Terminology
Q
I
am a Social Work degree student. I am currently writing
a dissertation about addiction and the impact this may
or may not have on parenting capabilities. Throughout
the text I have been using terms such as addiction,
drug misuse, substance misuse/abuse, interchangeably,
and was wondering if there exists a favoured use of
terminology. Perhaps you would be so kind as to enlighten
me of the current usage and the relevant definition,
thanks for your time.
A
The
terms drug abuse/use/misuse and addiction are indeed
commonly used interchangeably, although serious researchers
would define their terms in any papers published.
Use
- could include any type of use, from social to problem.
In general, it would refer to moderate non-dependent
use of drugs causing no problems to the user or others.
Misuse
- tends to be a political term used to describe any
type of illegal drug use.
Abuse
- tends to be heavy, dependent, or problem use, but
may again refer to any type of illegal drug use.
Addiction
- should refer to use accompanied by tolerance and physical
dependence.
Problem
use - use which causes problems to the user or society.
General
- other than cannabis, caffeine and tobacco, most users
do not take drugs on a daily basis. The majority of
users of stimulants (amphet, cocaine, ecstasy) tend
to be episodic users (e.g. over weekends or prolonged
binges), the majority of other drug users tend to be
experimental or occasional, with a very small proportion
of regular users. This data is obtained from large samples
(annual samples of 1000-2000+ users) using anonymous
questionnaires (Regular Users series).
Our
definitions are:
Experimental
- up to ten occasions
Occasional
- over 10x but not monthly
Regular
- monthly or more often
Daily
- every day, or nearly every day
