Blackman Shane, Bradley Rick
School of Media, Art and Design, Canterbury Christ Church University, Kent CT1 1QU, UK.
Addaction Ltd, 67-69 Cowcross Street, EC1M 6PU London, UK.
Int J Drug Policy. 2017 Feb;40:70-77. doi: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2016.10.015. Epub 2016 Nov 25.
The aim of this paper will be to consider the rise and subsequent fall in NPS use at national and local level with a focus on synthetic cannabinoid products in Kent. We will examine the local practice and policy responses by Kent's Young Persons' Drug and Alcohol Service towards a possible change in patterns of NPS drug consumption. The county has seen an expansion in the number of Headshops and we present local media coverage on NPS, and the Trading Standards and Kent Police intervention Operation Lantern to regulate Headshops. Through quantitative and qualitative data sets on socially vulnerable young people and prison populations we explore young adults' perception of pleasure and harm in the use of NPS. Emergent data suggests young adults are now assessing the differences between NPS and more traditional illicit drugs, with this impacting on decision-making about the substances being used. When 'legal highs' first appeared they were associated with a more niche middle class demographic, 'psychonauts' and experimental users interested in pursuing recreational drug diversity. We examine macro and micro data to suggest that populations most likely to become involved in NPS use are those with degrees of stigma linked to socially vulnerable young adults suggesting that Spice is no longer a feature of middle class recreational drug use.
本文旨在探讨全国和地方层面新型毒品（NPS）使用量的上升及随后的下降情况，重点关注肯特郡的合成大麻素产品。我们将研究肯特郡青少年毒品和酒精服务机构针对NPS药物消费模式可能发生的变化所采取的地方实践和政策应对措施。该郡的烟具店数量有所增加，我们将展示当地媒体对NPS的报道，以及贸易标准局和肯特警方为监管烟具店而开展的“灯笼行动”。通过关于社会弱势群体和监狱人口的定量和定性数据集，我们探讨了年轻人对使用NPS的愉悦感和危害的认知。新出现的数据表明，年轻人现在正在评估NPS与更传统非法药物之间的差异，这影响了他们对所使用物质的决策。“合法兴奋剂”首次出现时，与更小众的中产阶级人群、“心理onauts”以及对追求娱乐性药物多样性感兴趣的实验性使用者有关。我们研究宏观和微观数据，以表明最有可能参与使用NPS的人群是那些与社会弱势群体相关联、带有一定污名化程度的年轻人，这表明“香料”不再是中产阶级娱乐性药物使用的特征。
