Disruption and Reformulation of Illicit Drug Markets Among New Orleans Evacuees

描述（由申请人提供）：本研究将系统地研究由于卡特里娜飓风和随后的新奥尔良洪水导致的非法药物市场（包括使用者和分销商）的变化。在卡特里娜飓风之前就有大量证据证明新奥尔良存在着猖獗的非法毒品市场。在卡特里娜飓风带来的前所未有的后果中，几乎所有的人口都成为了位于其他收容社区的新奥尔良撤离者（NOEs）。在初步研究中，我们提供了来自纽约市NOEs的报告，这些报告证实，在飓风过后的几周内，非法毒品市场受到了严重破坏或发生了变化——在那段时间里，快客、海洛因和大麻的供应量急剧下降。这次主要城市人口的疏散导致了拟议研究的具体目标：AIM a（毒品市场破坏）：检查卡特里娜飓风之前新奥尔良的非法毒品市场，并记录之后发生的变化。目的B（撤离人员进入新药市场）：调查NOE吸毒者如何在接收社区找到使用和/或销售的药物。AIM C（市场变化）：分析NOE吸毒者/分销商是否以及如何影响接收社区非法药物市场的变化。AIM D（毒品市场重组）：随着新奥尔良的重新人口和重建，调查非法毒品市场是否以及如何重组。专业人种学家将在新奥尔良、休斯顿和纽约进行研究。民族志学家将对非法毒品市场进行观察，并每年在三个地点分别与40名受访者进行个人定性访谈。他们还将在四年期间每年在每个地点进行8次焦点小组讨论；一个特定的焦点小组将由曾经/现在活跃于特定非法毒品市场（海洛因、快克、大麻和其他物质）的非政府组织组成。基于丰富定性数据的仔细分析和研究文章将记录新奥尔良非法毒品市场中断的影响，NOE吸毒者对接收城市休斯顿和纽约毒品市场的影响，以及新奥尔良毒品市场的预期重组。这项研究将提高对重大灾难后非法药物市场运作方式的科学理解，并为今后如何进一步削弱此类市场提供重要的政策指导。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This research will systematically study changes in illicit drug markets (including users and distributors) due to Hurricane Katrina and by the subsequent flooding of New Orleans. Considerable evidence available before Hurricane Katrina documents the existence of vigorous illegal drug markets in New Orleans. In the unprecedented aftermath of Katrina almost the entire population became New Orleans evacuees (NOEs) located in other host communities. In preliminary research, we provide reports from NOEs in New York City who confirm that illicit drug markets were significantly disrupted or changed in the weeks following the hurricane-the availability of crack, heroin, and marijuana declined drastically during that period. This evacuation of a major urban population leads to the specific aims of the proposed research: AIM A (Drug Market Destruction): To examine illegal drug markets in New Orleans before Hurricane Katrina and to document the changes that occurred afterwards. AIM B (Evacuees entry into New Drug Markets): To investigate how NOE drug users locate drugs to use and/or sell in the receiving communities. AIM C (Market Changes): To analyze whether and how NOE drug users/distributors influence changes in illicit drug markets in the receiving communities. AIM D (Reformulation of Drug Markets): As New Orleans is repopulated and rebuilt, to investigate whether and how illicit drug markets reformulate themselves. Professional ethnographers will conduct the research in New Orleans, Houston, and New York City. Ethnographers will make observations of illicit drug markets and complete personal qualitative interviews with 40 respondents at each of the three sites annually. They will also conduct 8 focus groups annually at each site over a four year period; a given focus group will be composed of NOEs who were/are active in a specific illicit drug market (heroin, crack, marijuana, and other substances). Careful analyses and research articles based upon the rich qualitative data will document the impact of the disruption of New Orleans' illicit drug markets, the impact of NOE drug users on the drug markets in the receiving cities of Houston and NYC, and the anticipated reformulation of drug markets in New Orleans. This research will improve scientific understanding of the ways that illicit drug markets function in the wake of a major disaster, and provide important policy guidance about how to further weaken such markets in the future.