The Influence of Drug Dependence on Delinquent Behavior Essay Example

when intoxicated and infections contracted by sharing of needles (hepatitis and HIV) while injecting drugs.

Although there isn’t enough evidence but some researchers believe that drugs change neural functioning in ways that may increase the risk of serious mental problems. For example, early marijuana use may increase the risk of suicide and later, schizophrenia (Holden & Pakula, 1998; Arsenault & others, 2004). The various reports of rapid situation assessments of drug abuse and addiction in the country show a picture of widespread consumption of cannabis, followed by psychotropic substances (mainly benzodiapines and amphetamine-type stimulants) and to a lesser extent heroin and cocaine in both the urban and rural areas.

The use of volatile organic solvents is reported to be becoming popular, especially among street children, in-school youth and women (NDLEA/UNDCP, 1999). Thus, concerns for the control of drug abuse and addiction have become a major issue. Drug use/abuse is the primary reason why many youths are incarcerated, as well as a source of crime and health problems in our society today. It has become an unprecedented problem in Nigeria that the number of youth incarcerated in various prisons across the country has increased dramatically over the last few decades.

As a matter of fact, the majority of these youths have been arrested for drug offenses, and/or have a drug abuse problem (Essien, 2010). In support if the above findings by Essien (2010), research conducted by Siegel et al (2010) on the same subject suggested that delinquent behavior is as a result of various factors ranging from social disorganization to peer pressure, family, genetic and emotional factors. Further research has shown that drug

dependence and delinquent behavior among youth is highly correlated with the behavior of the group they are associated with, especially when parental supervision is weak (Siegel, 2010).

Youths who live in lower parts of urban areas and rural areas where feelings of alienation run high often come in contact with drug users who teach them that drugs provide an answer to their feelings of inadequacy and stress (Welsh, 2010). Based on facts gathered from previous researches and texts, at the end of this study it will be observed that indeed drug dependence influences delinquent behavior among youths in the society.

RESAERCH PROBLEM

Substance abuse, as well as substance dependence, is a major factor that has been negatively affecting society as well as its development and security.The problem has been in existence for quite some time and it is increasing as a result of global trends that surround our society. i. Individuals who have drug addiction/dependence problems suffer from withdrawal syndrome which occurs when the amount of substance required to produce intoxication is reduced or discontinued. ii. In order to get their hands on drugs, users go an extra mile to do whatever they can even if it goes against the laws of the society just to get high.

They commit crimes ranging from stealing, vandalism to gang activities as long as it will get them the drugs or money to buy the drugs. ii. The individuals continue to use the substances despite knowledge of having persistent physical or psychological problems that is likely to have been caused by the drug. iv. They spend a great deal of time in order to

get their “fix”. They visit multiple pharmaceutical stores and doctors to get the substances, and spend longer periods to use the substances and to recover from its effect. For example, late arrival from work, school, and violation of curfews set by parents of young adults.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

This research intends to find answers to the following questions:

What are the causes if drug dependence? To what extent does an individual become dependent on drugs? How does dependence influence delinquent behavior

OBJECTIVES OF THE RESEARCH

A psychologist’s job is to identify and proffer solutions to problems of the mind and mental processes. They carry out researches to update knowledge and to find answers to questions as well as solutions to problems of man and society. Therefore the overall aim and objectives of this study is to: i. Determine the influence of drug dependence on delinquent behavior ii.

To identify the types of drugs abused iii. Administer questionnaires to individuals who are drug dependants so as to determine if it has influence on delinquent behavior iv. Recommend possible solutions to the problem of drug dependence and ways to manage delinquent behavior.

JUSTIFICATION OF STUDY

From the research problem and its objectives, it is apparent that the findings of this study could go a long way towards understanding the causes and influences of drug dependence on delinquent behavior and provide sychological explanations as well as solutions to the problem of drug dependence and delinquent behavior. ii. It could also provide an insight to parents towards the behavior of their children. iii. The result of this research will serve as a

guide to policymakers on how to come up with ways of controlling drug abuse and dependence; hence the control of its circulation. iv. The findings of this study will educate the society on dangers of substance abuse and dependence and its influence on behavior. v.

Finally, the study will serve as a window for carrying out further research in this area and it will contribute to knowledge and literature in this field of study.

CHAPTER TWO REVIEW OF LITERATURE

DEFINITION OF CONCEPTS

Psychotropic drugs are classes of drugs that alter the conscious experience. They include depressants, stimulants, and hallucinogens. Drug abuse, is a patterned use of a substance (drug) in which the user consumes the substance in amounts or with methods neither approved nor supervised by medical professionals. Drug dependence

Drug dependence is defined as the frequent use of psychotropic drugs, where individuals come to crave them intensely and suffer intense withdrawal symptoms when they do not take the drug. Withdrawal symptoms are the unpleasant feelings and physical effects that occur when Tolerance Tolerance refers to the increased amount of activity that is required to achieve the same effect.

THEORETICAL REVIEW OF LITERATURE

The study has been guided by the biopsycho-social theories of drug abuse, and social strain and behavioral theories of delinquency.

The biopsychosocial theory of drug abuse focuses on biological, psychological, and sociological factors that are crucial in determining why people abuse psychotropic drugs. While the social strain theory and social learning theory of delinquency focuses on how individuals violate the laws of society to achieve unattainable goals; and how individuals learn by simply observing and imitating

negative activities.

BIO-PSYCHO-SOCIAL THEORY OF DRUG DEPENDECE

This theory explains the biological, psychological, and sociological theories of addiction.

Each focuses on a different range of factors as crucial in determining why people use and abuse psychoactive substances. Biological theories are those that postulate specific physical mechanisms in individuals that impel or influence them either to experiment with drugs or to abuse them once they are exposed to them. Some are constitutional, that is, are based on mechanisms that are present at birth and vary from one person to another. Others are partly environmental; that is, inborn factors in conjunction with environmental factors generate drug-using behavior.

Two of these explanations are genetic theories and the theory of metabolic imbalance. Genetic theory Schuckit, (1980) wrote that the genetic makeup of individuals predisposes them toward drug abuse and alcoholism. A gene or combination of genes influences the specific biological mechanisms relevant to substance abuse such as being able to achieve a certain level of intoxication when using drugs, becoming ill at low doses as opposed to much higher doses, lowering or not lowering anxiety levels when under the influence, or having the capacity to metabolize chemical substances in the body.

Any and all these factors could vary from one individual to another or from one racial or national group to another and could influence continued use. This “genetic loading,” in combination with environmental and personality factors, could make for a significantly higher level of drug abuse or alcoholism in certain individuals or groups in the population. Although most researches attempting to demonstrate a genetic factor in drug abuse is focused on alcoholism. Schuckit,

(1980) further explained that adopted children have rates of alcoholism closer to those of their natural parents than to those of their adoptive parents.

Metabolic imbalance Dole and Nyswander, (1965, 1980) in their theory of metabolic imbalance explained that it is a major factor in narcotic addiction. They argued that heroin addicts suffer from metabolic disease or disorder, much as diabetics do. Once certain individuals begin taking narcotics, a biochemical process “kicks in,” and physiologically, they begin to crave opiate drugs in much the same way that the bodies of diabetics crave insulin. Repeated doses of a narcotic complete their metabolic cycle; narcotics act as a stabilizer, normalizing an existing deficiency.

The narcotic abuser can never be withdrawn from drug use because his or her body will continue to crave opiates, just as diabetics cannot be withdrawn from insulin; in both cases, the substance provides what the body lacks and cannot provide. Psychological Theories Theories relying on psychological factors fall into two basic varieties: those emphasizing the mechanism of reinforcement, and those stressing that the personalities of the drug user, abuser, and especially addicts are different from those of the abstainer, and are causally related to use and abuse. The mechanism of reinforcement is fairly straightforward.

People tend to maximize reward and minimize punishment; they continue to do certain things because they have a past history of being rewarded for doing them. Drug users are individuals who have been rewarded for use, and hence they continue to use. While reinforcement theories underplay personality factors, personality theories, as you might expect, emphasize their important role in causing drug use and abuse. The precise

personality configuration that is said to determine drug use and abuse varies with the theorist; a range of personality factors is invoked here.

The key factor that binds these psychodynamic theories together, however, is that they postulate that certain individuals have a type of personality that impels them to drug use and abuse. Reinforcement A major psychological theory underplays the idea of personality differences between users and nonusers and emphasizes the role of reinforcement. Even animals use certain drugs compulsively under the right experimental conditions, casting doubt on the need to invoke psychodynamic variables in the development of addiction (McAuliffe and Gordon, 1980).

In addition, experiments have shown that, independent of personality factors, human subjects who are administered opiates without knowing what they have taken wish to repeat taking the drug; their desire grows with continued administration (McAuliffe, 1975). There are two distinctly different types of reinforcement, positive and negative, and consequently two different theories that cite reinforcement as a mechanism in continued drug use. Positive reinforcement Occurs when the individual receives a pleasurable sensation and, because of this, is motivated to repeat what caused it.

In brief, the pleasure mechanism may give rise to a strong fixation on repetitive behavior (Bejerot, 1980). With respect to drug use, this means that getting high is pleasurable, and what is pleasurable tends to be repeated. According to this view, the continued use of all drugs that stimulate euphoria is caused by their extremely potent reinforcing effects (McAuliffe and Gordon, 1980). Inferring from the way that users behave, it is difficult to draw a sharp distinction between a strong psychological and a physical dependency.