A digital-physical continuum of illegal drug markets

Networks, trust, and culture

Bibliographic Data

ID2301481
AuthorsEirik Jerven Berger (0000-0001-6279-2099, PROBA samfunnsanalyse, Oslo, Norway, corresponding author), Silje Anderdal Bakken (0000-0002-9086-9724, University of Oslo)
Year2025
Publication date2025-07-15
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueActa Sociologica (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0001-6993 • E-ISSN: 1502-3869
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/00016993251356344
OpenAlexW4412434481
LanguageEN
References cited66

Social relationships are a fundamental part of illegal drug markets. However, drug market categorizations, such as online/offline, open/closed, and public/private, overshadow the everyday purchase and sale of illegal drugs. Highlighting the significance of social relationships reveals the complexity and fluidity of real-life drug market activities. By using the economic sociological theory, we bridge the gap between online and offline drug market research by merging two datasets of qualitative interviews, focusing on Norway's physical and online drug markets. Combined the data consist of in-depth interviews with 100 market participants. We find that market relationships vary on a continuum between being fully digital to fully physical. Moreover, participants' positions on this continuum are not fixed on one market category. Individuals' participation is determined by several interconnected factors, including social networks, risk and trust, and drug and street culture. Hence, despite technological advancements and new possibilities, the purchase and sale of illegal drugs take place on a digital-physical continuum determined by social and relational factors

Business · Drug · Internet privacy · Political science · Psychiatry · Public relations · Computer Science · Crime, Illicit Activities, and Governance · Cybercrime and Law Enforcement Studies · HIV, Drug Use, Sexual Risk · Psychology