NCJ Number
79112
Date Published
1981
Length
20 pages
Annotation
Following a discussion of the history of female drug use and crime, this article critically examines contemporary studies on the relationship between crime and the use of drugs by women and identifies future research needs.
Abstract
The predominance of females among opiate addicts prior to 1914 and the link between female addiction and prostitution are recurring themes in the past literature. More recent studies indicate that female drug users commit a significant amount of crime, primarily of a nonviolent and income-generating nature. Female drug users tend to be involved primarily in prostitution, drug sales, and shoplifing. Thus, female addicts, like female criminals in general, tend to commit crimes that are consistent with traditional female roles. Both arrest and self-report data indicate that addicts who are prostitutes are more involved in criminal behavior than addicts, even when prostitution offenses are excluded. Conclusions regarding the temporal sequence of drug use and crime among women are less certain. Whereas one study reported a progression from crime to drug use to addiction to arrest, another study showed that alcohol and drug use occurred first, followed by crime, then arrest, and finally addiction. The safest conclusion is that for most female addicts, crime precedes the onset of addiction. Due to methodological problems of past research, further research is needed, with emphasis on such issues as the extent and nature of criminal behavior among female addicts and the impact of treatment on female drug use and crime. This research might lead to more effective drug policies than the currently ineffective criminal approach. Tables, notes, and a list of 50 references are provided.