Staff
Iain McPhee
M.Sc Alcohol and Drugs Studies; BA (Hons) Psychology &
Sociology; Pg Cert in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education; Pg Cert Research; member of the Higher
Education Academy (HEA).
Lecturer in Alcohol and Drugs Studies
iain.mcphee@uws.ac.uk
Tel: 0141 848 3524
Fax: 0141 848 3891
Room: L104
Current Staff role
Organise, implement & evaluate teaching & learning material on Alcohol and Drug use as part of Postgraduate teaching and learning in Drug & Alcohol Studies. Contribute to writing level 11 distance learning materials.
Organise student learning through web based learning platform Blackboard. Write and deliver core teaching & learning materials for B.Sc Health Studies. Provide learning and administration support to B. Sc. Health Studies part time teaching staff for the module 'alcohol drugs, policy and prevention'.
I have worked within the Drugs and Alcohol field since 1991. I have experience of working in a variety of drugs projects and therapeutic institutions and with a range of drug using types. I have been delivering specialist lectures in for Alcohol & Drugs Studies since 1996 to a wide variety of students.
PhD research
‘The hidden social worlds of non treatment seeking drug users in Scotland’.
The research is based on qualitative interviews with a sample of hard to reach ‘intentionally unseen’ drug takers who never sought treatment for drug or alcohol use, and had never been in prison due to their use of drugs.
This research focuses on a range of social networks of drug takers of all ages, and both sexes who were neither recruited from treatment agencies or events where drug taking is commonplace (for example clubs). The participants were recruited from a wide range of age groups (21-52) and geographical locations within Scotland (Edinburgh, Glasgow, and the Scottish border regions. These drug users did not regard themselves as addicts, although uncontrolled patterns of misuse were described. The focus is not on a clinical population; where the narratives of addiction are often functional rather than a truth per se in order to access scarce resources or to protect self esteem (Davies 1992, 1997) or on the risk management of young clubbers who control their use to weekends and social events (Neale 2009).
None have sought treatment, nor been in prison. All have been taking drugs for many years (with one exception) with intermittent periods of controlled use, abstinence, and patterns which can only be described as abuse. This suggests that drug taking does not follow predictable patterns from sensible recreational, hedonistic, pleasurable use to problematic use, and finally abstinence. The stages are neither linear nor discrete moving from one stage to another, but that drug ‘career’ trajectories are fluid and reflexive (Yates 2008). The participants included in this research were a hidden population (Watters & Biernacki 1989), and a type of drug taker that is seldom accessed or researched. From an initial group of 26 participants, 24 interviews were recorded, transcribed and analysed, from this data various patterns emerged, and form the basis of the thesis.
Commissioned Research and Projects:
McMahon J Barrie K McPhee I and Zia W (2005) Evaluation of Renfrewshire’s Drug Services for Young People. Commissioned by Renfrewshire Council
McMahon J Barrie K and McPhee I (2005) An Evaluation of Alcohol Problem Measures for Inverclyde; Commissioned Inverclyde Council.
Publications
McPhee, I, Duffy, T., Martin C.R. (2011) 'Optimising service provision by non-specialist advisors: the impact of alcohol and drugs awareness training on perceived levels of role legitimacy, adequacy and satisfaction', Journal of Drugs and Alcohol Today, submitted for review.
Marks, D., Soderstrom, T., Sneider A, Laxton, T., McPhee, I., (2011) Distance, online and Campus Higher Education: Reflections on Learning Outcomes and Teaching Condition, British Journal of Educational Technology, submitted for review.
Iain McPhee, Colin Martin, Tim Laxton, Anthony Sneider, & Dougie Marks (2011), ‘Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome: a Real Occurrence or Another Way of Stigmatising the Disadvantaged? British Journal of Wellbeing, submitted for review.
Iain McPhee, Colin Martin, Anthony Sneider, Tim Laxton, (2011) Exploring the consequences of how Scotland interprets the UK Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, Journal of Drugs and Alcohol today, submitted for review.
McPhee, I. (2008) 'Use of a virtual learning environment (VLE) to support learning in online and on campus postgraduate students: observations from 2002 to 2005'. Journal of The University of the Fraser Valley Research Review volume 2: issue 3.
McPhee, I; Duffy T. Martin C.R. (2009) ‘The perspectives of drug users within the social context of drug prohibition’, Drugs and Alcohol today, Vol. 9 issue 2, Pavilion Journals, Brighton.
Research
Completed a report for the Scottish Alcohol Commission.
I completed an evaluation of specialist training to "Connexions" for Harrow Drug Action Team in London in 2005.
I recently conducted research titled: An exploration of West of Scotland drug market changes: a factor in assessing the impact of drugs enforcement policy and practices, completed in May 2006.
I also completed a research paper on "blended learning" in the addictions field in 2008, and a paper on using enhanced audio feedback as formative assessment on postgraduate modules in alcohol and drugs studies in 2006.
Qualifications
I have a Masters degree in Alcohol and Drugs Studies from The University of The West Of Scotland. I have an Honours Degree in Psychology and Sociology from Glasgow Caledonian University. I have a counseling skills qualification from Langside College. I have a full post-graduate teaching qualification from University of The West Of Scotlands' Centre for Learning and Teaching (Pg Cert. Teaching and Learning in Higher Education), and I am a full professional member of The Higher Education Academy (HEA). I have a postgraduate Certificate in Research Methods from the University of the West of Scotland Business School (Pg Cert. in Research Methods).
Conferences
July 2010 ICICTE 2010, Corfu, Greece 'comparison of equated learning for online and on campus postgraduate students on academic achievement' a presentation, and paper delivered at http://www.icicte.org/ICICTE10Programme1.htm
July 2009 Inspiring people series Lecture presented at Dumfries Campus of UWS titled: Scotlands hidden population of drugs users'.
June 2009 School of Nursing and Midwifery 'Geting it right for Scotland's young people - promoting health and well being', UWS. Conference paper titled 'young people, drugs use and prohibition'.
June 2009 Glasgow Caledonian University, Glasgow. 'Scotland ten Years On' Conference paper: Issues of policy in Scotland related to drug users'.
May 2009: Stirling graduate School. Conference presentation titled 'Risk and identity, non treatment seeking drug users in Scotland'.
July 2007 Heraklion, Crete: Conference paper titled: Use of a virtual learning environment (VLE) to support learning in online and on campus postgraduate students: observations from 2002 to 2005.
Sept 2006 paper Evaluating the impact of ‘blended’ or ‘flexible learning’ in a Masters level module in Alcohol and Drug Studies, University of Paisley from 2001-2005, presented in an on line format.
April 2006 Paisley University Ayr campus - research conference paper Conference presentation - title: An exploration of West of Scotland drug market changes: a factor in assessing the impact of drugs enforcement policy and practices on market users.
Dec 2005 Paisley University Ayr campus - research conference paper Conference presentation - title: Evaluating the impact of ‘blended’ or ‘flexible learning’ in a Masters level module in Alcohol and Drug Studies, University of Paisley from 2000-2004.
Dec 2005 Durham University -research conference paper Conference presentation - title: Evaluating the impact of ‘blended’ or ‘flexible learning’ in a Masters level module in Alcohol and Drug Studies, University of Paisley from 2000-2004.
September 2005 consultant at Effective Interventions Unit (EIU) as part of case study research on impact of policing on communities (published in December 2005) presentation link
June 2005 Keele University Conference presentation - title: Evaluating the impact of ‘blended’ or ‘flexible learning’ in a Masters level module in Alcohol and Drug Studies, University of Paisley from 2000-2004.
May 2005 QAA Conference presentation at Grosvernor Hotel Glasgow- title: Evaluating the impact of ‘blended’ or ‘flexible learning’ in a Masters level module in Alcohol and Drug Studies, University of Paisley from 2000-2004.
March 2005 North East Wales Institute of Higher Education Conference presentation: title: Evaluating the impact of ‘blended’ or ‘flexible learning’ in a Masters level module in Alcohol and Drug Studies, University of Paisley from 2000-2004. http://www.newi.ac.uk/elearninghealth/files/presentations/
McPhee, I. (2004) The impact of drugs enforcement on preventing harms in drugs use. Presented at “The Appliance of Science; The application of evidence based interventions. Centre for Alcohol and Drug Studies: University of Paisley September 2004.
http://www.paisley.ac.uk/schoolsdepts/socialsciences/cads/conference/
External Activities
2001 – present
Consultant Expert witness for defence legal teams in illicit drugs cases in Scotland for the Nationwide Expert Witness Service.
1996-2000 and from 2002 - present
Provide a taught input at Scottish Police College, Tulliallan, Tulliallan Castle Kincardine, Alloa, FK10 4BE.
Present
Full member of Scottish Drugs Forum, Member of UK Harm Reduction Alliance, Full member of Higher Education Academy.
Part of the Publications committee for ICICTE, for the University of Forth Valley, Vancouver, CA.
http://www.icicte.org/ICICTE08_Pubs&PromCom.htm
Have acted as consultant for various media platforms including BBC
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/3030568.stm
Previous experience relevant to the field
1990-96. Over six years experience of working with homeless residents. Many of whom were drugs users while working on a part time basis with Blue Triangle Housing Association homeless unit in Glasgow City Centre. I also worked part time for Phoenix House in Glasgow in their residential rehabilitation Unit, and Blackhill Provanmill Drugs Project as a sessional drugs worker.
In 1996-1998 I was Project Leader of National Drugs Helpline (NDH) and National AIDS Helpline.
1998-2000, As Drugs Development Officer for Paisley Social Work area Team I examined the nature and extent of drugs misuse in the Renfrewshire area, compiling reports for the Argyll and Clyde ADAT.
1998-2000, I worked in conjunction with Strathclyde Police K Division Community Involvement Branch (CIB) delivering specialist training to Police Officers to deliver drugs awareness training (demand reduction) to young people in the Renfrewshire area. I have written & published 2 specialist drugs education magazines, and have written one specialist booklet on working with drug misusers for telephone counseling specialists for NDH.
I am presently a PhD student at University of Stirling, and work as a full time Lecturer in postgraduate Alcohol and Drugs Studies working from Paisley, Ayr, and Dumfries Campuses of the University of the West of Scotland.