THEORIES OF ADDICTION

Theories of Addiction

Table of Contents

Chapter 4: Theories of addiction3

4.1 Introduction3

4.2 What is a drug? Is paan a drug?6

4.2.1 Drug has no clear category8

4.2.2 Drug definitions change over time place12

4.2.4 Is the term “drug” socially constructed?15

4.2.5 A working definition for drugs18

4.3 Why do people take drugs?21

4.3.1 Traditional use of drugs (herbs)22

4.4 Has the traditional functional role of drugs changed?27

4.5 Drug use, misuse and Addiction (Dependence)29

4.5.1 Psychological theories of addiction31

4.5.2 Brain Chemistry, learning and Addiction34

4.5.2.1. Reward pathway36

4.5.3 Behavioural pharmacology and addiction38

4.5.4 The cognitive behavioural theories39

4.5.5 The influence of social and cultural factors40

4.5.6. The symptomatic model42

4.6 Dependence syndrome; A bio psycho social model of addiction44

4.7 Tobacco (Nicotine) addiction50

4.8 Conclusion53

References55

Chapter 4: Theories of addiction

4.1 Introduction

One of the difficulties I had in coming to terms with this thesis was about the way I was going to make sense of the data and present my findings in ways that might reveal a little-known social practice and, maybe, contribute to new ways of thinking about and theorising the consumption of illicit or disapproved-of substances. However much I was suspicious of the idea that paan is addictive, or even if it is addictive, that is immaterial, mainly due to my desire to find something “new”, which I never knew before and also my denial to use my own professional background as a lens in this study, the findings seem to be indicating otherwise this is a really clumsy sentence. My research problem was that if paan is addictive then it must be classified as a mind altering substance, “a drug”, a term which replaces with something like…not with. There are several reasons for this reluctance. The term addiction is often associated with drug use. For many people the word 'drug' conjures up stereotypical images and terms related to heroin, addicts, junkies, loss of control, cannabis, cocaine and several other concepts with negative connotations. I believe this is mainly due to our preconceived ideas about drugs being

(a) Illicit

(b) Addictive

(c) Associated with problematic behaviour. No need to space like this

However there are substances such as tea /coffee/chocolate/tobacco/alcohol and prescribed medicines which can alter mood and even have profound effects on mental functions. Can we categorise them as drugs? So the question “in what sense is paan a 'drug'? To what extent is it meaningful or useful to describe it as such and what are the implications of adopting an approach that sees such consumption as addictive paan a drug” needs to be explored. In my review of research the term addiction came up in the majority of the literature related to betel quid and areca nut use. In addition during the field work, while talking to shop keepers, trading officers, health professionals and ordinary people the concern of paan as an addictive substance emerged as a theme. The fact that paan has two stimulants in its mixture, tobacco and areca nut, cannot be ignored. The addictive nature of tobacco is well established. It is also well known that the UK government's' 'island wide “Stop Tobacco” what is this? ...