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This collection of scholarly essays discusses the internationalization of American drug policy from a variety of perspectives and features articles on Hong Kong, Britain, Australia, Canada, Taiwan, Latin America, the Netherlands and Switzerland.

The 1986 War on Drugs is analyzed from the perspective of the constructionist approach to social problems. Using the model developed by Mauss, and relying on self-report data on drug use, we argue that the objective conditions of drug use cannot explain why drugs became an issue immediately prior to the 1986 elections. Instead, explanations for the rise of drugs as a social problem are to be found primarily in the political realm. Politicians looking for a "safe" election issue took advantage of a general public concern about drug abuse by promoting drugs as a social problem. Theoretical implications for Mauss's approach are explored in a concluding section. Specifically, this model needs to be revised to allow for a more active involvement of state officials in the process of claims making.

AbstractDrug treatment courts (DTCs), an alternative to traditional criminal courts, provide an innovative way to legally process some drug offenders. The origin and recent growth of the drug court system in the USA can be explained as an unintended consequence of a failing 'war on drugs'. In this article, we discuss the spread of adult DTCs throughout the USA, the main components of drug courts, controversies surrounding DTCs, and some criticisms of drug courts. We summarize the recent evaluations of adult DTCs, and highlight various DTC factors that have been found to reduce individual drug use and criminal activity. We also offer suggestions for future research on DTCs and conclude with policy recommendations.