Lay Perceptions and Beliefs About the Adulteration of Illicit Drugs in the 1990s - A Student Sample

Abstract

Much has been speculated but little is actually known about lay perceptions and beliefs about the adulteration of illicit drugs. This research, using a convenience sample of 248 university students in South East London, sought to explore just what it is that illicit drugs are thought to contain, the rationales for why they are thought to contain other substances and how people come to obtain their particular world view on the issue. It was found that the vast majority (over 90%) of respondents believed that street drugs were adulterated or diluted with dangerous substances such as rat-poison, domestic scouring powders such as Vim and Ajax, and/or other dangerous drugs (e.g. heroin in ecstasy). Significantly, this is in direct contradiction to current forensic and other evidence as were most of the other prominent beliefs that they reported. Other beliefs investigated related to why the respondents believed what they did, what rationale they attributed to the cutting of drugs and when and by whom they thought the “cutting” of drugs took place.

Key Words:

• Adulterants
• cutting-agents
• lay beliefs
• public opinion