Rationalities of Drug Testing and their Social Consequences

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Henning Schmidt-Semisch
• Subject Area: Empirical Social Research
• Term: from 2013 to 2016
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 230509974

In recent years drug testing for illegal drug use has become more widespread, with tests being more routinely undertaken in various areas of life. Hereby drug use becomes more visible.Against this backdrop our project seeks to analyse the rationalities and intentions behind this growth in testing; by assessing its use in various settings such as the workplace, education, traffic and the family unit. Of particular interest will be the relationship between health and economic and moral motivations behind testing in the various settings. Also under analysis will be the social consequences of the respective testing practices and whether links can be made between the social consequences and the specific rationalities of the given tests. Hence, in addition to the context-specific consequences, the context-over-reaching consequences will also be considered, i.e. emphasis will be placed on the effects of the test practices for the individual in terms of aid, punishment, self-governance or social exclusion. By undertaking a content analysis of Internet blogs and Internet forums, and by interviewing experts in the field this project will first have carried out a "quality overview" of drug testing in Germany. By using open, semi-structured interviews with both the groups carrying out the tests and the persons tested, and by document analysis, the project will secondly deeper analyse test rationalities and consequences for three contrasting and paradigmatic contexts of everyday life.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants