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The focus of this article is on the distinctive features of the social organization of crack cocaine use in one type of setting. The activities of crack cocaine users can only be understood if one has knowledge of its social organization in specific settings. Extensive observation in four base houses and in-depth interviews with forty crack users who frequented houses were conducted in two metropolitan areas (Atlanta and New York City). Results show that base houses are a purposive setting in which a cycle of activities occurs. A typical cycle consists of six stages: getting together, getting ready, getting started, getting high, getting down, and getting out. The activities related to each stage have particular functions and are determined by a set of norms. The primary purpose of this article is to fill a gap in knowledge about the social organization of crack cocaine use in one type of setting.

Data collected by the National Opinion Research Center General Social Surveys for the years 1974, 1980, & 1982 reveal that supporters of prayer in US public schools -- who make up a majority of the public -- are older, less educated, & socially, politically, & religiously conservative. Multivariate analysis indicates that the key predicator variables are religious orthodoxy & religious salience, a finding that may stem from the observation that school prayer is both a political & a religious issue. Issue salience, congressional voting decisions, & demographic characteristics of school prayer advocates are considered as possible explanations for the failure of Congress to act in accord with PO. 3 Tables, 14 References. Modified HA

Seeks to develop a profile of those who favor and oppose prayer in public schools.

Abstract. A consequent of Thorstein Veblen's theory of 'invidious comparison' is investigated as it applies to class and status. This research evaluates specifically shifting socioeconomic effects within the structure of society that are often taken to be important causes for determining leisure interests by class. That time, employment, personal debt, and costs effect leisure were hypothesized to be decisive factors in the class leisure outcome. The relative and total predictive influence of the independent variables was analyzed and found to predict differences of leisure interests between the social classes. The findings lend support to Veblen's notion of the leisured class and its acquisition of status.

The main objective of this paper is to investigate potential predictors of drug risk among a community-based sample of individuals who are exposed to illicit drugs. The four domains of interest are individual socio-demographic and social-psychological attributes, current situational circumstances and family-of-origin characteristics. Interviews were conducted with 242 individuals who were recruited in Atlanta, Georgia. Initial descriptive analyses were followed by multivariate analyses. The final model predicted 60% of the variance in drug risk. Current situational circumstances were statistically significant regarding drug risk. Family-of-origin characteristics also were significant, even when entered into the predictive model after current situational circumstances. In addition to individual social-psychological characteristics such as depression and self-esteem, the impact of childhood emotional abuse is noted. The findings indicate a need for considering proximal as well as more distal influences on drug risk behavior when designing drug use prevention and intervention programs.

Relying upon a sample of 283 young adult ecstasy users, this research examines three primary research questions: How high/low are young adult ecstasy users' levels of condom use self-efficacy? How does condom use self-efficacy relate to actual condom use in this population? What factors underlie condom efficacy levels in this population? The study entailed face-to-face interviews that were completed with the use of computer-assisted structured interviews (i.e., CASI). Study participants were recruited in the Atlanta, Georgia metropolitan area between August 2002 and August 2004 using a targeted sampling and ethnographic mapping approach. Interviews took approximately two hours to complete. Condom use self-efficacy levels were found to be fairly high in this population. A strong, direct relationship was observed between condom use self-efficacy and actual condom use. Using a multiple regression approach, five factors were found to be predictive of greater condom use self-efficacy in this population. These were educational attainment, amount of communication in one's family of origin, having asked about one's most recent casual sex partner's HIV serostatus, no prior drug treatment, and level of self-esteem.

Drug use and treatment frequently are investigated from an individual perspective. In this paper, we focus on the perceptions of drug treatment among women in 48 mother/adult daughter dyads. Two-thirds of the women were crack cocaine users and they all were part of a larger study on intergenerational drug use. The women were recruited using targeted sampling, followed by theoretical sampling. In the tradition of feminist research, data collection primarily involved open-ended interviews, following a life course perspective. Data analyses involved the constant comparison method of the grounded theory process. A popular assumption is that women enter drug treatment because they are ordered by the court to do so. Overall, the mothers emphasized internal factors as most salient. Another theme in the women's stories was the perceived barriers to entering drug treatment. A better understanding of the internal and external factors regarding drug treatment decisions will assist us in clarifying treatment readiness. The women also made suggestions for more holistic and women-focused drug treatment.