NCJ Number
97776
Date Published
1984
Length
23 pages
Annotation
These case descriptions of patterns of heroin consumption among seven heroin users show empirical patterns that do not fit comfortably with existing models of addiction.
Abstract
The data came from subjects recruited in a ghetto neighborhood of New York City as part of a long-term effort to study the economic behavior of opiate users and street hustlers. During the study period (1978-79), the subjects reported to a storefront field office where they were interviewed for 30 or more consecutive days. Information was gathered on the respondent's involvement and cash return from several crimes, the type and value of drugs used, income from all sources, and expenditures for all purposes during the preceding day. The characteristics of the 31 respondents were compared with clients attending public methadone clinics in East Harlem. A majority of both groups were over age 30, but the study group had a substantially lower proportion of females than the clinics. Over 90 percent had been arrested, and 80 percent had been incarcerated. Education and employment levels were low. Heroin use ranged from irregular (an average of 2 days in the last 30) to near daily (heroin consumed 75 percent of the last 30 days). Three near-daily users were a successful burglar, a street drug dealer, and a versatile and successful criminal. Other subjects used illicit methadone, cocaine, or alcohol in addition to irregular use of heroin. The varieties of patterns of heroin use suggest that careful analyses of daily behavior may provide new insights on which to form a clearer model of opiate addiction. Figures and 13 references are supplied.