The ‘Normalisation Thesis’ was outlined by Parker et al. (1995), which argued that, ‘for many young people, taking drugs has become the norm.’ It was predicted that ‘over the next few years, non-drug trying adolescents will be a minority group.’ Measham et al. (1994) agrees with what Parker et al. (1995) predicts in the normalisation thesis. ‘There is evidence to suggest that young people today are more likely to experiment with drugs than they were a decade ago.’ (Measham et al. 1994).
Young (1971) found that cannabis has become more common within this culture, i.e. (the conformist youth culture) since the 1980’s. He explained that there was a growth in the use of ecstasy also in the 1990’s. Parker and Measham (1994) found that almost a half of 16 year olds in Manchester in 1992 were reported to have used an illegal drug, generally cannabis, and just under three quarters had been in situations where drugs were available and on offer. This shows that drugs are easier to find and buy and so are more normalised within the society and youth culture. Findings from the 2001/2002 British Crime Survey on prevalence of drug use shows that ease of access to drugs is closely tied to patterns of use. Of all 16-24 year olds, cannabis was reported to be the easiest of drugs to obtain followed by ecstasy, amphetamines and then cocaine.
Brannen et al. found that a lot more youths who attend private schools had been offered drugs than those in state schools, and nearly a third of 16 year olds educated there reported taking cannabis. Therefore, this suggests that perhaps drug taking is a social act more popular with the wealthier youths, as drugs are fairly expensive. This is especially so for the harder drugs, e.g. heroin and cocaine. These are expensive drug habits to feed once addicted, and it was found that they were in fact more widely used in private schools.
Parker et al. (1995) argued that youth in the 1990’s grew up in and with a new level of drug availability. Whether or not they became drug users is their decision, yet it is a decision based on peer group pressures also. The media plays a large part in drug use among youths. As Blackman (1996) states, ‘Consumer capitalism plays a central role in the marketing of drug referenced products as part of young peoples leisure and lifestyle.’ Images within youth culture are drug influenced; for example, many rap songs contain lyrics about drugs. Films also have drug story lines, e.g. Basketball Diaries, where the main character is a heroin addict. Some clothes labels also promote drug use, e.g. jeans and t-shirts with logos of men smoking marijuana etc. Even if individuals do not choose to use the drugs widely available, we live in a ‘cultural, media and consumption environment saturated by references to and images of drugs, as well as explicit and implicit connections between drugs and various other consumption items.’ Furthermore, pop icons have spoken openly about their own drug taking, which encourages young people to try it also. Examples include, Harvey, band member of East 17 talking about his ecstasy taking. Another example is Noel Gallagher from Oasis who said that drugs are ‘normal,’ with a journalist for the evening standard agreeing. Daniella Westbrook spoke about her cocaine addiction after her nose was damaged as a result of snorting the drug. It has been argued that pop idols should never say these things about drugs as it encourages young people to think drugs are normal and ok. Modern day thinking is different to that of society in the 1980’s etc. From 1979 to present day, it has been found that there were changing patterns of drug use and changes in response to it.
At the start of the 1980’s, Margaret Thatcher was in political power in the United Kingdom. During the early 1980’s heroin use grew, which meant HIV and AIDS also increased. Use of recreational drugs increased by a large number of young people, and some may argue that this was a result of the growth in popularity of dance and rave music.
It could be argued that the arrival of the rave scene in the late 1980’s was the watershed whereby drugs moved from subculture status to become part of mainstream youth culture. In recent years, pre-teenage children are also starting to experiment with illegal drugs, (Boreham and Shaw, 2001). For example, research by McKeganey and Norrie found that more than 1 in 10 (11.2%) of 930 11-12 year olds from Scotland reported taking dome form of drug. However, it does not seem as though these young children see drug use as a ‘normal’ part of life, because when asked what they thought about illegal drugs, most replied negatively with a common answer that, ‘they are all bad,’
Shiner and Newburn (1996) disagree with Parker et al’s (1995) claim that drug use has become normalised amongst young people. A study was conducted in the London Borough of Newham, the most deprived local authority in the country according to the 1991 census (Willmott 1994). Fifty-two young people were interviewed, namely 15-16 year olds, but a quarter were 11-14 years old. Fifteen of the fifty-two respondents said that they had taken illegal drugs/solvents at some time. The breadth of views about drugs expressed by young people in the study challenged claims that drug use is becoming normalised.
Self-report findings of peer norms proved to be highly reliable and were able to predict drug behaviours correctly. It was found that there was little encouragement of drug use and objection to use of drugs other than marijuana. Furthermore, it was found that women and men have different peer norms, i.e. men are more likely to report drug use than women. This shows evidence that perhaps drug use has not become normalised among youths. It is important to mention that there are different norms for cannabis/marijuana to harder drugs like cocaine, so it is difficult and inaccurate to generalise by saying that ‘drug use has become normalised amongst youth.’
Shiner and Newburn (1997, 1999) believe that the normalisation thesis exaggerates the extent of drug use by young people, and over simplifies the ways in which young people perceive drug use. In addition, the claim that ‘drug taking by young people has become normalised simplifies the choices that young people make about drug use.’ Finally, Shiner and Newburn (1997, 1999) argue that the normalisation thesis ‘pays inadequate attention to the normative context of behaviour.’ Generally, young people do view drug use as a problematic activity. Their views on drug use are similar to that of non-users.
To conclude, this essay has argued both for and against for the ‘normalisation of drug use among youth today.’ Based on all this evidence, studies etc, found, it can be concluded that drug use has become normalised among young people, although not for all drugs. It is clear that cannabis is increasing in popularity especially among youths, yet drugs like cocaine are far from being ‘normalised.’
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