Examining how prescription drugs are illegally obtained: Social and ecological predictors
Author(s)
White, Clair
Ready, Justin
Katz, Charles M.
Griffith University Author(s)
Year published
2016
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
The rise in prescription drug abuse is changing crime patterns among drug users and the structure of illegal drug markets. The illegal distribution of prescription drugs is different from traditional street drug markets because prescription drugs can be obtained from multiple sources including doctors, pharmacies, friends, and street-level dealers. Drawing from drug-market research, this article investigates whether there are individual and ecological predictors of how prescription drugs are illegally obtained. Our study uses multilevel analyses to examine a random sample of 366 drug offenders arrested in Maricopa County, ...
View more >The rise in prescription drug abuse is changing crime patterns among drug users and the structure of illegal drug markets. The illegal distribution of prescription drugs is different from traditional street drug markets because prescription drugs can be obtained from multiple sources including doctors, pharmacies, friends, and street-level dealers. Drawing from drug-market research, this article investigates whether there are individual and ecological predictors of how prescription drugs are illegally obtained. Our study uses multilevel analyses to examine a random sample of 366 drug offenders arrested in Maricopa County, Arizona. Our findings indicate that individual-level characteristics such as mental illness and street drug use, as well as residential mobility within neighborhoods, are significant predictors of how prescription drugs are obtained for nonmedical purposes. This research suggests that an individual’s routine activities and neighborhood characteristics are related to their methods for obtaining prescription drugs. Theoretical and policy implications are discussed.
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View more >The rise in prescription drug abuse is changing crime patterns among drug users and the structure of illegal drug markets. The illegal distribution of prescription drugs is different from traditional street drug markets because prescription drugs can be obtained from multiple sources including doctors, pharmacies, friends, and street-level dealers. Drawing from drug-market research, this article investigates whether there are individual and ecological predictors of how prescription drugs are illegally obtained. Our study uses multilevel analyses to examine a random sample of 366 drug offenders arrested in Maricopa County, Arizona. Our findings indicate that individual-level characteristics such as mental illness and street drug use, as well as residential mobility within neighborhoods, are significant predictors of how prescription drugs are obtained for nonmedical purposes. This research suggests that an individual’s routine activities and neighborhood characteristics are related to their methods for obtaining prescription drugs. Theoretical and policy implications are discussed.
View less >
Journal Title
Journal of Drug Issues
Volume
46
Issue
1
Subject
Public Health and Health Services not elsewhere classified
Public Health and Health Services
Psychology