Are drug detection dogs and mass-media campaigns likely to be effective policy responses to psychostimulant use and related harm? Results from an agent-based simulation model
Background: Agent-based simulation models can be used to explore the impact of policy and practiceon drug use and related consequences. In a linked paper (Perez et al., 2011), we described SimAmph, an agent-based simulation model for exploring the use of psychostimulants and related harm amongst you...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
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Elsevier BV
2012
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/28866 |
| _version_ | 1848752650444603392 |
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| author | Dray, A. Perez, P. Moore, David Dietze, P. Bammer, G. Jenkinson, R. Siokou, Christine Green, Rachael Hudson, S. Maher, L. |
| author_facet | Dray, A. Perez, P. Moore, David Dietze, P. Bammer, G. Jenkinson, R. Siokou, Christine Green, Rachael Hudson, S. Maher, L. |
| author_sort | Dray, A. |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Background: Agent-based simulation models can be used to explore the impact of policy and practiceon drug use and related consequences. In a linked paper (Perez et al., 2011), we described SimAmph, an agent-based simulation model for exploring the use of psychostimulants and related harm amongst young Australians.Methods: In this paper, we use the model to simulate the impact of two policy scenarios on engagement in drug use and experience of drug-related harm: (i) the use of passive-alert detection (PAD) dogs by police at public venues and (ii) the introduction of a mass-media drug prevention campaign.Results: The findings of the first simulation suggest that only very high rates of detection by PAD dogsreduce the intensity of drug use, and that this decrease is driven mainly by a four-fold increase in negative health consequences as detection rates rise. In the second simulation, our modelling showed that the mass-media prevention campaign had little effect on the behaviour and experience of heavier drug users.However, it led to reductions in the prevalence of health-related conditions amongst moderate drug users and prevented them from becoming heavier users.Conclusion: Agent-based modelling has great potential as a tool for exploring the reciprocal relationships between environments and individuals, and for highlighting how intended changes in one domain of a system may produce unintended consequences in other domains. The exploration of these linkages is important in an environment as complex as the drug policy and intervention arena. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T08:12:00Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-28866 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T08:12:00Z |
| publishDate | 2012 |
| publisher | Elsevier BV |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-288662017-09-13T15:18:08Z Are drug detection dogs and mass-media campaigns likely to be effective policy responses to psychostimulant use and related harm? Results from an agent-based simulation model Dray, A. Perez, P. Moore, David Dietze, P. Bammer, G. Jenkinson, R. Siokou, Christine Green, Rachael Hudson, S. Maher, L. Passive-alert detection (PAD) dogs Drug-related harm Psychostimulants Australia Mass-media campaigns Agent-based modelling Background: Agent-based simulation models can be used to explore the impact of policy and practiceon drug use and related consequences. In a linked paper (Perez et al., 2011), we described SimAmph, an agent-based simulation model for exploring the use of psychostimulants and related harm amongst young Australians.Methods: In this paper, we use the model to simulate the impact of two policy scenarios on engagement in drug use and experience of drug-related harm: (i) the use of passive-alert detection (PAD) dogs by police at public venues and (ii) the introduction of a mass-media drug prevention campaign.Results: The findings of the first simulation suggest that only very high rates of detection by PAD dogsreduce the intensity of drug use, and that this decrease is driven mainly by a four-fold increase in negative health consequences as detection rates rise. In the second simulation, our modelling showed that the mass-media prevention campaign had little effect on the behaviour and experience of heavier drug users.However, it led to reductions in the prevalence of health-related conditions amongst moderate drug users and prevented them from becoming heavier users.Conclusion: Agent-based modelling has great potential as a tool for exploring the reciprocal relationships between environments and individuals, and for highlighting how intended changes in one domain of a system may produce unintended consequences in other domains. The exploration of these linkages is important in an environment as complex as the drug policy and intervention arena. 2012 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/28866 10.1016/j.drugpo.2011.05.018 Elsevier BV restricted |
| spellingShingle | Passive-alert detection (PAD) dogs Drug-related harm Psychostimulants Australia Mass-media campaigns Agent-based modelling Dray, A. Perez, P. Moore, David Dietze, P. Bammer, G. Jenkinson, R. Siokou, Christine Green, Rachael Hudson, S. Maher, L. Are drug detection dogs and mass-media campaigns likely to be effective policy responses to psychostimulant use and related harm? Results from an agent-based simulation model |
| title | Are drug detection dogs and mass-media campaigns likely to be effective policy responses to psychostimulant use and related harm? Results from an agent-based simulation model |
| title_full | Are drug detection dogs and mass-media campaigns likely to be effective policy responses to psychostimulant use and related harm? Results from an agent-based simulation model |
| title_fullStr | Are drug detection dogs and mass-media campaigns likely to be effective policy responses to psychostimulant use and related harm? Results from an agent-based simulation model |
| title_full_unstemmed | Are drug detection dogs and mass-media campaigns likely to be effective policy responses to psychostimulant use and related harm? Results from an agent-based simulation model |
| title_short | Are drug detection dogs and mass-media campaigns likely to be effective policy responses to psychostimulant use and related harm? Results from an agent-based simulation model |
| title_sort | are drug detection dogs and mass-media campaigns likely to be effective policy responses to psychostimulant use and related harm? results from an agent-based simulation model |
| topic | Passive-alert detection (PAD) dogs Drug-related harm Psychostimulants Australia Mass-media campaigns Agent-based modelling |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/28866 |