Preface and Acknowledgments
About the Editors
About the Contributors
Matrix of Articles Cross-Referenced by Drug

Part I: Perspectives on Drug Use
History and Theory
Drug Scares and Moral Panics

Part II: Social Correlates of Drug Use
Race/Ethnicity
Social Class
Gender
Youth and Aging

Part III: Drug Lifestyles
Managing Drug Use
The Economics of Drugs
Crime and Violence

Part IV: Societal Response to Drug Use
Education
Treatment
Policy

Drugs and the American Dream contains some of the most compelling observations I have read on the drug scene in America. This anthology contains those classic studies that continue to stand the test of time in their reflection on the dynamics of drug use; also included here is exciting new research that pushes the boundaries of our understanding of drug use in American society. The editors have tapped some of the most readable research in the drug field, conducted and written by the most skilled ethnographers and seasoned observers of the drug scene.

Charles Faupel, Auburn University


This comprehensive volume offers some of the most compelling arguments about our toxicmanic culture ever assembled. The impressive scope and clarity of the material offers the reading public both lay and academic an exceptionally valuable resource. As one would expect from a work assembled by Patricia and Peter Adler along with colleague Patrick O'Brian, , this comprehensive thesaurus of sociological, anthropological and medical knowledge offers a wide range of superb contributors who makes this a reference work particularly relevant to students, scholars, policy makers and general public. This is not only an excellent volume of research on drugs but also brings possibly the best assemblage of noted experts on the subject. This array of social scientists together captures successfully the quality and quantity of research in the field and is an Invitation for all who read this remarkable text to engage the social sciences in an exciting and educational way.

Terry Williams, The New School

Adler, Adler and O'Brien have constructed an exciting anthology on the sociological aspects of drug use and abuse. This text assembles some of the most important readings on drug use by those involved in the craft of the sociological study of drugs. The rich, descriptive works anthologized in this reader range from classic, foundational articles on substance use to incisive, contemporary work on recent drug trends. Collectively, this anthology provides a critical and comprehensive assessment of the social dimensions of drug use. I applaud Adler, Adler, & O'Brien for developing a reader with both significant pedagogical value for the classroom and practical utility as a reference tool in scholarly work.


Brian C Kelly, Purdue University

Patricia A. Adler is Professor of Sociology at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Her areas of interest are deviant behavior, social psychology, and qualitative methods. Her classic book, Wheeling and Dealing (1993), was one of the first explorations of upper-level drug dealers and smugglers.

Peter Adler is Professor of Sociology at the University of Denver. His areas of interest are sociology of drugs, sociology of sport, and symbolic interactionism. Along with Patricia, he has written many books, including Backboards & Blackboards (1991), Peer Power (1998), Paradise Laborers (2004), and The Tender Cut (2011).

Together, the Adlers were honored with the 2010 George Herbert Mead Award for Lifetime Achievement by the Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction.

Patrick K. O'Brien is a doctoral candidatein Sociology at the University of Colorado, Boulder. In 2010, O'Brien won the Outstanding Graduate Student Paper from the Drinking and Drugs Division of the Society for the Study of Social Problems.

P. A. Adler, University of Colorado, Boulder, USA; P. Adler, University of Denver, USA; P. K. O'Brien, University of Colorado, Boulder, USA