3 Copyright 5 Dedication 7 CONTENTS 8 PREFACE 10 1. Through Ethnographic Eyes 13 Two Definitions 16 About Culture 17 Culture’s Holistic Attribute 19 Culture’s Relativistic Attribute 19 Ethnicity, Nationality, and Class 20 The Ethnography of Tobacco Use 22 The Ethnography of Alcohol Use 25 Emphasis on Discovery 26 Taking the Role of the Ethnographer 27 What Ethnography Contributes to Drug Studies 29 Ethnographic Building of Rapport 29 Observing Behavior in Context 30 Conclusion 34 2. The Emergence of Drug Ethnography 37 Premodern Quasi-Ethnography 39 Earliest Recorded Observations of Drug Use 40 The Histories of Herodotus 40 The New World Observations of Friar Ramon Pané 41 The Codex of Sahagún 42 Sir Richard Burton 43 The Appetites of Thomas de Quincey 44 Frederick Engels: A Foot in Manchester 45 Lessons from the Quasi-Ethnography of Drug Use 46 Early Modernist Ethnography 46 Weston La Barre: Research and Application 47 Bingham Dai: The Urban Ethnographic Tradition 48 Richard Evans Schultes: The Birth of Ethnopharmacology 52 Robert Lowie: Stumbling into Drug Ethnography 53 Lessons from the Initial Modernist Phase of Drug Ethnography 54 Interim Modernist Ethnography 55 Lindesmith and the Definition of Addiction 55 Emic Research Contributions of Drug Users’ Autobiographies 57 Lessons from the Second Phase of Modernist Drug Ethnography 61 Conclusion 61 3. Systematic Modernist Ethnography and Ethnopharmacology 62 The Drug Use as Subculture Paradigm 62 Anthropological and Sociological Rapprochement in Drug Ethnography 65 Michael Agar: The Dope Double Agent 67 Heath and Marshall 69 Ethnographers of Non-Western, Shamanistic Drug Use: One at a Time 70 Drug Use and Public Health: Early Initiatives 71 Dan Waldorf’s Career in Dope 74 Multisited Drug Ethnography: Addiction as a Way of Life 75 Lessons from Ethnography 79 Conclusion 81 4. Drug Ethnography since the Emergence of AIDS 82 Chronology of Ethnography and AIDS among Drug Users 83 Contributions of AIDS Ethnographies 89 HIV Natural History 93 The Crack Epidemic 95 Conclusion 96 Drugs and Globalization 98 5. Drugs and Globalization: From the Ground Up and the Sky Down 98 Case Studies in a Globalizing World 98 Coming of the Global Ethnographic Gaze 101 Flows: Ethnographic Mapping of the Movement of the Drug Trade 103 Regions of Production 104 Corridor Regions 105 Regions of Transshipment 106 Retail Sales: Local Drug Markets 107 Drug Ethnography and Risk 110 Ethnography and the Law: Studying Legal Drug Use and Criminalization 112 The Ethnography of Legal Drugs in a Global Perspective 112 Criminalization of Drugs and Its Effects 115 The Necessity of Ethnography 116 Ethnography and Representative Samples in Unknown Universes 117 Ethnographic Study of the Health Impacts of Drug Criminalization 118 Incarceration and Risk 120 Ethnography and the Development of Alternatives to Drug Criminalization 121 Drug Treatment 121 Harm Reduction 123 Conclusion 123 6. The Conduct of Drug Ethnography: Risks, Rewards, and Ethical Quandaries in Drug Research Careers 125 Emergent Components of the Ethnographic Toolkit in Drug Studies 125 Network Studies 126 Systematic Cognitive Methods 129 Social Mapping 132 In the Community: Ethnographic Field Stations and Beyond 133 Multimethod Approaches and Triangulation 135 Multisited Drug Studies 136 Research Ethics and Drug Ethnography 138 Limiting Ethnical Dilemmas 140 Conclusion 144 7. Career Paths in Drug-related Ethnography: From Falling to Calling 145 Our Stories 147 Careers in Dope 149 Career Study Methods 149 Educational Patterns and Dissertation Topics 150 Career Paths: Choosing Drug Research? 153 Acceptance of Drug Research in Anthropology 157 Conclusion 160 8. Gender and Drug Use: Drug Ethnography by Women about Women 161 Women Studying Street Drugs 162 Women Studying Female Drug Users 163 Female Ethnographers and the Nexus between HIV and Drug Use 166 Women and Prescription Drugs 169 Women and the Study of Street Drugs Since 1990 169 Conclusion 173 9. The Future of Drug Ethnography as Reflected in Recent Developments 174 The Scientific Context of Ethnography 175 Ethnography Combined with Multiple Disciplines 178 Health Consequences of Drug Use in Transdisciplinary Research 178 Prevention/Intervention in Transdisciplinary Research 180 Application: The Contributions of Drug Use Ethnography 182 Surveillance 182 Prevention 183 Treatment 184 Policy 186 Activist Ethnographers 187 Ethnopharmacology 188 The Future of Drug Use Ethnography 190 Trend Surveillance 190 Health Consequences 195 Conclusion 195 APPENDIX: NUTS AND BOLTS OF ETHNOGRAPHIC METHODS 197 Participant Observation 197 Ethnographic Interviewing 198 Interviews in Context 198 Formal In-Depth Interviews 199 Ethnographic Focus Groups 199 Recording Devices 200 NOTES 203 CHAPTER 1 THROUGH ETHNOGRAPHIC EYES 203 CHAPTER 3 SYSTEMATIC MODERNIST ETHNOGRAPHY AND ETHNOPHARMACOLOGY 203 CHAPTER 8 GENDER AND DRUG USE: DRUG ETHNOGRAPHY BY WOMEN ABOUT WOMEN 204 CHAPTER 9 THE FUTURE OF DRUG ETHNOGRAPHY AS REFLECTED IN RECENT DEVELOPMENTS 204 REFERENCES 205 INDEX 235 ABOUT THE AUTHORS 238 0813548047,9780813548043,0813548039,9780813548036 Rutgers University Press Front Cover......Page 1 Title Page......Page 3 Copyright......Page 5 Dedication......Page 7 CONTENTS......Page 8 PREFACE......Page 10 1. Through Ethnographic Eyes......Page 13 Two Definitions......Page 16 About Culture......Page 17 Culture’s Relativistic Attribute......Page 19 Ethnicity, Nationality, and Class......Page 20 The Ethnography of Tobacco Use......Page 22 The Ethnography of Alcohol Use......Page 25 Emphasis on Discovery......Page 26 Taking the Role of the Ethnographer......Page 27 Ethnographic Building of Rapport......Page 29 Observing Behavior in Context......Page 30 Conclusion......Page 34 2. The Emergence of Drug Ethnography......Page 37 Premodern Quasi-Ethnography......Page 39 The Histories of Herodotus......Page 40 The New World Observations of Friar Ramon Pané......Page 41 The Codex of Sahagún......Page 42 Sir Richard Burton......Page 43 The Appetites of Thomas de Quincey......Page 44 Frederick Engels: A Foot in Manchester......Page 45 Early Modernist Ethnography......Page 46 Weston La Barre: Research and Application......Page 47 Bingham Dai: The Urban Ethnographic Tradition......Page 48 Richard Evans Schultes: The Birth of Ethnopharmacology......Page 52 Robert Lowie: Stumbling into Drug Ethnography......Page 53 Lessons from the Initial Modernist Phase of Drug Ethnography......Page 54 Lindesmith and the Definition of Addiction......Page 55 Emic Research Contributions of Drug Users’ Autobiographies......Page 57 Conclusion......Page 61 The Drug Use as Subculture Paradigm......Page 62 Anthropological and Sociological Rapprochement in Drug Ethnography......Page 65 Michael Agar: The Dope Double Agent......Page 67 Heath and Marshall......Page 69 Ethnographers of Non-Western, Shamanistic Drug Use: One at a Time......Page 70 Drug Use and Public Health: Early Initiatives......Page 71 Dan Waldorf’s Career in Dope......Page 74 Multisited Drug Ethnography: Addiction as a Way of Life......Page 75 Lessons from Ethnography......Page 79 Conclusion......Page 81 4. Drug Ethnography since the Emergence of AIDS......Page 82 Chronology of Ethnography and AIDS among Drug Users......Page 83 Contributions of AIDS Ethnographies......Page 89 HIV Natural History......Page 93 The Crack Epidemic......Page 95 Conclusion......Page 96 Case Studies in a Globalizing World......Page 98 Coming of the Global Ethnographic Gaze......Page 101 Flows: Ethnographic Mapping of the Movement of the Drug Trade......Page 103 Regions of Production......Page 104 Corridor Regions......Page 105 Regions of Transshipment......Page 106 Retail Sales: Local Drug Markets......Page 107 Drug Ethnography and Risk......Page 110 The Ethnography of Legal Drugs in a Global Perspective......Page 112 Criminalization of Drugs and Its Effects......Page 115 The Necessity of Ethnography......Page 116 Ethnography and Representative Samples in Unknown Universes......Page 117 Ethnographic Study of the Health Impacts of Drug Criminalization......Page 118 Incarceration and Risk......Page 120 Drug Treatment......Page 121 Conclusion......Page 123 Emergent Components of the Ethnographic Toolkit in Drug Studies......Page 125 Network Studies......Page 126 Systematic Cognitive Methods......Page 129 Social Mapping......Page 132 In the Community: Ethnographic Field Stations and Beyond......Page 133 Multimethod Approaches and Triangulation......Page 135 Multisited Drug Studies......Page 136 Research Ethics and Drug Ethnography......Page 138 Limiting Ethnical Dilemmas......Page 140 Conclusion......Page 144 7. Career Paths in Drug-related Ethnography: From Falling to Calling......Page 145 Our Stories......Page 147 Career Study Methods......Page 149 Educational Patterns and Dissertation Topics......Page 150 Career Paths: Choosing Drug Research?......Page 153 Acceptance of Drug Research in Anthropology......Page 157 Conclusion......Page 160 8. Gender and Drug Use: Drug Ethnography by Women about Women......Page 161 Women Studying Street Drugs......Page 162 Women Studying Female Drug Users......Page 163 Female Ethnographers and the Nexus between HIV and Drug Use......Page 166 Women and the Study of Street Drugs Since 1990......Page 169 Conclusion......Page 173 9. The Future of Drug Ethnography as Reflected in Recent Developments......Page 174 The Scientific Context of Ethnography......Page 175 Health Consequences of Drug Use in Transdisciplinary Research......Page 178 Prevention/Intervention in Transdisciplinary Research......Page 180 Surveillance......Page 182 Prevention......Page 183 Treatment......Page 184 Policy......Page 186 Activist Ethnographers......Page 187 Ethnopharmacology......Page 188 Trend Surveillance......Page 190 Conclusion......Page 195 Participant Observation......Page 197 Interviews in Context......Page 198 Ethnographic Focus Groups......Page 199 Recording Devices......Page 200 CHAPTER 3 SYSTEMATIC MODERNIST ETHNOGRAPHY AND ETHNOPHARMACOLOGY......Page 203 CHAPTER 9 THE FUTURE OF DRUG ETHNOGRAPHY AS REFLECTED IN RECENT DEVELOPMENTS......Page 204 REFERENCES......Page 205 INDEX......Page 235 ABOUT THE AUTHORS......Page 238 Comprehending Drug Use, the first full-length critical overview of the use of ethnographic methods in drug research, synthesizes more than one hundred years of study on the human encounter with psychotropic drugs. Page and Singer create a comprehensive examination of the whole field of drug ethnography-methodology that involves access to the hidden world of drug users, the social spaces they frequent, and the larger structural forces that help construct their worlds. They explore the important intersections of drug ethnography with globalization, criminalization, public health (including the HIV/AIDS epidemic, hepatitis, and other diseases), and gender, and also provide a practice guide of the methods and career paths of ethnographers. Through Ethnographic Eyes -- The Emergence Of Drug Ethnography -- Systematic Modernist Ethnography And Ethnopharmacology -- Drug Ethnography Since The Emergence Of Aids -- Drugs And Globalization: From The Ground Up And The Sky Down -- The Conduct Of Drug Ethnography: Risks, Rewards, And Ethical Quandaries In Drug Research Careers -- Career Paths In Drug-related Ethnography: From Falling To Calling -- Gender And Drug Use: Drug Ethnography By Women About Women -- The Future Of Drug Ethnography As Reflected In Recent Developments. J. Bryan Page And Merrill Singer. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. This book examines drug ethnography--methodology that involves access to the hidden world of drug users, the social spaces they frequent, and the larger structural forces that help construct their worlds. It explores the intersections of drug ethnography with globalization, criminalization, public health (including the HIV/AIDS epidemic, hepatitis, and other diseases), and gender, and also provide a guide to the methods and career paths of ethnographers