Uniting top academics, researchers, and practitioners, this contributed volume offers new perspectives on the meaning, role, and history of addiction in our society and the construction of illicit drug use as a social problem. This substantially revised second edition provides an authoritative focus on policy issues that will extend and enrich the education and on-going discussion of addiction within the social work community.

New to the second edition:

discusses the intersection of substance abuse and intimate partner violence in the lives of women seeking help
examines drug use, addiction, and the criminal justice system and how these intersect to further disadvantage those held prisoner by these challenges
recognizes the real significance of addiction for those Canadians struggling with homelessness and mental health issues
examines adolescent substance abuse
considers how some aspects of specific cultures can help prevent addiction
explores male and female differences in individual and group treatment
questions the belief that graduates of Canada's schools of social work have the competency to be addiction counsellors