Addiction - Risk Factors In The Development Of Addiction

Question 1

What are risk factors?

Answer 1

Any internal/external influence that increases the likelihood a person will start using addictive substances/engage in addictive behaviours

Question 2

What is genetic vulnerability?

Answer 2

Any inherited predisposition that increases the risk of a disorder/condition

Question 3

What are the D2 receptor & the nicotine enzyme examples of?

Answer 3

The 2 mechanisms that create a genetic vulnerability to addiction

Question 4

How is the D2 receptor involved in genetic vulnerability to addiction?

Answer 4

People with addiction have abnormally low D2 receptors -> means less dopamine (drugs compensate for the deficiency)

Question 5

How is the nicotine enzyme involved in genetic vulnerability to addiction, studied by Pianezza et al?

Answer 5

Some people lack enzyme (CYP2A6) which metabolises nicotine -> smoke significantly less than smokers with fully functioning enzyme (enzyme is genetically determined)

Question 6

What is stress & how is that linked to addiction?

Answer 6

Stressful life events & traumatic experiences in childhood & adulthood -> important risk factors for addiction

Question 7

What do Andersen & Teicher say about stress & addiction?

Answer 7

Highlight the role of adverse childhood experiences in later addiction
Argue early experiences of stress have damaging effects on a young brain (in a sensitive period of development) -> creates vulnerability to stress
Further stressful experiences trigger earlier vulnerability & make it more likely that an individual with self-medicate with drugs/other behavioural addictions

Question 8

What is personality & how is that linked to addiction?

Answer 8

Traits e.g. impulsivity can increase the risk of addiction

Question 9

What is APD?

Answer 9

Antisocial personality disorder

Question 10

What does Robins say about APD and addiction?

Answer 10

APD is a casual risk factor (people with APD break social norms, are impulsive & behave criminally) -> inevitable they will try drugs young

Question 11

How does family influences link to addiction?

Answer 11

How much the at-risk individual believes how much his/her parents approve of addictive substances/behaviours -> influences addiction

Question 12

What does Livingston et al say about family influence and alcohol?

Answer 12

Final-year high school students who were allowed to drink alcohol at home were significantly more likely to drink in college
Adolescents that believe their parents have little/no interest in monitoring behaviour are more likely to develop an addiction (key determinant in adolescents perception)

Question 13

How are peers & addiction linked?

Answer 13

Attitudes of peers towards addictive substances/behaviours becomes highly influential in increasing the risk of developing an adolescence (creation of group norm that favours rule-breaking)

Question 14

What does O’Connell et al say about peers & addiction?

Answer 14

3 major elements
- at risk adolescent’s attitudes & norms about drinking influenced by associating with peers who use alcohol
- experienced peers provide more opportunities for at risk individuals to use alcohol
- individual over-estimates how much peers are drinking (drink more to keep up with percieved norm)

Question 15

EVALUATION: What is a strength of the genetic vulnerability risk factor, proposed by Kendler et al?

Answer 15

SUPPORT FROM ADOPTION STUDIES
Used data from National Swedish Adoption study
Looked at adults who were adopted away as children from bio families where 1 parent had an addiction Argue early
Children had significantly greater risk of developing addiction, compared with adopted-away individual

Question 16

EVALUATION: How is the issue of causation a weakness of the stress risk factor of addiction?

Answer 16

Many studies show positive correlation but doesnt especially mean stress is a risk factor (order of which stress & addiction develops matter) e.g. some get addicted then stressed because of addiction -> still causes postive correlation but addiction caused the stress not vice versa

Question 17

EVALUATION: What is a strength about the personality risk factor of addiction?

Answer 17

STUDIES SHOW APD & ALCOHOL DEPENDENCE ARE CO-MORBID
Bahlmann -> interviewed 55 alcohol dependent people (18 diagnosed with APD) -> for the 18 participants researchers found that APD developed 4 years before their alcohol dependency (average)

Question 18

EVALUATION: What is a strength of the family influences risk factor of addiction?

Answer 18

RESEARCH SUPPORT
Madras et al -> found strong positive correlation between parents use of cannabis & adolescents use of cannabis, nicotine & opioids
May be that adolescents observe parents use specific drug & model this behaviour (may infer their parents approve of drug use generally, go on to use other drugs)

Question 19

EVALUATION: What real-world application is a strength of the peers risk factor of addiction?

Answer 19

Social norms marketing advertising (SNMA) -> intervention to change mistaken beliefs about how much peers are drinking
Uses mass media ads to provide messages & stats about how much people are really drinking (students can more accurately picture to correct overestimations