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IMAGES CONSORTIUM MEETING St Petersburg 25-28 April 2010

IMAGES CONSORTIUM MEETING St Petersburg 25-28 April 2010. Agenda of the concluding session: What Next ? What did we learn ? Publication plans ? Funding issues : after 2010? Further meetings ?. Why do we need a sociology of addiction ? What we have learned .

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IMAGES CONSORTIUM MEETING St Petersburg 25-28 April 2010

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  1. IMAGES CONSORTIUM MEETINGSt Petersburg 25-28 April 2010 Agenda of the concluding session: WhatNext? Whatdidwelearn? Publicationplans? Fundingissues: after 2010? Furthermeetings?

  2. Whydoweneed a sociology of addiction? Whatwehavelearned.

  3. Theories of Addiction • State of the art • Whydoesnotbrain science do the job? • Because the effects of culturalinteraction (Hacking) arereal(e.g. People die, go to prison, feel pain, defectbabies) because of them • Whydoesnotordinary social constructionism (labelling, social definitions of the problem ) do the job? • because the culturalinteractioneffects on the addicteddesireitselfarealsoreal • Whydoesnot the publichealthpoint of viewdo the job? • Becauseaddictionsarenotonly a policyissuebut a social phenomenon in a widersense

  4. Images and representations • the Moskowiciaproach • the Imagesapproach • Sulkunen, P. Between culture and nature: intoxication in cultural studies of alcohol and drug use. Contemporary Drug Problems 29, Summer 2002 24, 7/2002. • Sulkunen, P. & Rantala, V. : Is ProblemGambling Just a Big ProblemOrAlso an Addiction? Addiction Res. & Theory, submittedFeb 2010. •  arenotcontradictorybutcomplementary • imagesarenotrepresentations • representationsareoftenrelevant

  5. culture elaborated culture ”us”:subjects regression progression ”other”:non-subject ”other”: non-adult nature raw rotten nature Sulkunen, P.: Images of Addiction. Representations of Addictions in Films. Addiction Res. & Theory2007, Vol. 15 Issue 6, pp. 543-559.

  6. RepresentingPassionswithout a Name (Varpu) • A paradox • Historicity vs. production of cinematic ”effects” • The role of ”the mentalmoment” in production of effects on irresistibledesire, fear and disgust (the abject)

  7. Difference and equality (Irina et al.) • Focusgroups: substanceuse is part of identityconstruction • Agency: freewill! • Autonomy contra intimacy, esp. tobacco! • Sickness vs. ownresponsibility, espgambling & internet

  8. The ImagesTheory (Maija &…) • The imagery of ”learning”: agency, progress • (Endotactic) modalities and the issue of agency • A. Magicalskills to control the game • Attribution of logic • attribution of agency • B. How to controloneself • CONCLUSION: to be a goodplayerinvolves a competence (and a will)  addictedbehaviourinvolves a LEARNING process i.e. is a product of culture, whichdissipates in the addictionprocess • In the eyes of others • In the experience of the addict

  9. The ImagesTheoryctd.(…Matias & …) • Differentkinds of money • aredifferentvehicles of will, competence, ability and obligation • Chancegames • controllingone’sbudget • controllingchance and fate (magicalskills) • Skillgames • in the game • managing money •  CONCLUSION: the imaginarydimensions of the fascination of play are VERY diverse! But the samedissipation of theirculturalarticulationsaremostlikely to takeplace in the addictiveprocess

  10. The ImagesTheoryctd.(…& Virve) • The addict is the Other: • who is described as someonewhohaslost the modalqualitythatgivesmeaning to the activity • whichinvolves a loss of agency • Butitstill is a complicatedsemioticprocesswhichinvolvesalways a point of view

  11. Feartheory(Anja & Irina) • Familiarityreducesfear, in general (immigrants, religion, ethnicity, etc. ) • Legal OR media attentionincreasesfear to the extentthatpersonalexperienceincreasesrahterthandecreasesfear • Olderpeople and womenseesubstanceuse as a threat • Professionalslessopitmisticthanlayabouthealing in RU!!!

  12. Feartheory (Kari) • Twofactormodel: • A threats to security; • B social equality. Alladdictionsbelong to A! Sotheyarefrightening, ratherthanpublichealthissues This is whyaddictionprobemsarenotaboutrationalplanningbutimaginaryimages; theyarethereforesensitive to imaginary ”facts”, politicalconjunctures etc. Note: Balticastudyby J Simpura. Thereareothersurvey-basedstudies on rankorders of social problems (ask Olli Kangas)

  13. Help Theory • Finnsareafraid of substances • bothlay and professionalsdoubt help and self-help in the case of alcohol, opiates, prescriptiondrugs and amphetaminesbutnottobacco • Compulsorytreatmentmoreacceptable and number of dontknowanswerswashigheramonglaythanprof • Ignoranceincreasesstress of treatmentmotivation and compulsorytreatment? • Urgency (motivation + compulsory) is associatedwith the factthataddictionsarefelt to be a threat to security • Laypeoplethinkthatprofessionalsshouldbe in charge, notthemselves (whoarevictims) • OBS! The abovepointstowards the victimstheory, whichagaincouplesitwith the contradictionbetweenautonomy and intimacy

  14. Help theorycontd. • In Ruprofessionalsare in favour of isolation of addicts, morestrictthanlaypersons

  15. SicknessTheory (Laurence) • Heroine, cocaine, cocaineareconsidereddangerous; othersconsiderablyless • Stillfewpeoplebelievethatdrugfreesociety is possible • Stereotypes: heroine usersaresick, lackwill and havefamilyproblems, have no place in society, areparasite, aredangerous • Insecurity is the mostimportantproblem (49%); poverty 33.6%, unemployment 32% •  evenstronglymedicalisedview of addictionsdoesnoteliminate the threattheypresent to society (cf. contagiousdiseases)

  16. The Materialist Tradition (Arto) • ”medicalisation” in the Illich/Foucaultsensedoesnotapply to early 19th c approach to alcohol • ”alcoholism” as an enititydoesnotapplyeither: causativeloss of reason, a. in the etiology of differentailments, alcohol as part of materia medica • Empirical science of mansince the mid 18th c.: holism, mind&body, medicinepushed into society (?), typologies of humans

  17. The Materialist Tradition contd. • Symptomatology, etiology, sense of history (civilizationcritique, alcoholhistoricized, • Trotter: drunkenness a disease, causingotherdiseases and a disease of the mind • Huss: availability, beliefs and customs, moralcorruption; acquireddesire; physicalailments; therepeuticpessimism; ”alcoholpolicy” • clinics, specialisedinstitutions, heredity, badnature, laboratorychemistry (cf. interest in the liver)

  18. The InstitutionalTheory: ClinicalGaze in France and Finland (Michael) • Minorquantitativedifferencesbetween FR and FI • Cleardifference in emphasis in whatGPssay: alcoholic as apatientvs social problem • Peer help vsprofessionalmedical help • Work, friends, family as ”therapy” vs. Medical help • the psychiatricblack box for both • Abstinence: no pronounceddifferences •  longuedurée?

  19. The MedicalAmbivalence (Chantal) • The patients’ suffering: medicalethicsconcerning the GP’srole • Debate on whetherwecando, butnotwhetherweshould • PolicyopinionsareoftenHussian: availabilitytheory, • Involuntarytreatment/tutelage is a real option • Help for helpers! Training, specialists, institutions, the Police, the Legislator, Associations

  20. The GenderAspect (Chantal) • Danger, clearawareness of the genderedconsequences of alcoholism • Whataboutotheraddictions?

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