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September 1991 (Volume 69)
Quarterly Article
Charles Winick
Aug 20, 2026
Aug 19, 2026
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A body of research conducted over several decades has established that a considerable proportion of regular users of heroin, cocaine, and other psychoactive drugs continue to function effectively at work and in other areas of social life. Yet American policy has been predicated on assumptions of a universal course of drug use leading to dependency and dysfunctional behavior. A rational drug policy would be shaped in light of a more nuanced understanding of the relationship between drug use and socially adaptive and maladaptive behavior.
Author(s): Charles Winick
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Volume 69, Issue 3 (pages 437–459) Published in 1991