Review
- The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia
- Received 23 February 2016, Revised 6 April 2016, Accepted 11 April 2016, Available online 12 April 2016
Highlights
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- Psychoactive drug use occurs in essentially all human societies.
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- This paper reviews work from range of disciplines that contribute to understanding the impact of drugs upon the human world.
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- Drugs have been an important influence on aspects of culture from social life to religion, politics to trade.
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- Drugs have acted as enablers of cultural change.
Abstract
Psychoactive
drug use occurs in essentially all human societies. A range of
disciplines contribute to our understanding of the influence of drugs
upon the human world. For example pharmacology and neuroscience analyse
biological responses to drugs, sociology examines social influences upon
people’s decisions to use drugs, and anthropology provides rich
accounts of use across a variety of cultural contexts. This article
reviews work from multiple disciplines to illustrate that drugs
influence aspects of culture from social life to religion, politics to
trade, while acting as enablers of cultural change throughout human
history. This broad view is valuable at a time when the influence not
only of traditional drugs but a growing armoury of novel drugs is felt
and debated.
Keywords
- Drugs;
- Culture
© 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
