Producing the “Problem” of Addiction in Drug Treatment
In this article, we argue that the “problem” of addiction emerges as an effect of treatment policy and practice as well as a precursor to it. We draw on the work of Marrati to analyze interviews with policy makers and practitioners in Australia. The interviews suggest that the episode-of-care system...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
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Sage Publications, Inc
2013
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/5850 |
| _version_ | 1848744911089696768 |
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| author | Moore, David Fraser, Suzanne |
| author_facet | Moore, David Fraser, Suzanne |
| author_sort | Moore, David |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | In this article, we argue that the “problem” of addiction emerges as an effect of treatment policy and practice as well as a precursor to it. We draw on the work of Marrati to analyze interviews with policy makers and practitioners in Australia. The interviews suggest that the episode-of-care system governing service activity, outcomes, and funding relies on certain notions of addiction and treatment that compel service providers to designate service users as addicts to receive funding. This has a range of effects, not least that in acquiring the labels of “addict”, service users enter into bureaucratic and epidemiological systems aimed at quantifying addiction. Rather than treating pre-existing addicts, the system produces “addicts” as an effect of policy imperatives. Because addiction comes to be produced by the very system designed to treat it, the scale of the problem appears to be growing rather than shrinking. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T06:08:59Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-5850 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T06:08:59Z |
| publishDate | 2013 |
| publisher | Sage Publications, Inc |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-58502017-09-13T14:39:53Z Producing the “Problem” of Addiction in Drug Treatment Moore, David Fraser, Suzanne health policy / policy analysis health care sociology interviews addiction / substance use In this article, we argue that the “problem” of addiction emerges as an effect of treatment policy and practice as well as a precursor to it. We draw on the work of Marrati to analyze interviews with policy makers and practitioners in Australia. The interviews suggest that the episode-of-care system governing service activity, outcomes, and funding relies on certain notions of addiction and treatment that compel service providers to designate service users as addicts to receive funding. This has a range of effects, not least that in acquiring the labels of “addict”, service users enter into bureaucratic and epidemiological systems aimed at quantifying addiction. Rather than treating pre-existing addicts, the system produces “addicts” as an effect of policy imperatives. Because addiction comes to be produced by the very system designed to treat it, the scale of the problem appears to be growing rather than shrinking. 2013 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/5850 10.1177/1049732313487027 Sage Publications, Inc restricted |
| spellingShingle | health policy / policy analysis health care sociology interviews addiction / substance use Moore, David Fraser, Suzanne Producing the “Problem” of Addiction in Drug Treatment |
| title | Producing the “Problem” of Addiction in Drug Treatment |
| title_full | Producing the “Problem” of Addiction in Drug Treatment |
| title_fullStr | Producing the “Problem” of Addiction in Drug Treatment |
| title_full_unstemmed | Producing the “Problem” of Addiction in Drug Treatment |
| title_short | Producing the “Problem” of Addiction in Drug Treatment |
| title_sort | producing the “problem” of addiction in drug treatment |
| topic | health policy / policy analysis health care sociology interviews addiction / substance use |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/5850 |