Pearson BTEC National Applied Psychology: Book 2

Defining addiction Content area A1: Psychological definition of health, addiction and stress Specification terms Addiction A mental health problem in which an individual takes a substance or engages in a behaviour that is pleasurable but eventually becomes compulsive with harmful consequences. Behavioural addiction Occurs when someone compulsively continues a behaviour and experiences withdrawal when they stop it. Conflict When two or more things have competing demands, creating a clash. Dependence (salience) is indicated either by a compulsion to keep taking a drug/continue a behaviour (psychological dependence) or indicated by withdrawal symptoms (physical dependence). Mood alteration Changing a person’s emotional state. May be caused by addictive drugs and behaviour. Physiological addiction Dependence on a substance, shown when an addict gives it up and experiences withdrawal symptoms. Relapse Reverting to addiction after a period of giving up. Tolerance A reduction in response to a drug, so that the addicted individual needs more to get the same effect. Withdrawal A set of symptoms that develop when the addicted person abstains from or reduces their drug use. Adrian’s story The World Health Organization recognises two behavioural addictions (as opposed to addictions involving substances such as heroin). One is gambling, which we cover in detail later in this unit. The other is video gaming. At the height of his addiction, Adrian was playing online multiplayer games for up to 16 hours each day. At the time he was 25 years old with a job and a family. He worked from home as a software developer, so he could easily find the time to play games. But as he was paid by the hour, Adrian found himself getting into deeper and deeper financial trouble. He and his partner argued frequently about his behaviour. Each time, Adrian promised to change and for a while reduced his playing time. He became moody and depressed, so always went back to his old ways, preferring the short-term rush over any improvements in his relationship. ‘ When I wasn ’ t playing games, I was thinking about playing games. ’ (Based on various case studies.) Physiological and behavioural addiction We are all familiar with a range of addictions, such as drug addiction and gambling addiction. But what is addiction ? For example, can you be addicted to your mobile phone or to sunbeds? Addiction is a complex mental health disorder. People can become addicted to a substance (such as heroin) or to a behaviour (such as gambling) because it produces pleasurable experiences. People persist despite the harmful consequences. Classifying addiction There are several different kinds of addiction, which are usually grouped into two main categories – physiological and behavioural . What counts ‘officially’ as an addiction in the UK is determined by the International classification of diseases (ICD). The current edition (at the time of writing) is the ICD-11 which has a large category called ‘Disorders due to substance use or addictive behaviours’. ‘Substance use’ refers to drugs such as cocaine, alcohol, caffeine and many others. Only two behavioural addictions are officially recognised – gambling and gaming. The ICD-11 also identifies several behavioural addictions that might one day be included, such as internet use, shopping and sex. Physiological addiction The key aspect of addiction is its physiological effect (physiological means ‘of your body’). There are two signs that indicate when a person is physically/physiologically addicted to a substance: 1. When a person stops taking the substance (or engaging in the behaviour) they experience withdrawal effects. This is likely to lead to relapse. 2. Over time, the person needs a bigger dose of the substance to get the same effect (known as tolerance ). We cover two examples of physiological addiction later in this unit – smoking and alcohol. But what about chocolate? People who eat chocolate may well show psychological signs of withdrawal if they are deprived (e.g. cravings). But psychologists believe that chocolate ‘addiction’ is not a true addiction because tolerance does not occur. Chocolate does contain mood-altering chemicals, but only in very small amounts. So, chocolate ‘addiction’ is probably more cultural than physiological. Behavioural addiction A person can become addicted to a behaviour (such as gambling) rather than a chemical substance (such as smoking). They are judged to be addicted because the behaviour produces the same physical effects as a chemical substance, including tolerance and withdrawal. Two examples we cover later in the unit are shopping and gambling. But what about mobile phone use? Is that a behavioural addiction ? Many people show signs of being dependent on using their mobiles. There is withdrawal – cravings and signs of negative emotional states such as anger, irritability and anxiety . There is even tolerance, the need to use a mobile progressively more often and in more situations. This is why mobile overuse is very likely to become an officially recognised addiction in the near future. ( Can a person be addicted to chocolate? 12 Unit 3: Health psychology