Real Drugs in a Virtual World: Drug Discourse and Community Online

by Edward Murguia, Melissa Tackett-Gibson, Ann Lessem, Azzurra Crispino, Sarah N. Gatson

Overview

Drug Abuse (NIDA) funded research project on drug information and online drug-related communities. The editors of this pivotal text, Edward Murguia, Ann Lessem, and Melissa Tackett-Gibson, elevate the debate about drug use and the Internet from a polemic discourse to social scientific investigation. The essays confront issues related to the study of drug communication online, including the causal factors of abuse as discussed in online forums, the relationship between music and drug use in virtual communities, and the ways in which individuals assess the accuracy of online drug information. This book highlights the variety of ways to examine drug use as a social problem and presents several theoretical perspectives valuable to online research. Real Drugs in a Virtual World is an enlightening and thought provoking read that will appeal to sociology students and those interested in virtual communities.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780739114551
Publisher:	Lexington Books
Publication date:	02/09/2007
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	246
Product dimensions:	6.03(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.76(d)

About the Author

Edward Murguia is associate professor of sociology at Texas A&M University. Ann Lessem is assistant research scientist at the Public Policy Research Institute at Texas A&M University. Melissa Tackett-Gibson is assistant research scientist at the Public Policy Research Institute at Texas A&M University.

Table of Contents

Part 1 Part One: Other Studies
Chapter 2 Club Drugs, Online Communities, and Harm Reduction Websites on the Internet
Part 3 Part Two: A Study in Online Community
Chapter 4 The Body or the Body Politic: Risk, Harm, Moral Panic and Drug Use Discourse Online
Chapter 5 The New Drugs Internet Survey: A Portrait of Respondents
Part 6 Part Three: Online Narratives of Use
Chapter 7 Causal Factors in Drug Use: A Phenomenological Approach Based on Internet Data
Chapter 8 Voluntary Use, Risk, and Online Drug Use Discourse
Chapter 9 Deterrence of Harm to Self: A Study of Online Rhetoric
Part 10 Part Four: The Internet, Knowledge, and Offline Experienced
Chapter 11 Assessing the Likelihood of Internet Information-Seeking Leading to Offline Drug Use by Youth
Chapter 12 Scripters and Freaks: Knowledge and Use of Prescription Stimulants Online
Chapter 13 Illegal Behavior and Legal Speech: Internet Communities' Discourse about Drug Use
Part 14 Part Five: Music, Drugs, and Online Subcultures
Chapter 15 Music as a Feature of the Online Discussion of Illegal Drugs
Chapter 16 The Never-Ending Conversation: A Case Study of Rave-Related Internet Conversation and Drug Use
Chapter 17 Using Popular Music to Interpret the Drug Experience
Part 18 Part Six: Conclusion
Chapter 19 A Review of Internet Studies in this Volume, an Examination of Root Causes of Drug Abuse from a Societal Point of View, and Some Possible Solutions

Editorial Reviews

Murguia, Tucker-Gibson and Lessum apply cutting-edge cyber ethnographic methods towards an understanding of new patterns of drug use, acquisition and community in the Twenty-First Century. A must read for those interested in how access and use of online internet technologies shape social and personal life and influence the social construction of reality among these emerging drug subcultures.

Avelardo Valdez

Online drug information websites, listservs and chat rooms all play a crucial role in how young people obtain and share knowledge and experience about illicit drugs. Until now few researchers have focused on this topic. Murguia, Tackett-Gibson and Lessem's book, Real drugs in a Virtual World, opens up this new area of research. The essays explore not only the role of the internet in providing information on illicit drugs but also the range and variety of topics discussed by the young people themselves. The publication of this book will hopefully encourage other drug researchers to focus more specifically on the role of the Internet in the world of illicit drugs.

Geoffrey Hunt

Online drug information websites, listservs and chat rooms all play a crucial role in how young people obtain and share knowledge and experience about illicit drugs. Until now few researchers have focused on this topic. Murguia, Tackett-Gibson and Lessem's book, Real drugs in a Virtual World, opens up this new area of research. The essays explore not only the role of the internet in providing information on illicit drugs but also the range and variety of topics discussed by the young people themselves. The publication of this book will hopefully encourage other drug researchers to focus more specifically on the role of the Internet in the world of illicit drugs.--Geoffrey Hunt, Senior Scientist, Institute for Scientific Analysis

Murguia, Tucker-Gibson and Lessum apply cutting-edge cyber ethnographic methods towards an understanding of new patterns of drug use, acquisition and community in the Twenty-First Century. A must read for those interested in how access and use of online internet technologies shape social and personal life and influence the social construction of reality among these emerging drug subcultures.--Avelardo Valdez, professor of social work, University of Houston

From the Publisher