California State University, Chico

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND COMMUNITY SERVICES

HCSV 370-02, Drugs In Our Society (2792) TR 3:30-4:45 p.m. Spring 2007

PLMS 201

Instructor: Dr. Roland Lamarine

Office Hours: TR 9:30-11:00 a.m., 1:00-2:00 p.m.

Office: Butte 623 Phone: 898-6265 Email: rlamarine@csuchico.edu

Course Description

This course examines the use and abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs and consequences for young adults, families, and society. Historical, economic, social, political, psychological, and pharmacological determinants of drug use are considered. Decision-making skills regarding drug use are also addressed.

HCSV 170 fulfills the requirements of the General Education Upper Division Theme, Contemporary Health Issues, Area D. You must have already completed 45 units in order for this course to count towards the theme. This course has a 1500 word, writing requirement, which is discussed below. All the courses in this theme, including this one:

· address concepts of well being, health, and disease;

· focus attention on how class, ethnicity, and gender affect health;

· teach methods for distinguishing hearsay from valid information;

· develop knowledge and skills for making effective decisions that enhance health and facilitate understanding of public policy; and

· address the impact of biology, ethics, morality, politics, economics, and culture on health, health care, and health policy.

Required Textbook:

Levinthal, C.F., (2005). Drugs, behavior, and modern society. (4th ed.) Boston: Allyn & Bacon. {any edition can be used for this class}

Course Objectives:

The student will be able to:

1. outline the history of drug use in the United States.
2. discuss the extent of use of licit and illicit drugs within various populations in the United States
3. outline the cultural influences, including family, peers, and media, on the use of selected drugs.
4. describe the nature and characteristics of dependence and addiction.
5. list the major drug classifications and their physiological effects
6. discuss the social, economic, political, psychological, and pharmacological consequences of drug misuse on U.S. society.
7. evaluate current efforts to control drug use and suggest alternative approaches.
8. discuss the physiological, social, and treatment aspect of alcohol and tobacco use.
9. list the major illicit drugs, their prevalence, physiological effects, and treatment strategies.
10. discuss the effects of maternal drug use on the fetus.
11. outline the political and legal ramifications of the use of alcohol and illicit drugs including possession, workplace testing, DUI, and alcohol policies.
12. discuss the political and legal ramifications of tobacco use, including location, restrictions, subsidies, lobbies, and government intervention.
13. discuss the major types of prescription and over-the-counter drugs, their use and misuse, the effects of medical advertising, and regulation.
14. develop decision-making skills regarding personal alcohol, tobacco and other drug use, abstinence, responsible practices, alternative activities, and positive uses of drugs.

Student Responsibilities

1. Attend class regularly, class participation enhances learning. Attendance will be taken. Good attendance will be considered in the determination of a final grade.
2. Three in-class examinations, which may include both objective (multiple choice, true false) and subjective (essay) items.
3. A two page reaction paper typed and double spaced. Late papers will not be accepted. In addition to content, papers will be graded on organization, style, grammar, spelling, punctuation, and neatness. OR
4. A two page Reflection Paper, typed and double-spaced.
5. A two page paper describing a behavioral change made during the course of the semester, typed and double-spaced.
6. Participation in CSUC’s “Fun Without Alcohol Fair.”

Evaluation

Three exams 300 points

Two papers 100 points

Participation in Fair 50 points

450 points total

Final grades will be assigned on the following basis:

93-100% = A 73-76% = C

90-92% = A- 70-72% = C-

87-89% = B+ 66-69% = D+

83-86% = B 60-65% = D

80-82% = B- <60% = F

77-79% = C+

Note that CSUC official grading policy defines an “A” as “superior work: a level of achievement so outstanding that it is normally attained by relatively few students.”

Dates to Remember

Reaction/Reflection paper: Thursday, February 8

Test #1: Thursday, March 1

Test #2: Thursday, April 12

Behavior Paper: Thursday, April 26

Test #3: Thursday, May 17, 2:00-3:00 p.m.

Course Outline

Unit 1: Introduction/Drug Use: An epidemiological perspective

Levinthal: Chapter 1

Unit 2: Distribution, history, and politics of drug use

Levinthal: Chapter 2

Unit 3: Social, economic, and psychological determinants

No readings

Unit 4: Pharmacology

Levinthal: Chapter 3

Unit 5: Treatment

Levinthal: Chapter 17

Test 1

Unit 6: Alcohol

Levinthal: Chapters 9, 10

Unit 7: Sedative hypnotics

Levinthal: Chapters 15, 16

Unit 8: Opiate narcotics

Levinthal: Chapter 5

Unit 9: Stimulants

Levinthal: Chapters 4, 12

Unit 10: Tobacco

Levinthal: Chapter11

Test 2

Unit 11: Marijuana

Levinthal: Chapter 7

Unit 12: Psychedelics and related drugs

Levinthal: Chapter 6

Unit 13: Inhalants and ergogenic aids (steroids)

Levinthal: Chapters 8, 13

Unit 14: Prevention/Education

Levinthal: Chapter 18

Unit 15: Over-the-counter products

Levinthal: Chapter 14

Test 3

Reaction Papers

A two page reaction paper is a requirement for this course. The paper should address a substance‑specific topic. General guidelines for these papers follow:

1. Define the topic; what are the facts related to this issue? Present data from scientifically valid sources i.e. professional journals and textbooks.

2. Describe your position on this issue. What scientific evidence is there to support your position?

3. Papers should be typed, double‑spaced, appropriately referenced, and in a consistent style. They will be graded on the basis of content, organization, style, grammar, spelling, punctuation, and neatness.

4. This is an opportunity to take an in‑depth look at a topic not addressed in detail during class. Personal experiences are welcomed and will be held in confidence. They should be interpreted in light of theory and evidence gathered from readings, interviews, lecture, and other scholarly sources. Be sure to include a list of references at the end of the paper.

5. Acceptable topics include a wide range of subjects. Some examples of past topics include:

History or pharmacology of various drugs

Pharmacology of various drugs e.g. Paxil, Viagra,

Drugs and culture e.g. Native American Church;

Drug treatment or prevention programs

Legal, psychological or social determinants of drug use

Epidemiology of drug use e.g. who's using what

Prescription drugs and medical ethics

Ergogenics e.g. do any of the over-the-counter

bodybuilding drugs work? Are they safe?

Nutritional/sports supplements: complete a critical

analysis of the ingredients in one supplement

Interviews with professionals in the field

Reviews of drug books, articles, talks

Behavior Change Paper

Select an activity that you find difficult to stop doing. You must agree to forego this activity for at least a week, but preferably a month. Some examples of activities that you might select include:

Excessive use of sweets in your diet

Meat & other animal products

Stop seeing or talking with a close friend

Discontinue close contact (kissing/touching) with a loved one

Not use telephone

Not use motor vehicle

Not use television, radio, or computer (e.g. video games)

Caffeine, alcohol, tobacco, marijuana or any other psychoactive drug

Pornography

Gambling

Chewing gum or finger nails

Sleeping excessively

Keep a diary of your behavior and feelings during the experiment to help you write your paper. You may wish to record your experiences on a cassette.

Guidelines for writing your paper

1. Did you succeed in refraining from your activities for the entire period of time? If not, how soon did you give in? If you failed, how did it make you feel? If you succeeded, how did you feel?
2. What did not doing the activity feel like?
3. Did your relationships with other people change?
4. Did talking or being with other students who were also undergoing behavioral changes help your resist the temptation to give up?
5. Did other people change their behavior, attitudes, or feelings toward you as a result of the experiment? If so, how did you feel or react to these changes?
6. Did you start doing things that you do not usually do, such as forgetting things, becoming less observant, overeating, or developing physical symptoms such as headaches, stomach aches, tics, loss of appetite, insomnia, or unusual fatigue?
7. Did your other activities change at all? Did you compensate for the lack of your “forbidden” activity by participating more in some other pursuit? Did the substitute activity help take your mind off the thing you wanted to do? Did your efforts at compensation affect any of the people around you?
8. Were you confronted with an opportunity to lapse and did your will power diminish in the presence of the forbidden activity or object? Were other people considerate in not mentioning the activity or substance or were they helpful in suggesting a substitute?
9. Did you go out of your way to avoid the activity, substance, or things that might remind you of it? Did your avoidance behavior help reduce your craving?
10. Did you cheat at all? If so, did you try to engage in your activity just a little and find you could not resist resuming it completely? Did you bother to hide your lapses from other people? If so, did anyone catch you cheating? How did they react? How did you feel about being discovered?
11. When you finally did go back (or did you?) to the activity, how did it feel? Did you try to “make up for lost time?”
12. Were your actions and feelings at all similar to an alcoholic, drug addict, cigarette smoker, compulsive eater, or other addicted person? How were your experiences different from those of truly addicted people? How did this exercise make you feel about addicted people? Did you feel the same way about alcoholics or drug addicts as you did about yourself during the experiment? Did you gain any new insights into what it feels like to have an addiction and how addicted people can best be helped to overcome their dependency? Were you able to identify any compulsive behaviors of your own and gain a better understanding of how to evaluate and cope with them?

Please write a maximum of two pages, typed, and double-spaced. The guidelines above are intended to serve as a general outline for your paper but it is not necessary to address each point, only those that are relevant to your experience. Feel free to support your position with documentation from the professional literature.

Adapted from “Empathizing With Addicts” by Peter Finn, pp. 78-79, Teaching Ideas, Association for the Advancement of Health Education.

Fun Without Alcohol Fair

The Project Manager of the Campus Alcohol and Drug Education Center (CADEC) will be directing this year’s “Fun Without Alcohol Fair” scheduled for a Thursday (date will be announced in class). Since prevention of alcohol abuse is one of the objectives of this course, student participation in the Fair is a class requirement. You are to report to the CADEC contact person for a two-hour (longer if you wish) assignment related to the Fair. A CADEC representative will describe the organizational needs for the Fair during one of our classes (TBA). If you are unable to participate in the Fair, an alternate task will be assigned to you. It is your responsibility to make arrangements ahead of time with CADEC, phone 898-6450. This project will be graded on a credit/no credit basis and is worth 50 points.

Reflection Paper

Select ONE of the following topics for your two page paper:

1. Many drugs have been considered to be aphrodisiacs-substances that “arouse or increase sexual desire or potency.” Whether or not this is true, there is credible evidence which suggests the opposite may be true. For example, in the case of alcohol as Shakespeare said “it arouses the desire but takes away the ability”. Of course today, we have pharmaceutical agents such as Viagra, Levitra, and Cialis which specifically affect male sexual potency. What have been your experiences, good or bad, with drugs and sex?

2. Find an article in a newspaper or magazine relating to some form of licit or illicit drug-taking behavior. Describe your reactions to the article on the impact the article might have in your life. Some examples, include reports of new recreational drugs that are ordinarily used medicinally (Ritalin, Adderall, Oxycontin), steroids and other performance enhancing drugs in sports, or economic issues related to prescription drugs among the elderly.

N.B. To improve your chances of getting a good grade on this and subsequent assignments, be sure to edit your work carefully for grammar, spelling, and especially diction. Also, it is important to supplement your own observations and insights with references from the professional literature, refereed journals and scholarly books. Caveat emptor.