Race/Ethnicity and Gender Differences in the Drugs-Violence Relationship

• NCJ Number: 131577
• Journal: Journal of Psychoactive Drugs Volume: 22 Issue: 3 Dated: (July/September 1990) Pages: 293-303
• Author(s): B J Spunt; P J Goldstein; P A Bellucci; T Miller
• Date Published: 1990
• Length: 11 pages
• Grant Number(s): DA-03182; DA-04017
• Sponsoring Agency: National Institute on Drug Abuse
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

The drug relatedness of violent events reported by 152 male and 133 female white, black, and Hispanic drug users from New York City were examined to determine if the drugs-violence relationship varies for these different populations.

Abstract

Drug relatedness was assessed according to a tripartite conceptual model of the general relationship between drugs and violence. Participants completed a life history interview and eight weekly interviews. Significant race/ethnicity and gender differences emerged in regard to the number of violent events manifesting specific drug-related dimensions of violence, the drugs associated with these violent events, and the primary reasons for occurrence of these events. Violent events reported by white males were most likely to be not drug related, but violent events reported by white females were least likely to be not drug related. Among black and Hispanic females, violent events were more likely than those reported by their male counterparts to be not drug related. Violence reported by black males was significantly more likely than violence reported by black females to be systemic in nature. 4 notes, 5 tables, and 19 references (Author abstract modified)