Drugs And Human Behavior

This book presents the main concepts and tools for the adoption of a biopsychosocial approach to psychotropic substances use and abuse management, prevention and treatment. It aims to provide resources for the design and implementation of health strategies and public policies to deal with psychotropic substances use in a way that fully recognizes the complex articulations between its biological, psychological and social aspects, taking these three dimensions into account to develop both health and social care policies and strategies aimed at psychotropic substance users. The book is organized in five parts. Part one presents a historical overview of psychotropic substances use throughout human history and introduces key concepts to understand the phenomenon from a biopsychosocial perspective. The next three parts approach psychotropic substances use from one of the interrelated dimensions of the biopsychosocial perspective: part two focuses on the neurobiological aspects; part three, on the psychological aspects; and part four, on the social aspects and its implications for public policy design. Finally, a fifth part is dedicated to special topics related to psychotropic substances use. Drugs and Human Behavior: Biopsychosocial Aspects of Psychotropic Substances Use is a guide to public agents, health professionals and social workers interested in adopting the biopsychosocial perspective to develop and implement both health and social care strategies and policies based on an interdisciplinary approach and aimed at dealing with psychotropic substance users in a more humanized way.

Undergraduates in various sciences will be the audience for this textbook introduction to the field of psychopharmacology. The text focuses on the relationships between drugs, their mechanisms of action in the nervous system, and human behavior. Grilly (Cleveland State U.) provides a historical introduction to the field and some historical information is included on each drug. Each chapter concludes with a list of Websites and an extensive annotated bibliography. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR.

In the [book, the authors] have kept to the basic goals of the first edition. Central among them was [their] desire to produce a clear and comprehensible introductory textbook about psychoactive drugs that emphasizes science over sociology. -Pref. From this book you will learn about the pharmacology of psychoactive drugs and the mental illnesses they are used to treat. -Back cover.

What effects do various psychoactive drugs have on such aspects of human behavior as creativity, memory, and sexuality? How effective are such drugs in treating mental disorders? How are new drugs tested and licensed? Presenting an intriguing introduction to the study of psychopharmacology, this fully revised and updated third edition of Drugs and Behavior is uniquely organized around the ways in which human behavior is affected by drugs rather than by categories of drugs only. Beginning with the principles of neurotransmission, pharmacokinetics, and drug classification, the text covers the issues of new drug development, drug dangers and benefits, legalization, drug abuse prevention and treatment, and therapeutic uses of psychoactive drugs. Separate chapters present the latest research findings on drugs' influence on memory, creativity, sex, aggression, and sleep. Features such as chapter-opening questions, bold-facing, defining of new terms, summaries, and end-of-chapter review quizzes help students to understand this complex and controversial material. Professionals and students who are involved in drug and alcohol studies, health, psychology, nursing, or sociology will find this volume to be an invaluable addition to their libraries.

Designed for the introduction to drugs and substance abuse course as taught in departments of health education, psychology, biology, sociology, and criminal justice, this full-color market-leading text provides the latest information on drugs and their effects on society and human behavior. For over thirty years, instructors and students have relied on it to examine drugs and behavior from the behavioral, pharmacological, historical, social, legal, and clinical perspectives.