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Addiction - A-Level Psychology notes
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AddictionAddiction A state characterised by compulsively engaging in rewarding stimuli despite the associated adverse consequences
Characteristics of addiction:
Physical dependence to a drug is evident when an individual needs to take the drug in order to feel ‘normal’. It can be
demonstrated by the presence of withdrawal symptoms if the individual abstains from the drug.
- Long-term use of drugs
- Ex. heroin, nicotine, sedatives and pain killers
- Heavy usage for several weeks
- Cravings
- Withdrawal syndrome: the person depends on the drug to avoid the symptoms of withdrawal
- Increased tolerance to the drug, so the user requires increased doses to obtain the desired effect
Psychological dependence Occurs when a drug becomes a central part of an individual’s thoughts, emotions and activities,
resulting in a strong urge to use the drug
- Cravings of the drug is an intense desire to repeat the experience. When these cravings aren’t met, the person
becomes anxious.
- Ex. gambling
Tolerance Means that an individual no longer responds to a drug in the same way, with the result that larger and larger
doses are needed in order to experience the same effects as before
- There are 3 ways in which tolerance can occur:
1. Metabolic tolerance: enzymes for metabolising the drug work more efficiently over time, which reduces the
concentration of the drug in the blood and sites of drug action, resulting in a weaker effect.
2. Changes in receptor density over prolonged use of drugs.
3. Learned tolerance: the person will have learned to function normally under the influence of the drug.
- Isbell et al 1955 tested prisoners by giving them the same daily dose of alcohol. At the start, prisoner showed
intoxicated signs of behaviour and high alcohol blood levels, however this reduced by the end of the 2 weeks,
due to increased tolerance to alcohol.
Withdrawal syndrome Can occur when a drug on which an individual is physically dependent is discontinued.
- Negative impact on the body: shaking, anxiety, insomnia irritability, loss of appetite, headaches: prove to find
the individual physically dependent on the drug
- Two phases of withdrawal:
1. Acute withdrawal: starts within hours of not using the drug lasting for weeks; intense physical cravings
2. Post-acute withdrawal: lasts for a few months or years; emotional and psychological turmoil as addicts
experience period of dysfunction and near-normality while the brain regenerates itself.
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