Mar 29, 2024  
2021-2022 College Catalog 
    
2021-2022 College Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

SSE 222 - Political, Legal and Ethical Aspects of Substance Use

3 Credits, 3 Contact Hours
3 lecture periods 0 lab periods

Overview of substance use and the law. Includes historical and legal overview; ethics, standards, and ethical decision making; major drug legislation and court decisions, substances, major psychoactive drugs, the government and the criminal justice system, international drug trafficking, and U.S. law enforcement.



Course Learning Outcomes
1.    Identify the definitions and dynamics of ethics, standards, and ethical decision making in the context of

       personal and professional conduct, including the setting of boundaries in relationships, public safety, duty to

       warn, licensure and adverse actions.  (Council on Social Work Education [CSWE] Competencies 1 and 2)

2.    Identify the historical development of drug laws in the United States and the state of Arizona, including

       criminalization and decriminalization, with emphasis on DUI laws, marijuana laws, medical marijuana,

       tobacco and alcohol.   (CSWE Competencies 1, 2 and 4)

3.    Identify issues regarding the criminal justice system and drugs, including the effects of decriminalization, the

       impact of the internet, the global marketplace, and the War on Drugs.  (CSWE Competencies 4 and 5)

4.    Analyze contemporary issues regarding substance use disorders in the United States and internationally.

       (CSWE Competencies 4 and 5)


Performance Objectives:
  1. Define what a substance is and the physical and psychological effects of use.
  2. Describe current values towards substance use and substance use disorders.
  3. Describe the interplay between public opinion, scientific knowledge, drug legislation, and law       enforcement.
  4. Identify political, legal, and economic aspects of the international trafficking in narcotics, cocaine,   and marijuana and identify important laws and court decisions on substance use.
  5. Describe attitudes, effects, and laws regulating legal and illegal substances, including alcohol and           tobacco.
  6. Explain the interplay between funding sources, treatment agencies, and law enforcement.
  7. Discuss the merits of increased funding for law enforcement vs. treatment, prevention, and education.
  8. Describe the political, economic, and social implications of urine testing, money laundering, and eased rules for admission of evidence.
  9. Discuss the arguments for legalizing substances, increased penalties for possession and in-between positions.
  10. Discuss the nature of substance use disorders and addiction, treatment, and the legal, social, and political implications.
  11. Discuss the licensure regulations of the treatment of substance use disorders in Arizona.
  12. Discuss codes of ethics and laws pertaining to the treatment of substance use disorders.
  13. Develop a model for ethical decision making regarding the treatment of substance use disorders.

Outline:
  1. Historical and Legal Overview
  2. Ethics, Standards, and Ethical Decision Making
    1. Ethical practice
    2. Personal and professional conduct
    3. Boundaries in relationships
    4. Public safety and duty to warn
    5. Licensure
    6. Codes of ethics
    7. Laws and rules affecting treatment of substance use disorders
    8. Making ethical decisions
  3. Major Drug Legislation and Court Decisions in United States and Arizona
    1. DUI laws
    2. Criminalization and decriminalization
    3. Marijuana laws
    4. Medical marijuana
    5. Tobacco and alcohol
  4. Substances: Effects, Classifications, and the Concept of Addiction
  5. Nature, Uses, Legal Status, Social, and Economic Aspects of the Major Psychoactive Drugs
    1. Marijuana
    2. Heroin
    3. Cocaine and crack
    4. Methamphetamine
    5. Prescription drugs
    6. Alcohol
    7. Tobacco
  6. Issues with Government and the Criminal Justice System
    1. Attitudes toward substance use
    2. Connection between substance use, crime, and gangs
    3. War on drugs
    4. Effects of decriminalization or legalization of previously illicit substances
    5. Impact of Internet
    6. Growth of global marketplace
  7. International Drug Trafficking and its Effect on U.S. Policy and Programs
  8. U.S.  Law Enforcement
    1. Goals
    2. Objectives
    3. Successes


Effective Term:
Fall 2016