Neither Villain nor Victim: Empowerment and Agency among Women Substance Abusers edited Tammy Anderson. Rutgers University Press, 2008, 226 pp.

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Review by Alana Van Gundy-Yoder, Miami University.

 

Neither Villain nor Victim is a thought provoking book that brings together a number of contributors who probe deeper into the relationship between females and substance abuse. The book is framed within the current polarizing academic debate: are women substance abusers villains that are addicts by choice or are they victims that are forced, led to, and trapped within substance use (also referred to as the pathology versus powerlessness debate)? Within this framework, the contributors focus on individual agency and empowerment as a means to provide a more gender appropriate lens through which to view female substance abusers. The book is divided into three parts; empowered negotiation of the illicit drug economy, exercising agency in managing drug dependencies, and improved responses to drug-related problems.

Anderson’s introduction to the collection discusses the history of the pathology versus powerlessness debate and the five forms of agency that the book focuses on (survival/instrumental, symbolic resistance, leisure and recreational activities, expressive or revenge based agency, and political activism/social change) but perhaps the book’s most riveting chapter is Anderson’s first chapter that focuses the dimensions of females’ power in the illicit drug economy (a reprint from her previous work). She argues that females’ involvement in the drug economy serves to sustain and control the market. Instead of focusing on the passive female that is trapped within the spiraling drug economy, she argues that females are a powerful force in the drug economy. They contribute through household control and provisions (by contributing resources and places of business, stabilizing themselves and their families within society, and allowing males to gain powerful positions within the economy), revenue generation and expansion of illicit markets, subsidization of male drug addicts, and distinct styles of agency that they employ while dealing drugs. Anderson’s summary and most important point is that the level and style of agency that females demonstrate while navigating a complex illicit economy would translate well into the legal sector.

The remainder of the first part of the book offers interesting qualitative case studies. Notably, contributors Baskins and Sommers (Chapter Three) and Mullins (Chapter Four) focus specifically on female agency and empowerment in drug dealing. Interviews from Manhattan, Brooklyn, and St. Louis serve to examine how the drug market and opportunity structure has changed for females, how females’ involvement in drug markets escalates the probability of violence (both by them and against them) and the consequences and negotiation evidenced by females. Consistent in both chapters is the fact that females remain active decision makers within the drug economy, they attain entrepreneurial skills as a form of survival, and female violence within the drug economy is often relational violence or a way to avoid victimization in a violent world.

Part two is focused on the ways in which females use the agency and power they gain in the illicit market to deal with drug dependencies. While previous research has shown that females are subordinate actors within the drug economy, contributors in the second part present contrary evidence. They argue that females are active agents in the economy that accrue a structured level of knowledge, evidence risk management strategies, and engage in advocating for their own well-being. Katsulis and Blankenship (Chapter Five) offer a comprehensive account of female drug users by providing a composite case study. They present “Mary”, a culmination of the personalities, risk factors, and contexts of over forty completed interviews. They show how, despite Mary’s risk factors, life, and social context, she still utilizes substance abuse programs as a crucial path to recovery, remains capable of making changes and decisions that positively affect her by taking control of her life, and learns to exert agency and utilize empowerment.

Part two continues on to examine how agents in drug courts can guide female substance users through the system and how females negotiate gender while in treatment. Saum and Gray (Chapter Six) argue that drug courts provide a more collaborative environment with proactive agents that allow female users to communicate effectively, exchange information, remain engaged in treatment, and use positive reinforcement as a means to empower themselves. Kelley (Chapter Seven) illustrates that while in treatment, females operate best in a ‘wraparound’ model, a model that views females as holding a distinct gender status. This model considers codependency and inherent limitations that come beholden with an individual’s gender, race, and class status. Consistent with gender-specific arguments in crime, justice, and criminology, both chapters argue that when females are treated in an environment specific to the gendered aspects of their lives, they become empowered and show the desire, agency, and initiative to successfully integrate within pro-social society.

While each of the preceding chapters discusses female substance users’ agency and empowerment, the critical importance of the book appears in part three. The third section demonstrates the necessity of responding to female substance users and includes chapters that focus on existing policies (which are based either on the pathology or powerlessness model) and show how they devalue female agency and hinder empowerment. The chapter by Stephanie Hartwell (Chapter 9) focuses on dually diagnosed females and the difficulties they face upon reentry. Hartwell articulates that women that are dually diagnosed with mental disorders and substance abuse are trapped in a criminal justice system that lacks the opportunities for females to be educated, find employment, or attend to both of their diagnoses. Without addressing their social networks, opportunity structure and the meaning that women give their social roles, the dually diagnosed women will survive by the necessary means, in particular, the odds are high that they will return to hustling and working within the illicit economy. The chapter by Michele Berger (Chapter 10) focuses on empowerment strategies of HIV positive females, females who are often vilified with negative stereotypes and blame. Berger discusses the stigmas that female substance abusers that are HIV positive have to deal with from agents within the criminal justice system and society at large. She shows how agency can be developed through embracing life experiences and by using appropriate and available resources. By addressing stigma, providing resources and strategies for developing empowerment, these females become strong, active, and vocal advocates for both themselves and other females.

Part three suggests that in order to initiate agency and gain empowerment, policy must be tailored towards females and their circumstances within the drug economy. By focusing primarily on containment and security of offenders, the criminal justice system does not have a model that is conducive to female drug users. The book effectively calls on policy makers and the public to support a movement towards a gendered response to female drug users. By supporting agency that is already apparent in females which navigate the drug economy and helping guide them towards pro-social agency and empowerment, an important social need will be met.

The contributors clearly do not argue that female drug users are solely villains or victims, but indeed that they are somewhere in the middle. The overall point of this edited volume is that in order to provide support, initiate agency, and empower females to make pro-social decisions, society and policymakers must focus on their unique backgrounds, the social context which guides their decision making, and provide appropriate gender-specific social policies.   

In sum, this is an outstanding book. Anderson thoughtfully chose and organized contributions in a manner that would be applicable to students, policy makers and those who might not be well versed in the studies of women and substance abuse. Sociology, criminology, and addictions graduate students could benefit from this book as a supplement to course readings. Upper level undergraduates could focus on this as one of their texts in a research based or seminar course. The book is a must-read for any corrections and rehabilitation officials who are responsible for determining policy for females with substance abuse issues. Lastly, our state and national level policy makers would find this book useful for viewing female substance abusers in a new light, understanding the difficulties they face, and most importantly, creating gender-specific and gender appropriate policy.