Differential Substance Market Involvement and Victimization: Gender Differences in a UK Cohort Sample

• In Event: Victimization: Risk, Perceptions of Risk, and Stigma

Abstract

One major concern regarding substance use is its connections to victimization. While evidence demonstrates that the relationship between illicit substance use and victimization is bidirectional, much less attention has been given to how illicit substance use results in victimization. Routine activities theory (RAT) offers a framework for understanding this relationship. RAT posits that for crime to occur there must be motivated offenders, suitable targets, and absence of capable guardians. To use illicit substances, users must purchase those substances from illicit markets, potentially exposing them to motivated offenders more frequently. However, some substances, such as alcohol, are legal, and only the psychopharmacological effects make the user more vulnerable. Despite the known connections between drug use and victimization, it is unclear how specific drug use affects victimization. The current study endeavors to address: 1) Does differential substance use lead to differing likelihood of experiencing any victimization? and 2) Does differential substance use make certain types of victimization more likely? To address these questions, this study will use regression analysis of data from Next Steps, a nationally representative UK survey of about 16,000 people born in 1989 and 1990.

Authors

• Gwyneth Evans, Pennsylvania State University

• Camille Figueroa, Pennsylvania State University

• Jordan Gonzalez, Pennsylvania State University