The dilemma of drug policy in the United States
By: Elaine B. Sharp.
Series: The HarperCollins public policy series
Publisher: HarperCollins College Publishers
Published: 1994
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 186
Subjects: Drug abuse -- Government policy -- United States.; Drug abuse and crime -- United States.; Drug abuse -- United States -- Prevention.; Drug abuse -- Treatment -- United States.
Description: Some Sharp observations ...

Emphasizing interrelated themes of policy failure and policy change, this book is a theoretical and conceptual examination of drug policy in the United States. It is in part a policy history, using case studies to link specific drug policies to a general theoretical framework. These cases focus primarily on three important and interesting episodes of drug policy development during the Nixon-Carter, and Reagan-Bush administrations, and the author interprets the historical significance of each period.

The Dilemma of Drug Policy in the United States examines a wide array of ideas concerning incrementalism, interest groups, and symbolic politics to determine why there has been so much continuity in drug policy despite policy failure. Finally, a chapter on policy alternatives deals with the legalization debate, and critiques it from the perspective of a political scientist.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. 169-179) and index.