A Social Metamorphosis: Constructing Drug Addicts From the Poor

Abstract

The worthiness of welfare recipients has long been questioned. However, their stereotypic depictions have changed throughout the decades. In 1996, The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) authorized drug testing welfare recipients and denial of benefits for testing positive. The subsequent proliferation of drug testing policy proposals in states across the United States raises questions regarding the portrayal of the drug testing target population. We examined state legislators’ public discourse, proponent and opponent, in the welfare drug testing debate, to assess the social construction of welfare recipients. Proponent discursive statements outnumbered opponent statements nearly 5:1. Proponent discourse was overtly derogatory toward and disparaging of welfare recipients. Opponent discourse was generally more sympathetic and supportive of the target population. However, not all opponents were against welfare drug testing in principle or practice. The analysis demonstrates a strong negative construction of welfare recipients as deviants, and indeed as drug abusers.

Notes

¹States included in this analysis are: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Main, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

²We would like to thank one of our reviewers for this idea and language, and for suggesting the concept of “creeping undeservedness.”

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Kalynn Amundson

Kalynn Amundson is an Associate Professor of Sociology at Labette Community College. She received her PhD in Public Policy from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville in 2015. Her research interests include social welfare policy, the social construction of target populations, intersectional analysis, and critical discourse analysis.

Anna M. Zajicek

Anna M. Zajicek is Professor of Sociology and Chair of the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice at the University of Arkansas. Her scholarship has been devoted to the intersectional nature of social inequalities, the social construction of target populations, institutional change, and gendered organizations. Her current publications focus on intersectional inequalities and social polices, gendered organizations, and contradictions in institutional transformation initiatives. Recently, she has been involved in research projects examining successful strategies to institutionalize programs and policies aimed at the advancement of underrepresented groups in STEM disciplines. E-mail: [email protected]

Brinck Kerr

Brinck Kerr is Professor of Political Science and Director of the Public Policy PhD program at the University of Arkansas. His research focuses on representation, employment policy, and education policy. His work has appeared in many public administration and political science journals.