Alcohol, Drug Abuse, Crime: A Closer Look - Essay Sample

Introduction

There lies a near yet intricate and complex link between alcohol, drug abuse, and crime. In most instances, crime originates from the use of illegal drugs and alcohol; hence there exists a causal relationship between the two elements (Fitterer et al., 2015). Generally, crime rates tend to increase during periods of drug use as people seek means to afford the various drugs. Such individuals are pushed to engaging in various crimes ranging from pilferage to property theft (Salas-Wright & Todic, 2014). Conversely, particular types of drugs, for example, amphetamines, are associated with pharmacological impacts that increase the possibility of the users’ engagement in crime. As such, alcohol and drug abuse stand out as a leading causative agent of crime; hence the two aspects are closely related.

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A significant part of the offenses of violent crimes is linked to the effects of drug use. Upon their intake, drugs often transform an individual to become more aggressive and thus more likely to commit a crime (Amlung et al., 2017). People under the influence have lower self-control and exhibit a violent disposition. Besides, some drugs such as heroin are associated with impairing users’ reasoning, and subsequently, such people are more inclined to commit a crime (White, 2016). It is thus evident that there exists a causal relationship between drug use and a person’s likelihood to engage in criminal activities.

Several factors determine an individual’s likelihood to engage in crime after abusing alcohol and drugs. The impetuosity of an individual has a significant effect as impulsive people are more susceptible to drug use (Håkansson & Jesionowska, 2018)). Once addicted, these people often turn to crime to meet their addiction needs. Additionally, people with low educational attainment are more inclined to use drugs and commit crimes. Such people are often unable to secure any job and could abuse drugs due to desperation (White, 2016). Although it is difficult to measure the extent to which drug abuse leads to crime, research shows that there is a close link between the two aspects.

References

Amlung, M., Gray, J., & MacKillop, J. (2017). UNDERSTANDING ALCOHOL AND OTHER DRUG USE VIA BEHAVIORAL ECONOMICS. Behavioral Economics and Healthy Behaviors: Key Concepts and Current Research. Retrieved from https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=YTgkDwAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PT67&dq=Alcohol+and+Drug+Misuse+and+crime&ots=YGICNwDeKH&sig=6F-EcE0csEeM0adZ9CAGLESg9xA#v=onepage&q=Alcohol%20and%20Drug%20Misuse%20and%20crime&f=false.

Fitterer, J. L., Nelson, T. A., & Stockwell, T. (2015). A review of existing studies reporting the negative effects of alcohol access and positive effects of alcohol control policies on interpersonal violence. Frontiers in public health, 3, 253. Retrieved from https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2015.00253/full.

Håkansson, A., & Jesionowska, V. (2018). Associations between substance use and type of crime in prisoners with substance use problems–a focus on violence and fatal violence. Substance abuse and rehabilitation, 9, 1. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5774467/.

Salas-Wright, C. P., & Todic, J. (2014). Alcohol and drug misuse as a biosocial source of crime. Routledge International Handbook of Biosocial Criminology. New York: Routledge, 558-570. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/270283872_Alcohol_and_drug_misuse_as_a_biosocial_source_of_crime.

White, H. R. (2016). Substance use and crime. The Oxford handbook of substance use and substance use disorders, 2, 347-378. Retrieved from https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=TeAWDgAAQBAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PA347&dq=Alcohol+and+Drug+use+and+crime&ots=mzbwrDUDsU&sig=lCjt_AjC0JuF8kvnO_YO5goyDBI#v=onepage&q=Alcohol%20and%20Drug%20use%20and%20crime&f=false.