Theory and Research on Drug-Related Deviance

A Typology of Sociological Approaches

In a previous section, we examined two different sociological perspectives on alcohol- and drug-related related deviance: the normative perspective, which focuses on norm-violating behavior, and the relativistic perspective, which views deviance as a process of labeling and audience reaction. However, sociological approaches to deviance also differ with respect to the level of analysis at which they examine deviant drinking and drug use. On the one hand, macro-level theories and research within the normative perspective are concerned with large-scale patterns of deviant behavior, such as variations in rates of illegal drug or alcohol use across different societies. On the other hand, many normative studies of drug-related deviance deal with interpersonal phenomena at the micro-level of analysis, such as family or peer group influences on the deviant drinking or drug use of individuals.

The distinction between macro- and micro-level analyses of deviance is as also important among sociologists who use relativistic definitions of deviance. For instance, a number of relativistic researchers working at the macro-level of analysis have examined how changes in drug policy are related to large-scale patterns of racial and ethnic conflict in American society. Other relativistic researchers adopt a micro-level focus in research on the interpersonal processes through which individuals get labeled and reacted to as "alcoholics" or "addicts."

Therefore, different sociological theories and types of research on drug-related deviance can be classified according to two criteria: (1) the perspective—normative vs. relativistic—implied by a definition of deviance and (2) the level of analysis—macro vs. micro—at which deviant phenomena are studied. As shown in the following typology, this classification results in four relatively distinct sociological approaches to alcohol- and drug-related deviance: (1) the macro-normative approach; (2) the micro-normative approach; (3) the macro-relativistic approach; and (4) the micro-relativistic approach. This typology summarizes the major characteristics of each approach. This table also includes links to additional material on important sociological theories of deviance that exemplify these four approaches. Click the links to read more about each of these theories.

As shown in the bottom two rows of this typology, the methodologies that sociologists employ in research on drug- and alcohol-related deviance vary substantially depending on their analytical approach. Epidemiological research, which is characteristic of the macro-normative approach, sometimes draws upon secondary data collected by official agencies (such as arrest data) to examine variations and trends in rates of illegal drug or alcohol use. However, many epidemiological researchers now design their own sample surveys to collect data on self-reported substance use among various populations of adolescents or adults. An good example of this strategy is the Monitoring the Future Project, which collects survey data on drug use from representative samples of adolescents in schools across the United States.

Survey research is also used by micro-normative researchers to study patterns and potential causes of individual deviant behavior. Literally thousands of studies have used items on questionnaires or interviews to measure the impact of family and peer relationships, attitudes and beliefs, and other micro-level influences on individuals' self-reported drinking and drug use. Although some micro-normative research takes the form of intensive case studies of the deviant "careers" of individual addicts, most studies of this type report statistical results based on school or community samples of non-clinical populations. In a later section, we will take a close look at a micro-normative investigation of social relationships and marijuana use based on survey data from two university samples.

Drug and alcohol problems have been one of the most fruitful areas for macro-relativistic research on the structural and cultural foundations of societal definitions of deviance. One classic example of this approach is the work of Joseph Gusfield on the "symbolic crusade" against alcohol that resulted in the passage of the 18th amendment to the U.S. constitution. Gusfield's historical analysis, which is discussed in the material on conflict theory linked above, argues that the Prohibition Movement was motivated by a cultural clash between rural Protestants and urban Catholic immigrants around the turn of the 20th century. This and other historical research on laws and policies regulating drinking and drug use have shown that societal definitions of deviance are frequently based on deep cleavages in the structure and culture of American society.

Finally, micro-relativistic research on processes of labeling and social reaction often takes place in natural settings, where sociologists can observe these definitional processes as they happen. For instance, researchers have ridden in patrol cars to observe and record how police react to people who are intoxicated in public. Some of this research indicates that the race or ethnicity of the drinker plays an important role in officers' decisions to arrest or ignore "public drunks." Based on evidence such as this, labeling theorists argue that arrests for drug- or alcohol-related deviance may be influenced more by "who you are" than by "what you do."