TY - JOUR
T1 - Combined use of cocaine and alcohol
T2 - A violent cocktail? A systematic review
AU - van Amsterdam, Jan
AU - van den Brink, Wim
N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2023 The Authors
PY - 2023/11/1
Y1 - 2023/11/1
N2 - It is generally believed that the use of alcohol and cocaine alone and especially in combination elicits aggression and violent behaviour. Though there is overwhelming proof that heavy alcohol use is associated with violence, this is not the case for cocaine. Still, in the popular press and by spokesmen of the police, cocaine use is seen as a cause of violent incidents. In the current systematic review, available data from human studies on the relation between cocaine and violent behaviour is presented. In particular, we present scientific data on the acute induction of violence by cocaine alone, as well as, that by the combination of cocaine and alcohol known to be frequently used simultaneously. Results: show that there is only weak scientific evidence for the acute induction of violent behaviour by cocaine, either when used alone or in combination with alcohol. Based on these data we were also able to refute misconceptions about the relation between cocaine and violence published in the popular press and governmental reports, because it appeared that there was hardly any empirical support for this widely shared opinion. Probably, contextual factors, including cocaine use disorder and personality disorder, may better explain the assumed association between cocaine and violence.
AB - It is generally believed that the use of alcohol and cocaine alone and especially in combination elicits aggression and violent behaviour. Though there is overwhelming proof that heavy alcohol use is associated with violence, this is not the case for cocaine. Still, in the popular press and by spokesmen of the police, cocaine use is seen as a cause of violent incidents. In the current systematic review, available data from human studies on the relation between cocaine and violent behaviour is presented. In particular, we present scientific data on the acute induction of violence by cocaine alone, as well as, that by the combination of cocaine and alcohol known to be frequently used simultaneously. Results: show that there is only weak scientific evidence for the acute induction of violent behaviour by cocaine, either when used alone or in combination with alcohol. Based on these data we were also able to refute misconceptions about the relation between cocaine and violence published in the popular press and governmental reports, because it appeared that there was hardly any empirical support for this widely shared opinion. Probably, contextual factors, including cocaine use disorder and personality disorder, may better explain the assumed association between cocaine and violence.
KW - Aggression
KW - Alcohol
KW - Co-use
KW - Cocaine
KW - Simultaneous use
KW - Violence
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85173750042&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jflm.2023.102597
DO - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jflm.2023.102597
M3 - Review article
C2 - 37832170
SN - 1752-928X
VL - 100
JO - Journal of forensic and legal medicine
JF - Journal of forensic and legal medicine
M1 - 102597
ER -