Public disturbance is actions that violate public order or moral or other behaviour that is interpreted as a threat to the normal routine of life of the society. Examples of such crimes are prostitution, pornography, gambling, vagrancy, public drunkenness and drug use. Often these disorders are called “crimes without victims” because they are difficult to accurately identify the victims of violations (C. Bartol & A. Barol, 2016).
Latest statistics show that almost 80% of crimes are committed while intoxicated. Public disturbance under the influence of alcohol unfortunately occurs quite often. Control over one's own behaviour is reduced; the person is deprived of a sense of responsibility. But a drunken state is not justified if the person has committed an offense, does not remove the responsibility from him, but on the contrary, it becomes an aggravating factor. In addition, drinking is able to harm other people’s and their own health, and doctors do not always manage to save their lives.
This research deals with the literature review of the empirical psychology articles of modern psychology scholars on the subject of public disturbance under the influence of alcohol and marijuana and the comparison of their results.
Accoridng to Klingemann’s article “Alcohol and its social consequences – the forgotten dimension” (2001) in 40–80% of cases of public disturbance the person who is responsible had been drinking. In his article Klingemann relies on specific numbers and statistics: in cases of public disturbance not only the disturber is often found under the influence of alcohol but the victims of such a disturbance (40–65% of whom were intoxicated), as well as people who commit suicide or attempted suicide (20–50% of whom have been drinking). With the help of the statistics Klingemann shows the magnitude and significance of the problem.
Klingemann (2001) notes that “alcohol abuse often triggers public disturbing behavior such as public disturbance during football matches and racial violence”. In his research Klingemann focuses on the consequences of the alcohol and alcohol abuse.
According to the author of this article the measures that are taken by to fight the problem of public disturbance under the influence of alcohol are “unwarranted or ineffective course of action” (Klingemann, 2001). Klingemann does not propose a solution for the problem of alcohol abuse, he simply underlines that the changes in the course of handling the public disturbance and alcohol consumption should be made.
Swegan in his article “The Effects of Alcohol on Our Emotional Development” writes about his personal experience and how exactly he came up with his views and beliefs on the subject of alcoholism in general. His article is not focused on the subject of public disturbance under the influence of alcohol exclusively but, in my opinion, it has a lot of original and valid theories on the matter.
Swegan argues that the loss of morality is expressed primarily in the loss of shame. A number of scientific studies have proven that alcohol lowers the power of feeling shame. Loss of shame leads to the loss of conscience, truth and sincerity. Sober man with moral attitudes is ashamed to commit an offense. A man with a lost moral does not hesitate in the commission of a crime (2011). I agree that alcohol and its derivatives in any form or by any dose have a devastating impact first and foremost on human health, detrimental effect on his mental abilities, personality and morality.
Drunkenness and alcoholism disfigure life of both the individual and the whole society. Swegan notes convincingly that the consumption of alcohol enlarges the number of injuries, accidents, crimes and deaths in several times. Drinking alcohol even in small causes disorientation, the increase of self-confidence, without provided skill and experience (2011).
I find his ideas concerning alcohol consumption to be if not unique than rather refreshing. The author uses pronoun “I” and in such a way makes the matter personal. The reader manages to attract the attention of the reader to such an important problem as alcohol abuse and its treatment.
In the article “The Effects of Alcohol on Our Emotional Development” human behaviour is determined by the relationship between the processes of excitation and inhibition. The ratio of these processes affects qualities such as attentiveness, humility, prudence. Swegan notes that even in small doses, alcohol does not only excite but also violates the correctness of nervous activity (2011).
Another research dealing with the question of alcohol being the reason of public disturbance is the work of Rogers, R. G., Boardman, J. D., Pendergast, Ph. M., Lawrence, E. M. “Drinking Problems and Mortality Risk in the United States” (2015). This study focuses on the idea that alcohol and the consequences of its abusing can frequently have distinct impact on behaviour and mortality of a person.
Under the influence of alcohol a person might lose a feeling of restraint, embarrassment, and fear of the consequences of his actions; he is more interested in living the moment. According to Rogers et al. (2015) drinking alcohol can be very dangerous, especially for individuals predisposed to aggressive behaviour. Further alcohol poisoning leads to a responses distortion of the nervous system to external stimuli.
The conclusion can be made that a person under the influence of alcohol can easily commit an offense. Rogers et al. (2015) note that drunkenness often does not bring anything new to the motivation of person’s actions, but identifies and implements the desires, inclinations, intentions that he formed long before the intoxication.
But unfortunately alcohol abuse is not the only reason causing public distress. Today, the evidence of the possible negative impact of marijuana on personal behaviour is increasing. The scientific movement and public opinion aimed at the legalization of marijuana in the United States, Canada and many countries in Europe, contributed to the resumption of the discussion about the impact of this element on the brain, and whether its usage can provoke the individuals to commit crimes.
There are more than 400 different chemicals and essential psychotropic elements contained in marijuana. Some of these compounds affect the human short-term memory. When smoking marijuana the incoordination movements, seizures, paranoia, increased heartbeat can be observed.
Gruber & Rogowska (2009) in “Altered Affective Response in Marijuana Smokers: an FMRI study” show that marijuana causes changes in brain function during tasks requiring self-control, including inhibition and decision-making. Studies in animals and humans indicate that marijuana - highly addictive substance, particularly with regular use for long periods.
Gruber & Rogowska research states that marijuana can cause alteration of the emotions and personal perception of reality; it can have a negative impact over a particular situation but it does not have that many cases of public distress if compared with the statistics of public disturbance under the influence of alcohol.
Castillo in her article called “Marijuana vs. Alcohol: The Effects Psychoactive Drugs Have on Physical and Mental Health” focuses on the comparison of consequences after using marijuana and alcohol (2015). The author starts with noting the reason of the research. Castillo notes that marijuana and alcohol are frequently compared in order to find out which of these two elements causes more damage to human physical and mental health (2015).
He author thoroughly describes the effect of using and abusing marijuana and alcohol separately. This research is based on the ground of newspaper articles and medical articles and represents the results obtained in the USA, Canada and Australia. The information of this article is presented in a clear way; it has an informative and a precisely formulated conclusion it which it is noted that the way a person behaves under the influence of marijuana and alcohol differs depending on how much a person takes, I may also depend on genetic predispositions (Castillo, 2015).
Recent findings show that, although the general cognitive abilities remain the same, long-term use of marijuana can cause subtle but persistent violations of the executive functions, including concentration, associative thinking and analysis of large volumes of information. On the other hand, it is difficult to determine the significance of the effects of these disorders on the person's ability to function adequately in society.
According to all presented in this research sources alcohol or marijuana consumption impairs cognitive abilities and social behavior changes. All the scholars agree that alcohol can be the reason of uncontrolled and aggressive behavior that cause public disturbance. The results of presented sources are united: alcohol consumption needs to be controlled.
On the question of public disturbance under the influence of marijuana different opinions are presented. Gruber & Rogowska (2009) and Castillo (2015) agree that the influence of marijuana on the committing of public disturbance of criminal offence has not yet been proved or properly studied.
Thus, more research is needed, focusing on the use and effects of the consequences use of marijuana. Such findings will help to clarify some issues regarding the interaction of marijuana, the brain and the human psyche.
References
Bartol, C. & Bartol, A. (2016). Criminal Behavior: A Psychological Approach. New York: Pearson Education.
Klingemann, H. (2001). Alcohol and its Social Consequences – the Forgotten Dimension. World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe.
Gruber, S. A., Rogowska J. (2009). “Altered Affective Response in Marijuana Smokers: an FMRI study.” Drug Alcohol Dependence. 105(1-2): 139-53.
Castillo, S. (2015, May). Marijuana vs. Alcohol: The Effects Psychoactive Drugs Have On Physical And Mental Health. Medical Daily. Retrieved from http://www.medicaldaily.com/marijuana-vs-alcohol-effects-psychoactive-drugs-have-physical-and-mental-health-332094
Swegan, W. E. (2011). The Effects of Alcohol on Our Emotional Development. Retrieved form http://hindsfoot.org/bsv02psy.html
Rogers, R. G., Boardman, J. D., Pendergast, Ph. M., Lawrence, E. M. (2015, June). Drinking Problems and Mortality Risk in the United States. Drug and Alcohol Dependence. Volume 151, p. 38–46. doi: 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2015.02.039
