The public and many healthcare and criminal justice professionals continue to view substance use disorders as a moral failing. This perception can reinforce discriminatory policies and practices and further isolate and deter those struggling from seeking help.
The NORC at The University of Chicago is conducting a comprehensive study to measure the public’s view of policies, practices, attitudes, and laws related to addressing opioids in justice settings across the U.S. This study builds on the topics from the JCOIN AmeriSpeak Brief Opioid Stigma Survey and will also assess how support varies based on personal experiences with opioids or knowing someone who struggled with an OUD and variations by type of opioid and respondent characteristics. The research team will use a nationally representative survey panel and will administer two comprehensive surveys over a five year period.
Publications:
Study Team
PI: Bruce Taylor
• Assess the public’s knowledge about OUD and OUD treatment
• Understand the public’s perceptions of criminality around OUD and appropriateness of criminal justice interventions
• Assess if attitudes towards a response to OUD vary by type of opioid and characteristics of the respondent
• Understand what is the stigma associated with individuals addicted to opioids and other drugs and does it vary for different types of justice-involved individuals and does policy argumentation have an effect on stigma
• Understand what are the mechanisms in which opinions, attitudes, and stigma influence patient recovery
Survey