Sex, drugs, and coercive control: Gendered narratives of methamphetamine use, relationships, and violence

Abstract

While many of the motives people provide for using drugs transcend gender, there are also notable gendered differences. These differences in motive talk aid in stigma management, shape gender performances, and

Protecting Stories: How Symbolic Boundaries Reduce Victimization and Harmful Drug Use

“…The regular use of meth among the women participants put them at risk of being heavily stigmatized. Their social positions also often resulted in others (mostly men) seeking to control their lives and drug use (see Copes et al, 2022). Although this affected participants' sense of agency and autonomy, they did not passively accept this stigma or the corresponding control over their lives.…”

“…The participants, however, found a way to turn dominant cultural stories of motherhood to their advantage. The women said that romantic partners, typically men, often tried to control how much, how, and when they used meth (see Copes et al, 2022). At times this meant men sought to encourage them to use more, but other times men tried to curtail their use.…”

The Role of Sex and Compulsory Heterosexuality Within the Rural Methamphetamine Market

“…A recent photo ethnographic study on cisgender men and women who used meth in rural Alabama, showed how gendered narratives of meth use can shape sexual interactions (Copes et al, 2021). Men in their study described meth as a "sex drug" which influenced how they approached women and also used it as justification of violence against women.…”

“…Descriptions of how men utilized the market to control and manipulate women into having sex with them was highly common (cf. Copes et al, 2021). For example, Ally witnessed her male roommates' revolving door of women coming over for meth: Evident in Ally's statement, men used meth to incentivize and coerce women into having transactional sex.…”

“…Women who succeed in drug dealing often employ strategies to downplay their sexuality to be gain respect among men (Grundetjern & Sandberg, 2012). Few studies, however, have explicitly investigated the role of sex in illegal drug markets (but see Copes et al, 2021 for an important exception). Similarly, while research has explored the connection between methamphetamine (meth) use and sex, this research has predominantly focused on gay men or men who have sex with men (MSM) (e.g., Dew et al, 2007; Fisher et al, 2011; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2006).…”