Addiction - Risk Factors Flashcards
Risk factors in development of addiction?
Stress, peers, age, personality
Weaknesses of risk factors in addiction?
Age bias
Age bias in risk factors in addiction?
Most research is on younger groups, but Helfer found 17% of Swiss women took pain killers or sleeping pills everyday (less obvious)
Types of stress?
Everyday and traumatic
Research on everyday stress?
NIDA
NIDA on stress?
Individuals use drink, smoking, drugs, alcohol etc as a means of coping with daily stressors, e.g. money, workplace, relationships
Examples of traumatic stressors?
Severe, chronic stressors such as child abuse, loss, PTSD
Research on traumatic stress?
Cleck and Blendy
Cleck and Blendy?
The more significant and LT the stressor (child abuse), the more likely it’d cause initiation
Research on PTSD?
Driessen et al
Driessen et al?
30% of drug addicts and 15% of alcoholics had PTSD
Weaknesses of stress as a risk factor?
Individual differences
Do addictions decrease stress?
Individual differences in stress researcher?
Cloniger
Cloniger?
2 types of alcoholics: type 1 (drank to reduce tension, more prone to anxiety/depression) and type 2 (drank to relieve boredom)
Research on decreased stress in smoking?
Hajek et al
Hajek et al?
Once taking up smoking it may become stress reducing as the desire to have another is stressful
Research on peer influence on smoking?
McAllister et al
Mcallister et al?
Transition to increased levels of smoking linked to peer encouragement and approval, and the message that smoking = popularity
Research on peer influence on drugs?
Sussman and Ames
Sussman and Ames?
Peer use of drugs is a strong predictor due to models, offering, groups etc.
Aspects of peer influence?
SLT and Social Identity Theory
Social Identity Theory researcher?
Abrams and Hogg
Abrams and Hogg?
Group members adopt behaviours that are seen as the social identity of the group
Michell?
Motivation for initiation is due to stereotypes held about specific social crowds
Strengths of peers as a risk factor?
Treatment implications
Supporting research
Weaknesses of peers as a risk factor?
Cause or effect?
Limited
Treatments due to peers as a risk factor?
Should involve helping individuals manage their environment so they don’t return to their original social context
Cause or effect in peers as a risk factor?
Bullers et al
Bullers et al?
Peer group predicted drinking but individual drinking also predicted subsequent peer group drinking (longitudinal, 1200+ adults)
Support for peers as a risk factor?
Duncan et al
Duncan et al?
Exposure to peer models increases likelihood of addiction
Eiser et al?
Rewards such as status and popularity are instrumental in initiation and continuance
Limitations of peers as a risk factor?
Little is known about extent of influence or whether this is restricted when it conflicts with own concerns to maintain a healthy lifestyle
Research on age as a risk factor?
Brown et al
Brown et al?
Influence of peers wanes in later adolescence as the role of close friends, and particularly partners, is increasingly important
Suram?
Rewarding effects of self-administered nicotine on neural system highest in young rats, but withdrawal effects were highest in old age
Research on old age?
Helfer
Helfer?
44% of men over 75 drank everyday compared with 6% of 34 year olds
Impact of old age on addiction?
Change of status -> addiction as coping mechanism
Aspects of personality as a risk factor?
Neuroticism and psychoticism, and tridimensional theory of addictive behaviour
Founder of theory of neuroticism and psychoticism?
Eysensk
Neuroticism and psychoticism is…
biologically based theory of personality based on 3 dimensions: extraversion-introversion, neuroticism (leads to negative affect) and psychoticism (hostility and impulsiveness)
Research on neuroticism and psychoticism?
Francis
Francis?
Link between addiction and high scores on neuroticism and psychoticism
Tri-dimensional theory of addictive behaviour founder?
Cloniger
Tri-dimensional theory of addictive behaviour suggests…
there are 3 traits that predispose individuals: novelty seeking, harm avoidance (worrying, pessimism), and reward dependence (speed of learning -> repetition)
Research on tridimensional theory of addictive behaviour?
Blaszozynski
Blaszozynski?
Pathological gamblers had a significantly higher boredom proneness score
Strengths of personality as a risk factor?
Support
Weaknesses of personality as a risk factor?
Cause or effect?
Mainly due to personality?
Cause or effect in personality as a risk factor?
Teeson et al
Teeson et al?
Difficult to disentangle the effects of personality on addiction from addiction on personality, as they are correlational
Support for personality as a risk factor?
Belin et al
Belin et al?
Sensation seeking rats immediately started taking large doses of self-administered cocaine while impulsive ones started with lower doses but were the ones to become addicted
Research suggesting addiction may not be mainly due to personality?
Buckholtz et al
Buckholtz et al?
May be more rewarding for certain personality types as they have a more hypersensitive dopamine response system, so their heightened response makes them less fearful about the consequences
