A path forward for Swedish drug policy?

AIMS AND PREMISE: The primary aims of this article are to: describe some major aspects of the theoretical basis of the Swedish drug policy model, present alternative theoretical understandings which may pave the way for changes in drug policy, depict some problems with the Swedish model, introduce the primary principles for “the experimenting society”, and give concrete examples of when these have/have not been applied in Sweden. SOME FINDINGS: Sweden’s predominantly biochemical approach should be replaced by a biopsychosocial model. The idea that all non-medical consumption of drugs is abuse is counterproductive. Differences between recreational and problematic consumers are discussed. The question of people’s motives for taking drugs has not been incorporated into Swedish drug policy. The stepping-stone hypothesis is examined. It was found that recreational and problematic consumption do not co-vary, indicating that these are two essentially different phenomena. CONCLUSION: After four decades with the current Swedish drug policy model we are further from our pronounced goal of striving towards becoming a drug-free society than when we started. Access to, and demand for, drugs has continually increased, and our drug policies have caused serious collateral damage. Consequently, there is good reason to re-think the course we have chosen. The Swedish version of the war on drugs has failed to achieve its goals and it is time to make peace. It is time to accept that we will never be drug-free and therefore must learn to live with narcotics. As nobody knows what is the best way to achieve this, we should approach the task with humility. We need to put prestige aside and become “the experimenting society”; that is, one that would vigorously try out possible solutions and make stringent, multidimensional evaluations of outcomes. When the evaluation of a reform shows it to have been ineffective or harmful, we should try other measures.