The initial response to the problem was a familiar one-stricter law enforcement. More than 1% of the population was addicted to heroin, and drug-related AIDS deaths in Portugal were the highest in the entire European Union. In the 1980s, Portugal reeled under the onslaught of drug and drug-related problems. This is where the way Portugal dealt with its drug menace offers huge learning. For example, despite having a zero-tolerance attitude towards the drug menace, locking up millions in prisons and spending more than $50 billion a year on enforcement, the drug menace continues to haunt policymakers in the US. As was discussed in this column before (“Can the government solve all our problems?" 2 March 2017), when any social problem becomes more of an individual action in a private space, the ability of the government to intervene to solve the problem becomes more difficult.įrom a behaviour change perspective, the most significant consequence of bans is that it absolves the individual of the responsibility of solving the social evils he indulges in and hands over that responsibility to law enforcement agencies. As the underworld which now took over the business got more and more organized, the consumption levels went back to original levels and new problems like spurious liquor, gang wars and sale of other narcotic substances increased. When Vatican censured Just Love: A Framework For Christian Sexual Ethics by Margaret Farley, the book that was 142,982 on the Amazon Seller’s list rose to 16th position in a matter of few days.Īs soon as prohibition was announced, whether it was in the US or in Gujarat or in Meghalaya, the liquor trade moved underground. The individuals experience an increased motivation to indulge in the very behaviour that is forbidden. Whenever people believe that their freedom has been threatened, they enter into a reactance motivational state and act to regain their freedom. According to psychologist Jack Brehm, humans hate to lose any freedom. The more important question is of behaviour-what impact do these bans have on the very “wrong" behaviours policymakers want to curtail?Īll bans generate psychological reactance. So they will not miss an opportunity to use it. In the initial months of prohibition in the US, there was a 30% drop in alcohol consumption and decline in arrests for drunkenness.įor the politicians bans of any kind that consolidate some segment of their voter base and even show some immediate results are like manna from heaven. If any hurdles are placed in their path to consumption, many of them will curtail their drinking behaviour. The vast majority of alcohol consumers are occasional drinkers.
In the short term, some of the bans do show positive results.
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