Illegal drug use is one of the most common problems that affect Americans every day. Joyce B. Shannon (2010) found that “more than 35 million people used illicit drugs or abused prescription drugs in 2007” (p. 11). The impact can be seen in communities of all types and in people with low and high income levels. Drug use is at the root of many problems in our society. Joyce B. Shannon (2010) referenced a 2004 survey that found “32 percent of state prisoners and 26 percent of federal prisoners” admitted to currently serving prison sentences for crimes committed while “under the effect of drugs". (page 102). The reasoning behind this issue will be explained from a psychological, sociological and anthropological perspective including the benefit of an interdisciplinary perspective to understand the cause of drug use and its effect on society. The Psychological Perspective on the Issue According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) (2010), “Scientists estimate that genetic factors account for between 40 and 60 percent of a person's vulnerability to addiction” (p. 8). This statistic highlights how significant an individual's genetic makeup is in relation to addictive substances (p. 8). There are further trends that lead to higher levels of addiction. NIDA (2010) also found that drug experimentation at a young age can lead to an increased risk of more intense and harmful drug abuse (p. 9). Finally, NIDA explains that one of the scariest ways risk increases is based on the continuous method of drug delivery into the body (p. 9). NIDA (2010) found that if the drug was smoked or injected, the user will have increased their “potential for addiction” (p. 9). ...... half of the paper ......ences (Chapter 6). Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.umuc.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=11&hid=6 &sid=637e49c6-a25a-433c-a0cb-18065c5e7e1b%40sessionmgr13Hirschman, E.C., (September 1, 1992) . Consciousness of addiction: Toward a general theory of compulsive drinking. Journal of Consumer Research, 19(2), doi: 10.1086/209294National Institute on Drug Abuse, (August 2010). Drugs, brain, and behavior: The science of addiction. Retrieved from http://www.nida.nih.gov/scienceofaddiction/sciofaddiction.pdfSanders, B., Lankenau, S.E., Jackson-Bloom, J., & Hathazi, D. (2008). Multiple drug use and polydrug use among homeless itinerant youth. Journal of Ethnicity in SubstanceAbuse, 7(1), Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.umuc.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=15&hid=104&sid=5a5338b2-d34e-4e52-9e55-bdde65b8435a %40sessionmons111