Alcohol, Other Drugs, and Behavior: Psychological Research Perspectives

My book places emphasis on evaluation of major issues and scientific studies. Most books on this topic focus on personal accounts, case histories, or counseling and treatment approaches. Here is an excerpt from a review of the book published in a leading scientific journal, Addiction, 2001, 96, 782-783: "...The book is an impressive piece of work, covering a very broad spectrum of topics. The author demonstrates an extensive knowledge of the field. Important is his underlining of the scientific base of knowledge. The main focus of the book is the American scene; European research and perspectives are not always so well covered. Nevertheless, the book will be of considerable interest also for European readers. It is well written, extensive and thorough. Both introductory students and more experienced readers will find this book valuable. It has a vast number of facts and references. .." FANNY DUCKERT Institute of Psychology, Oslo, Norway A second review in a major research journal, Alcohol and Alcoholism Vol. 38, No. 1, pp. 98-99, 2003: This single author text book identifies its target audience as psychology and social science students in the US, but its potential readership is much wider. This is a substantial book, which covers the epidemiology, aetiology, prevention and treatment of substance misuse, together with a methodical analysis of practice and research. The author justifies his focus on alcohol, because of its status as the drug of choice in the US; he does not neglect other drugs and there is valuable work on the position of tobacco in particular. The epidemiology and political perspectives are exclusively based on US data. A more international perspective would have been welcome, but the treatment sections avoid any accusations of parochialism and it would be a pity if the book was neglected outside the US. The advantages of a single author are evident with a consistently readable style. The tone of the book is fair and broad-minded. There is careful, at times laborious, analysis. The book is well referenced, though relatively little post 1995 work is cited. The text is well laid out and structured which helps accessibility. The strongest sections are on the application of basic psychological principles to addictions and there are very useful reviews of `special groups' classified by age, gender and race. These are much debated, but little studied, issues and Professor Jung's reviews are a very welcome contribution. Once again, the focus is on the US, but there are key principles outlined here. The weaker area of the book is on the inter-relationship with health problems, including psychiatric illness and this is one area which may have benefited from another contributor. Overall, however, this is a major new introductory textbook for students from a range of disciplines. It represents an excellent starting point for new students and is a useful resource for experienced practitioners and researchers. Peter Rice

This text is absolutely the most readible and comprehensive review of the world of behavioral science research on addiction. It is as broad and complete as any recent NIDA, NIAAA or Institute of Medicine summaries.The sections on special populations and gender studies cannot be found easily in other places, as well as, the bibliographic references are extremely well chosen and thorough for those needing to find the seminal references.In short, this is truly a one of a kind textbook suitable of upper division courses, a postgraduate seminar or research or program design. If you are looking for clinician's manual, this is not for you. If you are looking for a carefully selected review of research literature without unnecessary jibberish...use this text.