Social Knowledge and Experiences with Legal Highs

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Abstract
Legal high products appear to have increased recently in terms of variety and use. However, such substances are ever present in society and the current cycle of popularity may be due to recent increases in social knowledge concerning these products. Examples of contemporary legal highs are presented and discussed in the context of social knowledge about their use and potential effects which preceed or accompany them. An experiment involving a novel legal high (Zoom®) is also described. Though the only pharmacological entity present in this product is caffeine, social knowledge represented it as being more similar to cocaine and amphetamines in the effects it would produce. The results showed that the nature and meaning of the legal high experience was, for many users, very similar to these stimulant drugs.