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Although there has been much important research on many aspects of drug use, surprisingly little consensus exists among researchers on how to categorize, and thus how to measure the use [...], This article considers the drug classifications and terms widely used in American survey research, and compares these to the classifications and terms used by drug users. We begin with a critical review of drug classification systems oriented to public policy, health services and survey research. We then consider the results of a pile sort exercise we conducted with 76 respondents within a study of Southeast Asian American adolescent and young adult drug users in Northern California. The pile sort aimed to clarify how respondents handled specific terms related to Ecstasy and methamphetamines. Like survey researchers, the respondents tended to separate Ecstasy from methamphetamines, but unlike survey researchers, they also created taxonomies based on consumption method and the social contexts of use. We suggest these differences reflect the tendency for survey researchers to standardize persons and experiences, and for drug users to represent their experiences as hybrid and diverse. KEY WORDS: Drug classification, qualitative methods, Ecstasy. methamphetamine, Asian American.

Public health policies related to alcohol generally and bars or other on-premise alcohol outlets specifically typically characterize bars as discrete and relatively homogenous units consisting of the physical setting, the [...], This article considers social roles and relationships of the patrons, staff and owners of bars as critical factors determining adherence to public health policies, and specifically California's smoke-free workplace law. Specific elements of social organization in bars affecting health policy include the community within which the bar is set, the unique identity the bar creates, the bar staff and patrons who enact this identity, and their bar society. These elements were found to contribute to the development of power relations within the bar and solidarity against the outside world, resulting in either resistance to or compliance with smoke-free workplace policy. KEY WORDS: Bars, taverns, drinking contexts, social organization, observational studies, ethnography