Gary Potter

From "Social Supply" to "Real Dealing": Drift, Friendship, and Trust in Drug Dealing Careers

This article reports on an empirical study into a group of drug dealers supplying cannabis, ecstasy, cocaine, ketamine, and other drugs in and around a small English city. It reveals a market that is not overly structured or hierarchically controlled, and certainly not dominated by organized crime or characterized by violence. Dealers involved had often drifted into “real” dealing from backgrounds in “social supply.” However, despite an increase of their dealing activity (and of their profits), they still maintained the “social supply” values of friendship and trust as the key elements to relationships with suppliers and customers. Escalation of drug dealing did not seem to be accompanied by any wider escalation in criminality or involvement with organized crime.

Lessons from conducting trans-national Internet-mediated participatory research with hidden populations of cannabis cultivators.

BACKGROUND Internet-mediated research methods are increasingly used to access hidden populations. The International Cannabis Cultivation Questionnaire (ICCQ) is an online survey designed to facilitate international comparisons into the relatively under-researched but increasingly significant phenomenon of domestic cannabis cultivation. The Global Cannabis Cultivation Research Consortium has used the ICCQ to survey over 6000 cannabis cultivators across 11 countries. In this paper, we describe and reflect upon our methodological approach, focusing on the digital and traditional recruitment methods used to access this hidden population and the challenges of working across multiple countries, cultures and languages. METHODS Descriptive statistics showing eligibility and completion rates and recruitment source by country of residence. RESULTS Over three quarters of eligible respondents who were presented with the survey were included in the final sample of n=6528. English-speaking countries expended more effort to recruit participants than non-English-speaking countries. The most effective recruitment modes were cannabis websites/groups (33%), Facebook (14%) and news articles (11%). While respondents recruited through news articles were older, growing practice variables were strikingly similar between these main recruitment modes. CONCLUSION Through this process, we learnt that there are trade-offs between hosting multiple surveys in each country vs. using one integrated database. We also found that although perceived anonymity is routinely assumed to be a benefit of using digital research methodologies, there are significant limits to research participant anonymity in the current era of mass digital surveillance, especially when the target group is particularly concerned about evading law enforcement. Finally, we list a number of specific recommendations for future researchers utilising Internet-mediated approaches to researching hidden populations.

Growing medicine: Small-scale cannabis cultivation for medical purposes in six different countries

BACKGROUND The production and consumption of cannabis for the treatment of medical conditions is of increasing importance internationally; however, research on different aspects of the phenomenon is still scarce. In this article, we report findings from a cross-cultural study of small-scale cannabis cultivation for medical purposes. This kind of comparative study has not been done previously. METHODS The data were gathered with a help of web surveys conducted by the Global Cannabis Cultivation Research Consortium (GCCRC) in Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany and the UK (N=5313). In the analysis we compare reports of medical motives, for what conditions cannabis is used, whether users have diagnoses for these conditions and whether the use of cannabis been recommended as a treatment of those conditions by a medical doctor. Descriptive statistics are used to show the main commonalities and noteworthy disparities across different countries. RESULTS Findings from countries were quite similar, even though several national differences in details were found. Growing cannabis for medical purposes was widespread. The majority of medical growers reported cultivating cannabis for serious conditions. Most of them did have a formal diagnosis. One fifth had got a recommendation from their doctor, but in most cases cannabis use was self-medication which was not discussed with their doctors. CONCLUSION There is a wider demand for licit access for medical cannabis than currently available in these countries. Ideologically, medical growers can be seen distancing themselves from both the legal and illicit drug markets. From a harm reduction perspective, it is worrying that, in the context of present health and control policies in these countries, many medical growers are using cannabis to treat serious medical conditions without proper medical advice and doctors guidance.

The globalisation of cannabis cultivation: A growing challenge

Global patterns of cannabis cultivation have followed a fascinating development, from highly concentrated production in certain developing countries to decentralized production in almost every country around the world (UNODC, 2014). Historically, the spread of cannabis cultivation across the globe reflected the industrial utility of hemp; the widespread use of cannabis as a recreational drug did not appear until much later (Abel, 1980 and Booth, 2003). It is with the emergence of modern patterns of cannabis use in the developed world that we have seen major changes in patterns of cannabis production. As demand for cannabis increased globally, fuelled by the developments of the “counter-culture” of the 1960s and 1970s, so cultivation in the developing world began to take on new dimensions. Firstly, cultivation increased in many traditional growing regions as exportation to the consumer markets of the industrialized world became an attractive option. Secondly, in response to global demand, countries such as Morocco and Mexico became large-scale producers of cannabis and major suppliers to, respectively, European and American consumers, despite not having the traditions of cannabis cultivation found in Asia, the Middle-East or the Caribbean (Gooberman, 1974, UNODC, 2003, UNODC, 2005 and Moreno, 1997). A third phase in the evolution of cannabis production has been the increase in cultivation across the industrialised world. From Europe to the Americas and Oceania, import substitution in the cannabis market has been noticed in almost every developed country (UNODC, 2014 and Decorte et al., 2011). Although some small-scale cultivation probably has almost as long a history as cannabis use in the west, widespread small-scale cultivation and larger-scale commercial production only begins to appear towards the end of the twentieth century. In some countries the levels of domestic cultivation have reached the stage where self-sufficiency in cannabis markets has largely been attained (Leggett, 2006, Bouchard, 2008 and Jansen, 2002).

Blurred Boundaries The Artificial Distinction Between “Use” and “Supply” in the U.K. Cannabis Market

This article examines particular features of the bottom level of the U.K. cannabis market and the overlap between supply–supplier and use–user within that market. An Internet survey was completed by 464 adult regular cannabis users residing in the United Kingdom. Results indicate that over a quarter of the sample had bought large amounts (9 ounces [252 g] or more) of cannabis at one time, a third had been involved in selling cannabis for profit and over two fifths had been involved in intentionally taking cannabis across internal European Union borders. These findings are discussed in relation to both Parker, Aldridge, and Measham’s (1998) thesis of normalization and South’s (1999) theory of the “everyday” nature of drug taking. We suggest that the boundaries between users and suppliers within the U.K. cannabis market are far from clear, and that attempts to conceptually separate these behaviors, whether for legal, policy or academic purposes, are therefore problematic.

The problem with “skunk”

Purpose – This article aims to discuss the use of the word “skunk” in contemporary discourse as short‐hand for premium quality, indoor‐grown cannabis. Skunk, as used in this way, is a contested term that many cannabis users reject. The purpose of the article is to draw attention to some practical implications of this semantic dispute for academic research and for policy development.Design/methodology/approach – The authors draw on qualitative data generated during an online survey project examining UK cannabis markets. Findings discussed are contextualised by reference to use of the word skunk in public discourse through the media and policy documents.Findings – The uncritical use of the word “skunk” by researchers, the media and others can pose problems, particularly where the use and implied meaning of the word is rejected (as it is amongst a segment of the cannabis using population). Attempts to acquire or disseminate knowledge, or to develop or enact policy about cannabis use and distribution in the U...

Not Particularly Special : critiquing ‘NPS’ as a category of drugs

Abstract Novel psychoactive substances (NPS) have been a dominant feature of drug discourse for many years now and, in academic, policy and public discourse, have become established as a new – and by implication, distinct – category of drugs. We argue that this understanding of NPS is fundamentally problematic. Differences within the category are obscured, as are similarities between NPS and more established categories of drugs. Focusing on NPS as something new, different or particularly special is misleading and counterproductive and can have serious consequences in terms of understanding the bigger picture in relation to illegal drugs more generally. This has led to overestimations of the size of the NPS problem, obfuscation of the common underlying causes of dependent drug use and the implementation of significant and problematic policy changes. Furthermore, a failure to see the rise in NPS as just one of a number of emerging trends in contemporary drug scenes, alongside the development of online markets or the rise in domestic drug production operations, for example, impairs our ability to understand the wider societal, cultural and theoretical underpinnings of drug use. NPS are not particularly special: treating them as such can have dangerous and far-reaching consequences.

Examining the blurred boundaries between medical and recreational cannabis – results from an international study of small-scale cannabis cultivators

Abstract Aim: To compare characteristics of recreational vs. medical growers in a sample of small-scale cannabis cultivators from 12 countries. Methods: Six thousand eight hundred ninety six respondents who took part in an online survey were divided into three groups as: those who reported growing for recreational use, those cultivating for medical purposes who also reported use of other illegal drugs, and those who reported cultivation for medical use and didn’t use other illegal substances. The groups were compared using multinomial logistic regression. Findings: In comparison to recreational growers, the two groups of medical growers included more females, consumed cannabis more frequently, and were more likely to cite health-related motivations for growing. The medical growers without other illicit drug use shared some of the same features with the medical growers with illicit drug use, but in comparison to both other groups, they were older, used less alcohol and tobacco, and were less likely to be involved in illicit activities other than drug crimes. Conclusions: Findings suggest that claims of medical use are not simply an attempt to justify personal cannabis consumption, but do at least partly reflect a genuine belief in medical benefit. However, those growing cannabis for medical reasons form a heterogeneous group of people.

The Geography of Environmental Crime

In the twenty-first century, environmental harm is an ever-present reality of our globalised world. Over the last 20 years, criminologists have made great strides in their understanding of how different institutions in society, and criminal justice systems in particular, respond (or fail to respond) to the harm imposed on ecosystems and their human and non-human components. Such research has crystallised into the rapidly evolving field of green criminology.

Global patterns of domestic cannabis cultivation: sample characteristics and patterns of growing across eleven countries

Aims: To provide an overview of: demographic characteristics; experiences with growing cannabis; methods and scale of growing operations; reasons for growing; personal use of cannabis and other drugs; participation in cannabis and other drug markets; contacts with the criminal justice system for respondents to an online survey about cannabis cultivation drawn from eleven countries (N=6530). Important similarities and differences between the national samples recruited will be discussed. Method: This paper utilizes data from the online web survey of predominantly ‘small-scale’ cannabis cultivators in eleven countries conducted by the Global Cannabis Cultivation Research Consortium (GCCRC). Here we focus primarily on descriptive statistics to highlight key similarities and differences across the different national samples. Findings: Overall there was a great deal of similarity across countries in terms of: demographic characteristics; experiences with growing cannabis; methods and scale of growing operations; reasons for growing; use of cannabis and other drugs; participation in cannabis and other drug markets, and contacts with the criminal justice system. In particular, we can recognise that a clear majority of those small-scale cannabis cultivators who responded to our survey is primarily motivated for reasons other than making money from cannabis supply and have minimal involvement in drug dealing or other criminal activities. These growers generally come from ‘normal’ rather than ‘deviant’ backgrounds. Some differences do exist between the samples drawn from different countries suggesting that local factors (political, geographical, cultural etc.) may have some influence on how small-scale cultivators operate, although differences in recruitment strategies in different countries may also account for some differences observed.