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Waking up to sleepiness: Modafinil, the media and the pharmaceuticalisation of everyday/night life

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Williams, Simon J. (Simon Johnson), 1961-, Sealey, Clive, Boden, Sharon, Lowe, Pam and Steinberg, Deborah Lynn. (2008) Waking up to sleepiness: Modafinil, the media and the pharmaceuticalisation of everyday/night life. Sociology of Health and Illness, Vol.30 (No.6). pp. 839-855. ISSN 0141-9889

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9566.2008.01084.x

Abstract

This paper examines the social construction of the new wakefulness-promoting drug Modafinil (brand name Provigil) in the British press. Key themes in this newspaper coverage include the potential 'uses' and 'abuses' of this drug in relation to: (i) medical conditions; (ii) lifestyle choices; (iii) military operations; and (iv) sporting competition. The British press, we show, play a dual role in reporting on these trends and developments: on the one hand constructing this as something of a 'wonder drug' in relation to the treatment of a number of medical complaints or conditions, on the other hand articulating and amplifying a range of cultural concerns and anxieties about the non-medical 'uses' and 'abuses' of this drug, both now and in the future. These issues, it is argued, are best interpreted in terms of media concerns over the pharmaceuticalisation rather than the medicalisation of everyday/night life. The paper concludes with some further thoughts and reflections on these issues, including the potential reworking of notions of 'pharmaceutical Calvinism' and the 'elective affinity' between this 'smart' new drug and the spirit of (bio)capitalism.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine
Divisions:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Sociology
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Sociology, medical, Drugs, Mass media, Wakefulness
Journal or Publication Title:	Sociology of Health and Illness
Publisher:	Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
ISSN:	0141-9889
Official Date:	28 April 2008
Volume:	Vol.30
Number:	No.6
Page Range:	pp. 839-855
Identification Number:	10.1111/j.1467-9566.2008.01084.x
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Access rights to Published version:	Restricted or Subscription Access
Funder:	British Academy (BA)
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URI:	http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/id/eprint/489