Module SOC2086 for 2021/2
- Overview
- Aims and Learning Outcomes
- Module Content
- Indicative Reading List
- Assessment
Undergraduate Module Descriptor
SOC2086: Addiction
This module descriptor refers to the 2021/2 academic year.
Module Aims
You will be introduced to the different theoretical models which inform cultural representations, treatment and policy decisions of drug use and addiction. You will be expected to think critically about these models, examining what it means to be addicted and designated an addict, both within Western society and cross-culturally. You will be encouraged to assess the relationship between drug use and health, criminality, deviance, social control and the media. You will also reflect on current treatment models of addiction (e.g. counselling, harm reduction, decriminalization) at both the individual and policy levels, as well as public prevention campaigns. As such, this module will develop your critical thinking in relation to contemporary addiction discourse and literature, as well as stimulate your own intellectual interest in this area.
| On successfully completing the programme you will be able to: | |
|---|---|
| Module-Specific Skills | 1. demonstrate knowledge of, analyse and some critical engagement with, a range of models and beliefs about addiction; 2. start to relate these perspectives to empirical studies and public policy on addiction; |
| Discipline-Specific Skills | 3. demonstrate in writing and orally some competence in using major theoretical perspectives and concepts in sociology and anthropology and their application to social life; 4. demonstrate in writing and orally an ability to analyse empirical sociological/anthropological materials and some critical engagement with these involving complex reasoning; |
| Personal and Key Skills | 5. demonstrate in writing an ability to analyse, some critical engagement with, and report accurately on existing written material whilst articulating it within a structured and cogent argument. 6. demonstrate the ability to work independently, within a limited time frame, and without access to external sources, to complete a specified task. |
Module Content
Syllabus Plan
Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:
- Models of addiction (neurobiological, psycho-social, social constructionist, ‘myth’)
- Comparing cultures: Historical and anthropological perspectives on drug use
- Addiction in the media
- The social science of drug use I: Cannabis
- The social science of drug use II: Opiates/heroin
- Alcohol abuse
- Smoking
- Lifestyle addictions (e.g. sex, gambling, internet use, food, exercise)
- Treatment and counselling
- Addiction policy and public health (e.g. harm reduction, legalization)
- Ethics and methods in addiction research
Example seminar debates
- Definitions: Is sex addiction really an ‘addiction’?
- Models: Is addiction a matter of ‘choice’ or ‘heredity’?
- Media: Does the media have a moral responsibility in how it portrays drug use?
- Treatment: Should addicts be given free needles or replacement substances (methadone)?
- Policy: Would legalization of illegal drugs cut crime rates?
Learning and Teaching
This table provides an overview of how your hours of study for this module are allocated:
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching Activities | Guided independent study | Placement / study abroad |
|---|---|---|
| 44 | 256 | 0 |
...and this table provides a more detailed breakdown of the hours allocated to various study activities:
| Category | Hours of study time | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching | 22 | 22 x 1 hour lectures delivering the academic framework of the course |
| Scheduled Learning and Teaching | 22 | 22 x 1 hour seminars including group work and class discussion of key topics and debates from the lectures |
| Guided independent study | 80 | 40 course readings (2 hours each) |
| Guided independent study | 80 | Reading/research for essay |
| Guided independent study | 16 | Essay plan preparation |
| Guided independent study | 80 | Reading/revisions for exam |
Online Resources
This module has online resources available via ELE (the Exeter Learning Environment).
Journals: Addiction, Addictive Behaviors, Journal of Addiction Medicine (JAMA), Sociology
How this Module is Assessed
In the tables below, you will see reference to 'ILO's. An ILO is an Intended Learning Outcome - see Aims and Learning Outcomes for details of the ILOs for this module.
Formative Assessment
A formative assessment is designed to give you feedback on your understanding of the module content but it will not count towards your mark for the module.
| Form of assessment | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Essay plan (of summative essay) | 750 words | 1, 3, 4, 5, 6 | Written feedback |
Summative Assessment
A summative assessment counts towards your mark for the module. The table below tells you what percentage of your mark will come from which type of assessment.
| Coursework | Written exams | Practical exams |
|---|---|---|
| 33 | 67 | 0 |
...and this table provides further details on the summative assessments for this module.
| Form of assessment | % of credit | Size of the assessment (eg length / duration) | ILOs assessed | Feedback method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Examination | 67 | 2 hours | 1-6 | Verbal feedback |
| Essay | 33 | 3,500 words | 1-5 | Written feedback |
Re-assessment
Re-assessment takes place when the summative assessment has not been completed by the original deadline, and the student has been allowed to refer or defer it to a later date (this only happens following certain criteria and is always subject to exam board approval). For obvious reasons, re-assessments cannot be the same as the original assessment and so these alternatives are set. In cases where the form of assessment is the same, the content will nevertheless be different.
| Original form of assessment | Form of re-assessment | ILOs re-assessed | Timescale for re-assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Examination | Examination (2 hours) | 1-6 | August/September reassessment period |
| Essay | Essay (3,500 words) | 1-5 | August/September reassessment period |
Indicative Reading List
This reading list is indicative - i.e. it provides an idea of texts that may be useful to you on this module, but it is not considered to be a confirmed or compulsory reading list for this module.
Bancroft, A. (2009) Drugs, Intoxication and Society, Malden MA, Cambridge: Policy Press.
Faupel, Charles E., Horowitz, Alan M., and Greg S. Weaver. (2004) The Sociology of American Drug Use. Boston, MA: McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Goldberg, R. ed. (2011) Taking Sides: Clashing Views in Drugs and Society (2011) New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Higher Education. 11th edition.
Hammersley, R. and Reid, M. (2002) Why the pervasive addiction myth is still believed, Addiction Research and Theory, 10 (1): 7-30.
Hammersely, R. Drugs and Crime, Theories and Practices (Crime and Society series). (2008) Malden MA, Cambridge: Polity Press.
Hussein Rassool, G.(2011) Understanding Addiction Behaviours: Theoretical and Clinical Practice in Health and Social Care, Palgrave Macmillan.
Klein, R (1993) Cigarettes are Sublime. Duke University Press.
McKeganey, N. (2011) Controversies in Drug Policy and Practice, Palgrave Macmillan.
West, R. (2006) Theory of Addiction, Addiction Press/Blackwell Publishing.
