“Back then” and “nowadays”: Social transition narratives in accounts of injecting drug use in an East European setting

Rhodes, Tim; Bivol, Stela

doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.10.017

Cited by 26 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…In this study, we argue that early teenagers' accounts of their AOD use rebut a wider discourse about substance use as inevitably pathological and thus necessitating an institutional treatment response, a discourse about drug use that has previously been identified by Sedgwick (1992) and others (Keane 2002, Room 2003. Early teenagers in our study produced four main sets of narratives to counter this discourse: that their substance use is purposeful; that it is generally controlled; that AOD use would likely be part of their future lives and that they neither required nor would benefit from formal treatment.…”

Section: Journal Of Youth Studies 207mentioning

confidence: 71%

“…Narrative theorists have argued that particular kinds of narratives are generated within similarly socially located social groups, and that these stories rework, rebut or otherwise engage with wider discursive resources, also termed 'meta-narratives' (Rhodes and Bivol 2012). De Fina and Georgakopoulou (2008, p. 383) write of narrative genres as a form of social practice: 'a mode of action .…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although the language of addiction or alcoholism has to some degree been reframed in the alcohol and drug treatment field as 'dependence', the concept of addiction retains a strong hold in everyday discourse on substance use (Room 2003). Addiction discourse dichotomises free will against compulsion: one normal and healthy, the other sick and degraded (Sedgwick 1992, Keane 2002, Lalander 2003.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

‘I've had a pretty tough life but that's not why I do this’: narratives of autonomy and control among alcohol and drug service-engaged early teenagers

MacLean

Bruun²,

Mallett³

2012

Journal of Youth Studies

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Section: Journal Of Youth Studies 207mentioning

confidence: 71%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

‘I've had a pretty tough life but that's not why I do this’: narratives of autonomy and control among alcohol and drug service-engaged early teenagers

MacLean

Bruun²,

Mallett³

2012

Journal of Youth Studies

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“…A core theme across studies, however, was of limited agency. This occurred whether through accounts of limited autonomy (42) or in how experiences of, and claims to, active choice and autonomy with respect to injection initiation that were, in fact, constrained and enabled by environmental factors (42, 47, 50, 61, 66, 67, 71). For example, a young respondent said: “It’s my own fault at the end of the day, me own choice.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The experience of initiating injection drug use and its social context: a qualitative systematic review and thematic synthesis

et al. 2017

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Background and aim Understanding the experience of initiating injection drug use and its social contexts is crucial to inform efforts to prevent transitions into this mode of drug consumption and support harm reduction. We systematically reviewed and synthesized existing qualitative scientific literature to identify the socio-structural contexts for, and experiences of, the initiation of injection drug use. Methods We systematically searched six databases (Medline, Embase, PsychINFO, CINAHL, IBSS, and SSCI), along with a manual search, including of key journals and subject experts. Peer-reviewed studies were included if they qualitatively explored experiences of or socio-structural contexts for injection drug use initiation. A thematic synthesis approach was used to identify descriptive and analytical themes across studies. Results From 1731 initial results, 41 studies reporting data from 1996 participants were included. We developed eight descriptive themes and two analytical (higher order) themes. The first analytical theme focused on injecting initiation resulting from a social process enabled and constrained by socio-structural factors: social networks and individual interactions, socialization into drug-using identities, and choices enabled and constrained by social context all combine to produce processes of injection initiation. The second analytical theme addressed pathways that explore varying meanings attached to injection initiation and how they link to social context: seeking pleasure, responses to increasing tolerance to drugs, securing belonging and identity, and coping with pain and trauma. Conclusions Qualitative research shows that injection drug use initiation has varying and distinct meanings for individuals involved and is a dynamic process shaped by social and structural factors. Interventions should therefore respond to the socio-structural influences on injecting drug use initiation by seeking to modify the contexts for initiation, rather than solely prioritizing the reduction of individual harms through behavior change.

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“…Discussion Our findings demonstrate the diversity in characteristics and patterns of behavioural risk among young PWID in Albania, Moldova, Romania and Serbia, reinforcing the importance of understanding local contexts of injecting practices and their respective "risk environments" for HIV (Marshall, Kerr, Shoveller, Montaner, & Wood, 2009;Rhodes, 2009). Thus while heroin was injected by almost all respondents in Romania, it represented under 10% of drug use in the past month in the Moldova survey, reflecting Moldova's long tradition of home-produced opium (shirka) and economic instability that has limited importation of relatively expensive drugs such as heroin and cocaine (Rhodes & Bivol, 2012). Each country's ethnic composition and distribution of socio-demographic and educational attributes also inevitably shaped results.…”

Section: Drug Usementioning

confidence: 99%

Injecting behaviour and service use among young injectors in Albania, Moldova, Romania and Serbia

Busza

Douthwaite

Bani

et al. 2013

International Journal of Drug Policy

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Background: This study examines socio-demographic profiles, injecting risk, and use of health services among young injectors (15)(16)(17)(18)(19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24) in Albania, Moldova, Romania, and Serbia. The objective was to provide age-disaggregated data to identify differences between adolescents (<18) and youth (18)(19)(20)(21)(22)(23)(24), and help fill the gap in knowledge on the youngest injectors in this region. Methods: Cross sectional surveys were conducted in each country using chain-referral sampling to reach diverse networks of people who use drugs (PWID). In Albania and Romania, surveys were conducted in the capitals, respectively Bucharest and Tirana. Respondents were recruited from 3 cities in Moldova (Chisinau, Balti and Tiraspol) and Serbia (Belgrade, Novi Sad and Nis). Data were collected on risk behaviours, service use, and contact with police and other authorities. Analysis focused on associations between unsafe injecting behaviour and key determinants including demographic background, source of needles/syringes, use of harm reduction services, and interactions with law enforcement. Results: Although drug use and health-seeking varied across settings, sources of injecting equipment were significantly associated with sharing needles and syringes in Moldova, Romania and Serbia. Obtaining equipment from formal sources (pharmacies, needle-exchange programmes) reduced likelihood of sharing significantly, while being stopped by the police or incarcerated increased it. Adolescents relied on pharmacies more than public sector services to obtain equipment. Conclusion: Adolescents comprise a small proportion of PWID in this region, but have poorer access to harm reduction services than older peers. Engaging young PWID through private and public sector outlets might reduce unsafe practices, while use of the justice system to address drug use complicates efforts to reach this population.

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“Back then” and “nowadays”: Social transition narratives in accounts of injecting drug use in an East European setting

Cited by 26 publications

References 45 publications

‘I've had a pretty tough life but that's not why I do this’: narratives of autonomy and control among alcohol and drug service-engaged early teenagers

‘I've had a pretty tough life but that's not why I do this’: narratives of autonomy and control among alcohol and drug service-engaged early teenagers

The experience of initiating injection drug use and its social context: a qualitative systematic review and thematic synthesis

Injecting behaviour and service use among young injectors in Albania, Moldova, Romania and Serbia

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