William H. McGlothlin

Sex Differences in Addict Careers. 1. Initiation of Use

Five-hundred-sixty-seven heroin addicts admitted to methadone maintenance treatment programs in southern California were included in the present analysis. Systematic comparisons were made between women and men for Anglo and Chicano subpopulations. The behaviors compared focused on initial drug use and other antecedent behaviors during the year prior to initiation of heroin use including interpersonal relationships, other substance use, drug dealing, legal income, and various criminal behaviors. Unlike men, the initial use of heroin by women was highly influenced by a man, especially by a sex partner who is often a daily heroin user. On the other hand, many women (like men) reported self-initiation of heroin use, multiple drug use, and drug dealing, thus demonstrating that they took an active role in their drug involvement. Other differences between men and women for antecedent behaviors prior to narcotics use appear to be related to traditional expectations about gender roles in American society.

Sex Differences in Addict Careers. 2. Becoming Addicted

Sex differences are examined for the period during which addiction develops after initial narcotics use. About 25% of the 546 heroin addicts studied became addicted within 1 month after initial use. More women than men fell into this category, and, on the average, women took less time to become addicted. For the majority of those studied (whose addiction occurred 1 month or longer after initial use), patterns of narcotic use during this phase of the addiction career were not significantly different by sex within Anglo or Chicano groups. Differences between female and male addicts in interpersonal relationships, other substance use, drug dealing, legal employment, and criminal behaviors parallel traditional sex role expectations.

A Follow-up of Admissions to the California Civil Addict Program

A follow-up interview study of early admissions to the California Civil Addict Program found that those continuing in the program performed substantially better during the commitment period than did a comparable group discharged shortly after admission. To a lesser extent, the program also appeared to have had some impact subsequent to discharge. Those program discharges defined as successes tended to do relatively well until the time of interview. Comparisons under the strict (pre-1970) and more lenient regimens showed roughly comparable behavior, but the availability of methadone maintenance was also a significant factor in reducing heroin use during the latter period.

Marihuana: effects on simulated driving performance†☆

Abstract Performance of 23 male subjects was tested under smoked marihuana treatments on 4 occasions in a complex driving simulator. Doses were 0, 50, 100 and 200 micrograms delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol per kilogram bodyweight. The simulator uses a car mounted on a chassis dynamometer facing a filmed scene subtending 160 degrees. Twenty-five performance measures are derived based on steering wheel, brake and accelerator pad usage as well as speed and tracking. The simulator also incorporates a visual search-and-recognition task based on random appearance of lights in the periphery. There is little evidence for a significant effect of marihuana upon car control and tracking. None of the 25 car control-tracking scores was significantly changed in either mean or variance by the treatments. However, there was a clear, statistically significant decrement in performance of the search-and-recognition task. Marihuana produced increased errors in recognition of the lights and delayed response times to their appearance. The results suggest the prime locus of marihuana impairment of driving performance as being in the interference with perceptual processes involved in data acquisition necessary for safe control of the vehicle.

The Effect of Parole on Methadone Patient Behavior

A 7-year followup of three male samples of 1971-1973 methadone maintenance admissions was conducted: a random sample of 100; a sample of 136 who had a minimum of 30 months remaining on civil addict parole status at the time of methadone entry; and a matched sample of 136 not on parole. Ninety percent of those not decreased were interviewed. The overall sample spent 58% of the nonincarcerated follow-up interval on methadone. This resulted in a large decline in daily heroin use and associated criminal behavior measures. The addition of parole supervision with urine testing resulted in only marginal improvements in behavior over that attributable to maintenance alone; however, the parole status did significantly reduce the length of intervals of daily heroin use both prior and subsequent to methadone entry.

Marijuana use among adults

This research was supported by Public Health Service grant MH-13484 from the National Institute of Mental Health. We wish to thank Dr. Arthur Chandler, Dr. Sidney Cohen, and Dr. Oscar Janiger for generously permitting the use of their records and for aiding in the contacting of respondents. Mr. Carlos Garcia aided in the interviewing, and Miss Kay Jamison and Mrs. Judith Bernstein assisted in the analysis. UNTIL a few years ago, marijuana use in this country was largely confined to two groups: minorities in the lower socioeconomic classes; and persons associated with entertainment and other art-related pursuits. Recent attention has focused on the rapidly increasing number of middle-class youths who are currently using the drug with varying frequencies? While it is the last group which is of primary social concern, it is the older groups which afford the opportunity to examine stabilized patterns of marijuana use and its long-term relationship to other individual and social behavior. Robins, Darvish, and Murphy have recently reported on a longitudinal study of Negro men who used marijuana as adolescents. The present study is based on a sample of adults, 93 percent white, about forty years of age, and generally of above average education and economic status, who typically first used marijuana some 20 years ago and continued to do so on a regular basis for a period of several years. It presents information on motivation for use, patterns of use, reported effects, use of other drugs, background and behavioral characteristics of the user, and personality and attitude correlates. The data on marijuana use reported here are part of a larger follow-up study of the effects of LSD. In that study 247 persons who received LSD from one of three physicians in either experimental or psychotherapy settings during the period 1955-61 were personally interviewed in 1967-68. Their introduction to the study was via a letter from the physician who initially had administered the LSD. All interviews were done by two of the authors and one other person. Rapport was good, and with very few exceptions there was no indication that respondents withheld or distorted information regarding drug use.

Effects of marihuana on auditory signal detection

Abstract23 male subjects were tested for auditory signal detection under a no-treatment condition, and smoke marihuana conditions containing 0, 50, 100 and 200 Μg δ9-THC per kg body weight. Signal detection was measured under conditions of concentrated attention, in which the subject reported the presence or absence of a tone in a 3-sec noise burst; and divided attention, where the subject also repeated a series of six digits which were presented simultaneously with the noise burst. No differences were found between the no-treatment and placebo conditions. Significant dose-dependent impairment of signal detection resulted for the marihuana conditions under both concentrated and divided attention. Application of signal detection theory indicated that impaired performance was due to a decline in sensitivity (d′), independent of changes in subject criteria (beta). There was also some indication of change in criteria—a greater tendency for erroneous reporting of a signal when it was not present.

Drug Usage, Personality, Attitudinal, and Behavioral Correlates of Driving Behavior

Summary Subjects (N = 164) were divided into four groups on the basis of their driving records: no accidents or moving violations, two or more violations, one or more accidents, and no accidents. They were compared on various personality, attitudinal, drug usage, and biographical variables. The less safe drivers scored significantly higher on a sensation-seeking scale; were more likely to have experimented with such drugs as marijuana, hashish, amphetamines, LSD, etc.; attended religious services less often; and were less likely to own their residences. There were also differences in political attitudes and life-style preferences among the groups.