3.1.5 Aversion Therapy Evaluation (Add) Flashcards
(Antabuse) Niederhofer & staffen compared Antabuse to a placebo group, what methods did they use?
Self report methods
Screening of participants for 90 days
(Antabuse) niederhofer & staffen found Antabuse had greater what than placebo?
Abstinence from alcohol
(Antabuse) Jørgensen et al found those treated with Antabuse had more what?
Days until relapse and fewer drinking days
(Antabuse) why is it an issue that studies in to effectiveness of Antabuse aren’t long term?
Addiction required follow ups as chances of relapse are high
(Antabuse) why is it difficult to carry out placebo trials?
People will know what group they are in if they drink and don’t experience adverse effects - don’t have objective baseline for comparison
(Antabuse) what do samples tend to be and why is it an issue?
Small
Not generalisable to all alcoholics
(Antabuse) why is it an issue that there are few comparison studies between Antabuse and other treatments?
Don’t have a full picture to draw conclusions
(Rapid smoking) what is a strength?
You can self administer it - accessible
(Rapid smoking) why is research limited?
Less popular treatment now
(Rapid smoking) who did mcrobbie study?
100 smokers attending a clinic
(Rapid smoking) what did mcrobbie compare?
Rapid smoking vs a control condition of watching a video on giving up smoking
(Rapid smoking) mcrobbie found rapid smoking showed what?
Significant decrease in urge to smoke in the short term (24 hours/week)
(Rapid smoking) mcrobbie - at 4 weeks what happened to the difference between the groups?
No longer significant
(Rapid smoking) mcrobbie concluded that rapid smoking may be effective in the short term in doing what?
Reducing urges to smoke to kick start the process and then bring in other techniques
aversion therapy only treats the addictive behaviour, what does it not deal with?
the underlying cause
with aversion therapy a individual might switch the focus of their addiction onto another behaviour, what is this called?
symptom substitution
research into aversion therapy often does not look at what?
long term effectiveness
what might be needed alongside aversion therapy?
CBT to address deeper issues
(ethics) what issue might rapid smoking create?
physical harm
(ethics) how could rapid smoking cause physical harm?
it increases heart rate possibly causing heart palpitations
(ethics) why might consent be an issue with long term alcoholics?
alcohol can cause changes in brain structure - brain damage
(ethics) harmful effects can create an issue of compliance, what can this create problems with?
effectiveness - people may drop out
(ethics) how can compliance issues be overcome with Antabuse? and what other issues does this raise?
Antabuse implants which are inserted into the abdomen and slowly release Antabuse
removes right to withdraw
(ethics) what is an ethical alternative to aversion therapy?
in vitro techniques, more ethical way of achieving same association - imagine the unpleasantness
(ethics) what may be an issue of in vitro techniques?
might not work
addicts are already aware of the negative consequences of their addiction
(social) how much does the NHS spend on Antabuse?
just under £2.25 million
(social) how many alcoholics are not receiving help despite doubled spending on drugs like Antabuse?
1.1 million
(social) what will investment into treatment of addiction save?
money in the long term
(social) “no quick fix report” - how much does alcohol abuse cost the tax payer a year?
£21 billion
(social) “no quick fix report” - how much does alcohol abuse cost the NHS?
£3.5 billion
(social) “no quick fix report” - alcohol abuse costs £21 billion a year in which 3 areas?
the NHS
Benefits
damage & alcohol related crimes
(social) why is it important that the right treatment decisions are made for addiction?
addiction can cause breakdown of families, homelessness, debt and crime
cost vs. benefits
