U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Crack Cocaine Use in Hamburg's Open Drug Scene

NCJ Number
200773
Journal
Journal of Drug Issues Volume: 32 Issue: 2 Dated: Spring 2002 Pages: 423-430
Author(s)
Katja Thane
Date Published
2002
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This article details the consumption of crack cocaine in Hamburg, Germany.
Abstract
The usage of crack cocaine has risen since the mid 1980’s, and smokeable cocaine is one of the most frequently used substances in Hamburg, Germany’s open drug scene. Sixty-four crack cocaine smokers in Hamburg, Germany, completed questionnaires about their use of crack cocaine. The author found that 70 percent of crack users claimed to use cocaine on a relatively frequent basis and stated that they often purchase it ready-made. The average age of the Hamburg crack cocaine users profiled in this work was 32 years old for males and 29 years old for females. German crack cocaine users frequently discussed the positive effects of using crack cocaine as generating a feeling of euphoria and freedom and the negative effects of using crack as producing a paranoid feeling. The greatest problem associated with cocaine usage in Hamburg was found to be users’ attempts to quit using the drug, with cocaine use being linked to street violence noted as the second greatest problem associated with this drug’s use. References

Downloads

No download available

Availability