Papers by Thomas Friis Søgaard
Nordisk politiforskning, 2016
This article contributes to the research on trust in policing by examining how private security a... more This article contributes to the research on trust in policing by examining how private security actors (bouncers) experience the police as a partner in informal policing networks emerging as part of the 'war on bikers and gangs' in Danish nightlife. While much international research about partnership policing has employed a police perspective and a top-down approach, thus emphasizing organizational ties between policing bodies, this article uses a bottom-up, interactional approach, with a focus on bouncers' everyday experiences and understandings of partnerships with the police. Our findings show that the formation of informal police-bouncer networks has significantly increased the degree of police influence in private nightlife environments such as bars and nightclubs. Our findings also indicate that inter-agency trust building is crucial to the collaborative willingness and capability of bouncers. However, collaborative relationships are challenged when the police use coercive tactics in their dealings with bouncers and, also, when there is uncertainty about the partition of roles and responsibilities between bouncers and police.
European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, 2021
This report, focusing on a single country, provides an analysis of current drug supply models and... more This report, focusing on a single country, provides an analysis of current drug supply models and the related violence and exploitation of vulnerable groups in Denmark.
Social Inclusion, 2014
This article explores the reproduction of ethnified urban spaces and inequalities in an ostensibl... more This article explores the reproduction of ethnified urban spaces and inequalities in an ostensibly cosmopolitan city. It does so by means of a case study of bouncers' policing practices in the nightlife of the Danish city, Aarhus. In recent years, a substantial body of research has explored the regulatory practices of bouncers operating in the urban nighttime economy. This article contributes to the study of nightlife policing by paying special attention to the ethnic governance of bouncers. More specifically, the article investigates how ethnicity is produced in bouncers' administration of nightlife accessibility; how inclusion and exclusion are negotiated in encounters between bouncers and ethnic minority youth; and how bouncers struggle to avoid allegations of discrimination and to uphold notions of colorblind good governance, while ethnified notions of troublesome individuals continue to inform bouncers' production of nightlife safety.
Tidsskrift for Arbejdsliv, 2018
Vestlige storbyer har siden 1970’erne oplevet en massiv vækst i den alkoholbaserede fest- og natt... more Vestlige storbyer har siden 1970’erne oplevet en massiv vækst i den alkoholbaserede fest- og nattelivsøkonomi. Transformationen af den indre storbys nat til en fest- og forbrugszone har afstedkommet voksende problemer med uorden, vold og kriminalitet. Barer og natklubber ansætter derfor ofte dørmænd til at ekskludere urolige personer, der anses som en trussel mod beværtningernes generering af økonomisk profit. Set i lyset af at dørmænd, i deres forsøg på at regulere nattelivets urolige kroppe, ofte selv er udsat for vold og trusler, trækker denne artikel på nyere maskulinitetsforskning og Lyngs teori om ’kantarbejde’ til at belyse, hvad der får mænd til at give sig i kast med dette risikofyldte og emotionelt udfordrende arbejde.
Nordic Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 2021
Aim: This article traces recent developments in Danish cannabis policy, by exploring how "cannabi... more Aim: This article traces recent developments in Danish cannabis policy, by exploring how "cannabis use" is problematised and governed within different co-existing policy areas. Background: Recently, many countries have changed their cannabis policy by introducing medical cannabis and/or by moving toward legalisation or decriminalisation. Researchers have thus argued that traditional notions of cannabis as a singular and coherent object, are being replaced by perspectives that highlight the multiple ontological character of cannabis. At the same time, there is growing recognition that drug policy is not a unitary phenomenon, but rather composed by multiple "policy areas", each defined by particular notions of what constitutes the relevant policy "problem". Design: We draw on existing research, government reports, policy papers and media accounts of policy and policing developments. Results: We demonstrate how Danish cannabis policy is composed of different co-existing framings of cannabis use; as respectively a social problem, a problem of deviance, an organised crime problem, a health-and risk problem and as a medical problem. Conclusion: While the international trend seems to be that law-and-order approaches are increasingly being replaced by more liberal approaches, Denmark, on an overall
Nordisk Tidsskrift for Kriminalvidenskab, 2022
Internet-mediated research methods are increasingly used to access
hidden crime-involved populat... more Internet-mediated research methods are increasingly used to access
hidden crime-involved populations such as drug users and drug dealers.
Based on an online survey study of over 800 individuals engaged in
illegal small-scale cannabis cultivation in Denmark, this article focuses on
the online recruitment methods used to access this allegedly »hidden«
population. In the article, we critically reflect about the concepts of
»hidden-« and »hard to reach« populations, and argue that small-scale
cannabis growers are best understood as a group that is »accessible
when approached with the right means«. More specifically, we outline
the challenges involved in recruiting participants for an online survey
that focuses on their criminal activities, and we provide insights into the
different recruitment- and trust-building strategies used in this process.
While the thematic focus of the article is on small-scale cannabis cultivation, the methodological approaches and reflections are also relevant for online survey studies of other types of offences.
International Journal of Drug Policy, 2024
Background: While the supply of cannabis is commonly assumed to be dominated by criminal gangs, a... more Background: While the supply of cannabis is commonly assumed to be dominated by criminal gangs, a sizable share of the domestic cannabis supply is provided by small-scale growers. This article examines the nature and scope of small-scale growers' distribution practices, with a particular focus on crosscountry differences and variations between different types of grower-distributors, i.e., "non-suppliers", "exclusive social suppliers", "sharers and sellers" and "exclusive sellers". Methods: Based on a large convenience web survey sample of predominantly small-scale cannabis growers from 18 countries, this article draws on data from two subsamples. The first subsample includes past-year growers in all 18 countries who answered questions regarding their market participation (n = 8,812). The second subsample includes past-year growers in 13 countries, who answered additional questions about their supply practices (n = 2,296). Results: The majority of the cannabis growers engaged in distribution of surplus products, making them in effect "grower-distributors". Importantly, many did so as a secondary consequence of growing, and social supply (e.g., sharing and gifting) is much more common than selling. While growers who both shared and sold ("sharers and sellers"), and especially those who only sold ("exclusive sellers"), grew a higher number of plants and were most likely to grow due to a wish to sell for profits, the majority of these are best described as small-scale sellers. That is, the profit motive for growing was often secondary to non-financial motives and most sold to a limited number of persons in their close social network. Conclusion: We discuss the implications of the findings on the structural process of import-substitution in low-end cannabis markets, including a growing normalization of cannabis supply.
International Journal of Drug Policy, 2019
Background: Illegal drug dealers no longer compete for customers only through the quality of thei... more Background: Illegal drug dealers no longer compete for customers only through the quality of their products, but also in convenience and speed of delivery. This article investigates "ring and bring" drug dealing, and argues that a focus on dealers' use of mobile phones is useful for exploring current changes within retail level drug markets. Methods: The article is based on 21 face-to-face in-depth interviews with active drug dealers in Denmark all of whom were involved in the delivery of drugs (mainly cannabis and cocaine) often to buyers' homes. Results: Contrary to studies emphasising how drug dealers often take up new communication technologies with enthusiasm, the dealers in this study displayed a technological conservatist stance. Moreover, mobile phones have become key to dealers' construction of in-group hierarchies, and have led to retail level drug selling becoming more flexible, individualised and more of a service on par with other services in the consumer society. Finally, the increasing use of mobile phones has also created a situation where portfolios of drug customers, held on cell phone SIM cards, are today traded and sold alongside other commodities in the drug economy. Conclusion: We show how a social constructivist approach to technology can provide a more detailed and nuanced account of the socio-technical ensemble and the meaning-making processes giving shape to retail level "delivery dealing."
TidsskriftTidsskriftet Antropologi, 2020
I de senere år har udbredelsen af ’nye’ kommunikationsteknologier forandret måden, hvorpå illegal... more I de senere år har udbredelsen af ’nye’ kommunikationsteknologier forandret måden, hvorpå illegale rusmidler handles og distribueres. Handel med illegale rusmidler foregår i stigende grad på online kryptomarkeder, sociale medier eller ved hjælp af mobiltelefoner. Berry (2018) har derfor konkluderet, at stofmarkeder bedst kan forstås som socio-tekniske netværk, da disse i stigende grad formes i samspillet mellem sociale og teknologiske processer. På denne baggrund belyser denne artikel, hvilken rolle brugen af mobiltelefoner spiller i udformningen af stofhandel baseret på et de–ringer–vi–bringer–koncept. I artiklen argumenteres der for, at et fokus på de forskellige måder stofsælgeres salgstelefon bliver „enacted” (Law 1999) kan fungere som en prisme, hvorigennem vi kan få indblik i de forskellige og delvis overlappende socio-tekniske netværk (Mol 2002), som i dag giver form til det mobiltelefonbaserede budservicemarked for illegale rusmidler i Danmark. Artiklen er baseret på interviews med aktive stofsælgere og -købere. Den viser, hvordan salgstelefonen artikuleres på fem forskellige måder; som et redskab til intern koordinering af budserviceforretningen, et kommercielt passagepunkt for stofkunder, et svagt led, som politiet forsøger at udnytte til at opspore salgs/købsnetværk, og som en vare og et middel til fjendtlig markedsovertagelse, som når kriminelle enten sælger telefonbaserede kundeporteføljer eller forsøger at erobre markedsandele ved at stjæle deres konkurrenters salgstelefoner.
Retreat or Entrenchment? : Drug policies in the Nordic countries at a crossroads, 2021
While Canada, Uruguay and several US States have legalised cannabis in recent years, and many Eur... more While Canada, Uruguay and several US States have legalised cannabis in recent years, and many European countries have implemented or are considering decriminalisation as an option, Denmark is one of the few Western countries that seems to be going in the opposite direction, away from a lenient decriminalisation policy and towards a more restrictive approach. In this chapter, we analyse how the emergence of a new discursive and politically potent framing of youth and recreational drug use as customers in a criminal market, and hence as the market basis for organised crime, has in recent years led to intensified police campaigns specifically targeting drug users.
Nordic Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 2021
The composition, use, policies, and the societal position of cannabis are changing and diversifyi... more The composition, use, policies, and the societal position of cannabis are changing and diversifying internationally. Cannabis has emerged as an object of much controversy and is subject to varying forms of regulation. Its role and regulation are also debated in the Nordic countries. To shed light on such developments, this special issue sets out to explore how the phenomenon of cannabis, and related policies and subjectivities, are currently made, unmade, and transformed in multiple ways through discourses, practices, and materiality, and with different consequences.
Journal of Organizational Ethnography, 2020
Purpose-The purpose of this paper is to explore how new policies and standards to professionalise... more Purpose-The purpose of this paper is to explore how new policies and standards to professionalise nightclub bouncing along with customer-oriented service imperatives affect bouncers' work practices and identities. Design/methodology/approach-The paper is based on 13 months of ethnographic fieldwork among Danish bouncers and uses the concept of "emotional labour" and related ideas of "interactive service work" to explore how service imperatives play out at political/commercial and organisational levels and how such initiatives are negotiated by bouncers in their work practices. Findings-Until recently, the nocturnal work of bouncers had been relatively unaffected by labour market service paradigms. This is now changing, as policy initiatives and the capitalist service economy colonise ever greater domains of the urban night and the work conducted here. We argue that trends towards professionalisation have landed bouncers in a double-bind situation, in which they are increasingly faced with competing and sometimes contradictory occupational imperatives requiring them both to "front up" effectively to unruly patrons and to project a service-oriented persona. We show how bouncers seek to cope with this precarious position by adopting a variety of strategies, such as resistance, partial acceptance and cultural re-interpretations of service roles. Originality/value-While existing research on nightclub bouncers has primarily focussed on bouncers' physical regulation of unruly guests, this paper provides a theoretical framework for understanding current policy ambitions to "domesticate" bouncers and shows how attempts to construct bouncers as civilised "service workers" is fraught with paradoxes and ambiguities.
International Journal of Drug Policy, 2023
Illegal drug markets are often assumed to be violent and predatory due to the absence of third-pa... more Illegal drug markets are often assumed to be violent and predatory due to the absence of third-party enforcement. While cannabis markets are generally considered to be relatively more peaceful, there has been little investigation of the levels of conflict and victimization among small-scale cannabis growers, particularly under different cannabis policy and enforcement settings. This paper explores prevalence and predictors of conflict and social control among small-scale cannabis growers. Methods: The data were obtained from an online convenience survey of small-scale cannabis growers from 13 countries (
International Journal of Drug Policy, 2023
Background: As with other areas of life, drug markets have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic... more Background: As with other areas of life, drug markets have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and related restrictions. This article examines how structurally vulnerable people who use drugs (PWUD) experienced and adapted to changes in street drug markets caused by lockdown measures. Methods: The article builds on ethnographic fieldwork in two Danish cities in 2020, including in-depth interviews with 22 PWUD, and interviews with 20 service providers, including low-threshold service providers and outreach workers. Results: The most consistently reported effect of lockdown measures on local drug markets related to increases in cannabis prices. Accounts of changes in drug availability varied greatly, with some participants reporting changing availability while others described the situation as similar to pre-lockdown conditions. Rather than a long-term drug shortage, changes reported by participants related to the anticipated disruption of local markets and drug scarcity, restrictions in access to cash and sellers seeking to capitalize on the crisis. Conclusion: Although no long-term drug scarcity was seen, the anticipation of a shortage was sufficient to impact on local drug market dynamics. Heterogeneity in PWUDs' experiences of access to drug markets during lockdown can to some degree be explained in terms of their varied embeddedness in social networks. While local markets proved resilient to lockdown measures, PWUD less embedded in social networks were more vulnerable to shifts in drug availability and to sellers' over-pricing of drugs.
International Journal of Drug Policy, 2024
Background: Research exploring online mediated drug dealing has gained momentum in recent years. ... more Background: Research exploring online mediated drug dealing has gained momentum in recent years. Much existing research is characterized by a primary focus on the "online" aspects of drug sales facilitated by social media, resulting in a divide between "on"-and "offline" drug dealing. We wish to bridge this gap, by focusing on the hybridity of dealing drugs via social media and by arguing for a more holistic understanding of contemporary drug dealing. Methods: This article is based on in-depth digitally facilitated oral interviews with 25 individuals with experience of dealing drugs via social media platforms and encrypted messaging apps and on observational data from different apps and platforms. Results: We found that many sellers start by dealing offline and gradually drift into sales using social media technology. While the internet offers drug sellers new opportunities to expand their business, many sellers are not technological exclusionists but rather adopt a multichannel approach where they sell both via social media and occasionally or regularly also through in-person and technologically analogue means. Additionally, many sellers do not draw clear cut distinctions between whether they use social media, SMS or encrypted apps, but rather see their "drug sales phone" as one medium for all sales related communication. Findings also show that local offline power dynamics continue to influence sellers' ability to build and expand their online business, and that offline as well as online networks play a crucial role in sellers' hiring of helpers and in their bulk drug sourcing. Conclusion: We discuss how our findings have analytical, conceptual, and methodological implications for the development of a more nuanced and holistic approach in the study of drug sales involving online technologies.
Nordisk Tidsskrift for Kriminalvidenskab, 2021
In recent decades, the selling and purchasing of illicit drugs has been increasingly mediated by ... more In recent decades, the selling and purchasing of illicit drugs has been increasingly mediated by use of communication technologies such as mobile phones and social media apps. While the risk of police intervention has traditionally restricted dealers' use of advertisements to attract customers, the increasing technologization of retail-level drug markets has opened up new avenues for dealers' use of proactive marketing. This article contributes to the understanding of current transformations of the retail-level drug market by providing insight into how drug dealers compete for and try to attract customers by use of strategic and targeted advertising. Based on an in-depth analysis of the textual and visual content of 99 illicit »drug commercials« circulated through SMS-based (Short Message Service) drug lines, we demonstrate how drug dealers draw on a number of psychological and cognitive techniques such as repetition, association, humour, hooks, slogans and storytelling, all of which are also found in legal marketing. We conclude by arguing that there is a need for more studies on how »drug commercials« affect drug users' purchasing practices, including their choice of dealer.
Nordic Journal of Criminology, 2023
Traditionally, research on illegal drug supply has mainly focused on marginalised urban populatio... more Traditionally, research on illegal drug supply has mainly focused on marginalised urban populations, whose lives and dealing practices are shaped by social exclusion, poverty, ethnic inequalities and cultures of violence. This article contributes to the small but growing body of research that focuses on drug sales among society's more privileged groups by individuals who, aside from using and supplying illegal drugs, live largely law-abiding lives. Based on 32 interviews from Denmark, the article analyses socioeconomically mainstream young adults' gradual drift into and out of profit-generating drug sales. We use the findings to argue that much bottom-level drug supply can be conceptualised as 'recreational drug sales'-that is, best understood not as a social aberration, but rather as an interwoven aspect of mainstream society, insofar as it is sporadic, experimental and leisure-based in nature, and often does not challenge sellers' involvement in the labour market/educational system or their identities as 'respectable' citizens.
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Papers by Thomas Friis Søgaard
hidden crime-involved populations such as drug users and drug dealers.
Based on an online survey study of over 800 individuals engaged in
illegal small-scale cannabis cultivation in Denmark, this article focuses on
the online recruitment methods used to access this allegedly »hidden«
population. In the article, we critically reflect about the concepts of
»hidden-« and »hard to reach« populations, and argue that small-scale
cannabis growers are best understood as a group that is »accessible
when approached with the right means«. More specifically, we outline
the challenges involved in recruiting participants for an online survey
that focuses on their criminal activities, and we provide insights into the
different recruitment- and trust-building strategies used in this process.
While the thematic focus of the article is on small-scale cannabis cultivation, the methodological approaches and reflections are also relevant for online survey studies of other types of offences.
hidden crime-involved populations such as drug users and drug dealers.
Based on an online survey study of over 800 individuals engaged in
illegal small-scale cannabis cultivation in Denmark, this article focuses on
the online recruitment methods used to access this allegedly »hidden«
population. In the article, we critically reflect about the concepts of
»hidden-« and »hard to reach« populations, and argue that small-scale
cannabis growers are best understood as a group that is »accessible
when approached with the right means«. More specifically, we outline
the challenges involved in recruiting participants for an online survey
that focuses on their criminal activities, and we provide insights into the
different recruitment- and trust-building strategies used in this process.
While the thematic focus of the article is on small-scale cannabis cultivation, the methodological approaches and reflections are also relevant for online survey studies of other types of offences.