Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 28, 2025

Integrating Computerized Linguistic and Social Network Analyses to Capture Addiction Recovery Capital in an Online Community
Published on: May 31, 2019
Discourse of psychoactive substance dependents on their discursively constructed image
Sonia Regina Zerbetto1, Ana Carolina Acorinte1, Tatiana Ferraz de Araújo Alecrim1
1Universidade Federal de São Carlos. São Carlos, São Paulo, Brazil.
Objective:
to analyze the discourse of psychoactive substance users undergoing treatment regarding their image of themselves as drug dependent subjects, of other dependents and the social position assumed by them.
Method:
qualitative study conducted between March and September of 2016 through a semi-structured interview and drawings, based on the theoretical-methodological reference of French Discourse Analysis. Participation of 12 drug dependent subjects undergoing treatment in the service that substitutes the asylum.
Results:
The images that psychoactive substance dependents have of themselves and of chemically dependent subjects are associated with the image of a negative, diabolical, transgressive, sick and socially excluded individual.
Final Considerations:
The ideological effects of meanings produced by users' discourses reproduce the biological and moral model. Health professionals, including nurses, need to invest in discourses that address the psychosocial model to demythologize this stigmatizing image and modify their work practice.
Related Concept Videos
Drug Dependence
Substance Use Disorders Affecting Sleep
Understanding the concepts of physical dependence,...
Drug Abuse and Addiction: Pharmacological Phenomena
An Overview of Psychoactive Drugs
Stimulants such as cocaine, amphetamines, and nicotine enhance brain activity, leading to increased alertness, attention, and energy. These drugs typically raise heart rate, blood pressure, and body temperature. While they can induce feelings of euphoria, their misuse can result in severe health...
Hallucinogens and Psychedelics
Marijuana, derived from the dried leaves and flowers of the hemp plant, contains...
CNS Stimulants: Psychedelic Agents

