Gary Potter
Dr Gary Potter is Professor in Critical Criminology at Lancaster University.
Address: Bowland North
Lancaster University
Bailrigg
Lancaster
United Kingdom
LA1 4YN
Address: Bowland North
Lancaster University
Bailrigg
Lancaster
United Kingdom
LA1 4YN
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Books by Gary Potter
Of course, drug users are only one set of individual actors who make up the drugs landscape. Responses to drug use are also shaped by personal identities and experiences of individual actors – drug policy, for example, is ultimately applied by individual law enforcement officers and treatment professionals. The importance of asking ‘who?’ in our efforts to understand drug issues extends not just to exploring the variety of individual experiences and identities of users, but also of the individual
characteristics of those who interact with them.
This addition to the series of books produced by the European Society for Social Drug Research (ESSD) explores the subjectivity behind the label ‘drug user’. It is concerned with who people who use drugs are and how their identities are formed, as well as how they are perceived and responded to by a range of different actors. Our contributions draw on empirical work with drug users from across the ‘recreational’ to ‘problematic’ spectrum, police officers, and treatment professionals from across Europe. Diverse thought the chapters are in their empirical focus, they address common themes of stigma and normalisation to provide significant insights into the role of identity in shaping drug experiences – and the importance of asking ‘who?’ as drug researchers.
While the drug problem is a global phenomenon, the way its components manifest themselves vary widely. The prevalence of use of different drugs changes over time and across different places. The characteristics of drug cultures and drug markets differ by geographical, social and cultural context. Drug policies, while broadly governed by global drug treaties, are shaped by local and national politics and designed to respond to local and national concerns.
Drug use, drug markets and drug policies are, ultimately, located in specific geographical, cultural and temporal contexts. As the drug problem varies across place, space and time, so understanding drug issues must take account of these dimensions. In this book, we bring together contributors from across Europe, each focussing on different aspects of the drug problem in different countries and different contexts. Each chapter contributes important knowledge about specific aspects and examples of the drug problem. Together, they provide even greater insights into the relationships between drug use, markets and policy, and their situation in place, space and time.
The contributors to this book cast a critical gaze on the concept of evidence. They challenge the positioning of evidence as the neutral product of an apolitical process and demonstrate, through case studies and policy analysis, the social construction of evidence by those who make and seek to influence policy. The authors question the epistemological and ontological basis of different forms of evidence; the selective accommodation of evidence and voices within dominant policy discourses; and the popular conception of evidence-based policy as a benchmark of good policymaking. Together, the various chapters provide a compelling insight into the complex contexts in which social drugs research evidence is produced, constructed, (mis)used and (mis)interpreted across Europe.
Through the contributions from experts from both the social and ecological sciences, the book deals with theoretical and practical considerations that impact on the effectiveness of contemporary environmental criminal justice. It discusses the social construction of green crimes and the varied ways in which poaching and other conservation crimes are perceived, operate and are ideologically driven, as well as practical issues in environmental criminal justice. With contributions based in varied ideological perspectives and drawn from a range of academic disciplines, this volume provides a platform for scholars to debate new ideas about environmental law enforcement, policy, punishment, and crime prevention and detection.
Patterns of drug use are changing, as are the ways in which society responds. In itself, this is not particularly noteworthy: trends in the consumption of psychoactive substances have always accompanied broader cultural shifts. However, in many ways we are experiencing change that is unprecedented in the history of drug policy. A number of new developments are occurring simultaneously: technological advances enable new ways of producing and distributing both old and new drugs, and facilitate the dissemination of information that influences drug-taking behaviours. Those who seek to respond (e.g. policy makers, treatment professionals, researchers) also harness scientific advances, and develop innovative new approaches of their own. The rate of change is such that it is difficult to keep up, or to predict the consequences.
This book examines change and continuity in the European drug scene. Eight original research papers explore their own specific topics, features on the broader drug landscape. But individually and (especially) together, these studies provide broader insights relevant to many other aspects of the contemporary drug scene in Europe and beyond.
Contents:
Gary R. Potter: Change and continuity in the European drug landscape: an introduction
Aileen O’Gorman: Neighbourhood effects: the influence of time, space and structures on drug consumption trends and practices
Levente Móró: Harm reduction of novel psychoactive substance use
Katarzyna Dąbrowska & Michał Bujalski: A liquid phenomenon? Images of new psychoactive substances in Polish print media
Caroline Chatwin: New psychoactive substances: new European policy landscapes
Alastair Roy: Looking beneath the surface of recovery: Analysing the emergence of recovery oriented treatment policies
Alfred Springer: The road to anhedonia
Sharon Sznitman, Nehama Lewis & Danielle Taubman: Analysing Twitter as an opportunity to understand substance use
Julie Tieberghien: Interviewing ‘elites’ in examining the science-policy nexus: some methodological reflections
As we start the second decade of the 21st century, the new cannabis industry continues to fascinate both casual and academic observers of the drug scene. Researchers around the world have become increasingly interested in the phenomenon, aiming to describe, and potentially explain, the rapid switch from importation to domestic production in their own countries.
In bringing together some of the world's leading experts on cannabis cultivation this book contains sixteen chapters that take an interdisciplinary look at global trends in cannabis cultivation. It will serve as an exemplar for wider discussions of key theories and concepts relating to the spread not just of cannabis cultivation, but also of illegal markets more generally, the actors that operate within these markets and the policies and practices that are employed in response to developments within these markets.
The book explores how cannabis is grown. Most cannabis in Western countries is grown indoors with increasingly hi-tech cultivation methods being utilised. The methods employed by individual growers will depend on their opportunities, their intentions and, importantly, any ideological position which may influence their choice.
It also explores who is involved in cannabis growing. Growers come from a wide range of backgrounds, but many share common 'ideological' traits that are rooted in an affiliation to a wider cannabis culture. A typology of cannabis growers i offered based on motivation and ideology. The key point here is that a large number of cannabis growers seek no financial reward whatsoever for their involvement in what is essentially an act of drug trafficking. Other growers do make money, but are equally motivated by non-financial 'drivers'. Still others are mostly or entirely driven by financial considerations. These growers often display the same hallmarks as drug-trafficking oufits. Consumer concerns can be seen to influence the market with smaller independent 'social' and 'social/commercial' growers offering an ideological - ethical, even - alternative to larger scale organised crime outfits.
Finally, explanations for the recent surges in domestic cannabis cultivation seen all over the Western world are offered along with predictions for the future of domestic production not just of cannabis but other drugs as well.
Papers by Gary Potter
However, demand for medical cannabis products is high, and many thousands of people do use cannabis medicinally but remain dependent on illegal sources. While the 2018 change in the law initially offered hope to those using medical cannabis illegally, the practical impact of the changes thus far has been infinitesimal. Those for whom medical cannabis may be beneficial continue to face a stark choice: either suffer the symptoms that could be treated were cannabis legally available or
resort to committing criminal offences in pursuit of relief from their conditions.
In this chapter we discuss access to medical cannabis in the UK. We start with an overview of the demand for medical cannabis in the UK and how this demand has, under prohibition, been met by relying on criminal activity. We then outline the legal situation regarding medical cannabis in the UK following the changes of November 2018. Finally, we speculate on future developments, asking whether the 2018 changes really are the beginning of a new era of legal access to medical cannabis or merely a political sop to media and public pressure with little genuine impact for those who could benefit from medical cannabis.
Of course, drug users are only one set of individual actors who make up the drugs landscape. Responses to drug use are also shaped by personal identities and experiences of individual actors – drug policy, for example, is ultimately applied by individual law enforcement officers and treatment professionals. The importance of asking ‘who?’ in our efforts to understand drug issues extends not just to exploring the variety of individual experiences and identities of users, but also of the individual
characteristics of those who interact with them.
This addition to the series of books produced by the European Society for Social Drug Research (ESSD) explores the subjectivity behind the label ‘drug user’. It is concerned with who people who use drugs are and how their identities are formed, as well as how they are perceived and responded to by a range of different actors. Our contributions draw on empirical work with drug users from across the ‘recreational’ to ‘problematic’ spectrum, police officers, and treatment professionals from across Europe. Diverse thought the chapters are in their empirical focus, they address common themes of stigma and normalisation to provide significant insights into the role of identity in shaping drug experiences – and the importance of asking ‘who?’ as drug researchers.
While the drug problem is a global phenomenon, the way its components manifest themselves vary widely. The prevalence of use of different drugs changes over time and across different places. The characteristics of drug cultures and drug markets differ by geographical, social and cultural context. Drug policies, while broadly governed by global drug treaties, are shaped by local and national politics and designed to respond to local and national concerns.
Drug use, drug markets and drug policies are, ultimately, located in specific geographical, cultural and temporal contexts. As the drug problem varies across place, space and time, so understanding drug issues must take account of these dimensions. In this book, we bring together contributors from across Europe, each focussing on different aspects of the drug problem in different countries and different contexts. Each chapter contributes important knowledge about specific aspects and examples of the drug problem. Together, they provide even greater insights into the relationships between drug use, markets and policy, and their situation in place, space and time.
The contributors to this book cast a critical gaze on the concept of evidence. They challenge the positioning of evidence as the neutral product of an apolitical process and demonstrate, through case studies and policy analysis, the social construction of evidence by those who make and seek to influence policy. The authors question the epistemological and ontological basis of different forms of evidence; the selective accommodation of evidence and voices within dominant policy discourses; and the popular conception of evidence-based policy as a benchmark of good policymaking. Together, the various chapters provide a compelling insight into the complex contexts in which social drugs research evidence is produced, constructed, (mis)used and (mis)interpreted across Europe.
Through the contributions from experts from both the social and ecological sciences, the book deals with theoretical and practical considerations that impact on the effectiveness of contemporary environmental criminal justice. It discusses the social construction of green crimes and the varied ways in which poaching and other conservation crimes are perceived, operate and are ideologically driven, as well as practical issues in environmental criminal justice. With contributions based in varied ideological perspectives and drawn from a range of academic disciplines, this volume provides a platform for scholars to debate new ideas about environmental law enforcement, policy, punishment, and crime prevention and detection.
Patterns of drug use are changing, as are the ways in which society responds. In itself, this is not particularly noteworthy: trends in the consumption of psychoactive substances have always accompanied broader cultural shifts. However, in many ways we are experiencing change that is unprecedented in the history of drug policy. A number of new developments are occurring simultaneously: technological advances enable new ways of producing and distributing both old and new drugs, and facilitate the dissemination of information that influences drug-taking behaviours. Those who seek to respond (e.g. policy makers, treatment professionals, researchers) also harness scientific advances, and develop innovative new approaches of their own. The rate of change is such that it is difficult to keep up, or to predict the consequences.
This book examines change and continuity in the European drug scene. Eight original research papers explore their own specific topics, features on the broader drug landscape. But individually and (especially) together, these studies provide broader insights relevant to many other aspects of the contemporary drug scene in Europe and beyond.
Contents:
Gary R. Potter: Change and continuity in the European drug landscape: an introduction
Aileen O’Gorman: Neighbourhood effects: the influence of time, space and structures on drug consumption trends and practices
Levente Móró: Harm reduction of novel psychoactive substance use
Katarzyna Dąbrowska & Michał Bujalski: A liquid phenomenon? Images of new psychoactive substances in Polish print media
Caroline Chatwin: New psychoactive substances: new European policy landscapes
Alastair Roy: Looking beneath the surface of recovery: Analysing the emergence of recovery oriented treatment policies
Alfred Springer: The road to anhedonia
Sharon Sznitman, Nehama Lewis & Danielle Taubman: Analysing Twitter as an opportunity to understand substance use
Julie Tieberghien: Interviewing ‘elites’ in examining the science-policy nexus: some methodological reflections
As we start the second decade of the 21st century, the new cannabis industry continues to fascinate both casual and academic observers of the drug scene. Researchers around the world have become increasingly interested in the phenomenon, aiming to describe, and potentially explain, the rapid switch from importation to domestic production in their own countries.
In bringing together some of the world's leading experts on cannabis cultivation this book contains sixteen chapters that take an interdisciplinary look at global trends in cannabis cultivation. It will serve as an exemplar for wider discussions of key theories and concepts relating to the spread not just of cannabis cultivation, but also of illegal markets more generally, the actors that operate within these markets and the policies and practices that are employed in response to developments within these markets.
The book explores how cannabis is grown. Most cannabis in Western countries is grown indoors with increasingly hi-tech cultivation methods being utilised. The methods employed by individual growers will depend on their opportunities, their intentions and, importantly, any ideological position which may influence their choice.
It also explores who is involved in cannabis growing. Growers come from a wide range of backgrounds, but many share common 'ideological' traits that are rooted in an affiliation to a wider cannabis culture. A typology of cannabis growers i offered based on motivation and ideology. The key point here is that a large number of cannabis growers seek no financial reward whatsoever for their involvement in what is essentially an act of drug trafficking. Other growers do make money, but are equally motivated by non-financial 'drivers'. Still others are mostly or entirely driven by financial considerations. These growers often display the same hallmarks as drug-trafficking oufits. Consumer concerns can be seen to influence the market with smaller independent 'social' and 'social/commercial' growers offering an ideological - ethical, even - alternative to larger scale organised crime outfits.
Finally, explanations for the recent surges in domestic cannabis cultivation seen all over the Western world are offered along with predictions for the future of domestic production not just of cannabis but other drugs as well.
However, demand for medical cannabis products is high, and many thousands of people do use cannabis medicinally but remain dependent on illegal sources. While the 2018 change in the law initially offered hope to those using medical cannabis illegally, the practical impact of the changes thus far has been infinitesimal. Those for whom medical cannabis may be beneficial continue to face a stark choice: either suffer the symptoms that could be treated were cannabis legally available or
resort to committing criminal offences in pursuit of relief from their conditions.
In this chapter we discuss access to medical cannabis in the UK. We start with an overview of the demand for medical cannabis in the UK and how this demand has, under prohibition, been met by relying on criminal activity. We then outline the legal situation regarding medical cannabis in the UK following the changes of November 2018. Finally, we speculate on future developments, asking whether the 2018 changes really are the beginning of a new era of legal access to medical cannabis or merely a political sop to media and public pressure with little genuine impact for those who could benefit from medical cannabis.
Methods: The data were gathered with a help of web surveys conducted by the Global Cannabis Cultivation Research Consortium (GCCRC) in Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany and the UK (N = 5313). In the analysis we compare reports of medical motives, for what conditions cannabis is used, whether users have diagnoses for these conditions and whether the use of cannabis been recommended as a treatment of those conditions by a medical doctor. Descriptive statistics are used to show the main commonalities and noteworthy disparities across different countries.
Results: Findings from countries were quite similar, even though several national differences in details were found. Growing cannabis for medical purposes was widespread. The majority of medical growers reported cultivating cannabis for serious conditions. Most of them did have a formal diagnosis. One fifth had got a recommendation from their doctor, but in most cases cannabis use was self-medication which was not discussed with their doctors.
Conclusion: There is a wider demand for licit access for medical cannabis than currently available in these countries. Ideologically, medical growers can be seen distancing themselves from both the legal and illicit drug markets. From a harm reduction perspective, it is worrying that, in the context of present health and control policies in these countries, many medical growers are using cannabis to treat serious medical conditions without proper medical advice and doctor’s guidance.
particular illegal activity.
This paper considers some of the practical, ethical and analytical challenges of studying illegal markets from opposing sides – the market participants’ perspective on one side, and law enforcement on the other. It outlines the advantages of researching both sides: the improved validity and reliability that comes with exploring and trying to reconcile different perspectives and the potential this has for developing theory and policy. It then explores the challenges researchers may face when trying to engage with opposing sides in qualitative fieldwork. It pays particular attention to some practical and ethical questions researchers may face in this situation: who to
research first, whether to be open about researching both sides, and whether researchers should ever share information they have received from one side with their participants from the other side.
We do not offer absolute answers to these questions. Rather, we aim to outline some of the factors researchers may need to consider when juggling qualitative research involving participants on both sides of the law.
Fundamental to a market perspective is the idea that growers are motivated by
profit. While most are, the literature also recognises various non-financial drivers.
Cannabis may be grown for personal pleasure, medical use, or to make a political or cultural statement. For some growers, profit is the main factor. For others profit is of no concern. For most growers there is a mixture of financial and non-financial drivers.
‘Pain’ in cannabis cultivation comes in the form of the consequences of ‘failure’:
loss of crop, legal sanctions or social repercussions. ‘Pain’ is also apparent in trying to manage the various challenges facing the grower. It seems from the literature that cannabis growers are, in the main, rational actors. Growers minimise risks as much as possible, weighing up remaining costs against the benefits they are seeking.
While many growers can be seen to be rational economic actors akin to other drug dealers (Cornish & Clarke, 1986), it is important to note the role of nonfinancial drivers influencing individual growers. Policies and theories based on the assumption that this particular criminal activity is purely economic will fail to account for the wider phenomenon of cannabis cultivation in industrialised nations.