Janet Jones, a PhD candidate in Philosophy has been recognized for her wonderful dissertation work titled “It Probably Won’t Help Anyway: How Stigma Hurts Health Care Access for Persons with an Addiction” and is the recipient of the Vanier Canada Graduate Scholarship for her work.
As a doctoral student, Janet’s research looks at drug addiction and the social construct of ‘the addict.’ Her research considers how theories regarding addiction impact how ‘the addict’ is perceived and understood. Drug addicted people are typically construed as not having agency or freedom of choice. “If you think about the number of people who recover from addiction, it's hard to agree with any theory of addiction that characterizes the addict as some completely powerless, non-autonomous individual,” Janet says. It is at the intersection of this paradox in understanding that Jones’ research gains its foothold.
“Addicts often report that what makes recovery possible is not their own willpower, but the help and support of others.” Janet says. “It's telling that in 12-step based groups, one of the keys to staying sober is to help others.” She is interested in this field of study because of her previous experiences working with people with addictions. Having worked and volunteered with the Cambridge Recovery Homes, and as a dedicated member of the Waterloo Region Integrated Drug Strategy Initiative (WRIDS—specifically the Recovery and Rehabilitation Committee) Jones has seen the impacts of addiction. She has also lost friends to addiction. [...]