Silent struggles: family dynamics and drug abuse reporting under harsh laws and stigmatizing perceptions

Under Vietnam’s stringent drug laws and prevailing negative societal attitudes toward drug users, families face challenges in reporting members dealing with drug abuse. Such underreporting poses critical challenges, including a distorted understanding of the true extent of drug abuse, hindering targ...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Thao Trang, Ngo Hoang (Author) ; Thuy, Truong Dang (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Published: 2024
In: Deviant behavior
Year: 2024, Volume: 45, Issue: 12, Pages: 1743-1758
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Keywords:
Drogenmissbrauch
Stigmatisierung
Familie
Kriminologie
Vietnam
Description
Summary:Under Vietnam’s stringent drug laws and prevailing negative societal attitudes toward drug users, families face challenges in reporting members dealing with drug abuse. Such underreporting poses critical challenges, including a distorted understanding of the true extent of drug abuse, hindering targeted interventions and resulting in individuals being inaccessible to vital treatment and assistance. This study focuses on the shifting family structures in rural Vietnam, particularly the transition from extended to nuclear families. While prior research indicates higher drug abuse prevalence in nuclear families, reporting dynamics present a different narrative. Analyzing data from 1,772 rural communes using a Heckman selection model, we find that increasing nuclear families correlates with a lower probability of reporting drug abuse and fewer reported drug users. This finding suggests that communities with more nuclear families may harbor a greater prevalence of unreported drug users, posing significant policy challenges. Addressing underreporting becomes crucial for informed interventions combating drug abuse in evolving rural contexts.
Item Description:Literaturverzeichnis: Seite 1755-1758
ISSN:1521-0456
DOI:10.1080/01639625.2024.2324111