characteristics of addiction Flashcards
1
Q
salience
A
- when a person’s add becomes most important thing in their life & dominates their thinking
- more positively we think about a subject, the more its salience increases & so the likely we are to continue
- means addictions are often tied to our identity
- ie: if smoking makes us feel ‘rebellious’, it increases its salience to us so it’ll be harder to overcome esp. if it’s linked to our self esteem
2
Q
mood modifying effect
A
- the feeling someone experiences when they engage in their addiction
- may be more positive than a person’s mood when they’re not doing bev
- motivates them 2 continue doing it despite how it may be negatively impacting their life
- after injecting heroin, users experience a euphoric rush that is more plesurable than low they feel when they crash - creating an addictive cycle
3
Q
tolerance
A
- when person repeatedly takes an addictive substance, D2 receptors become more sensitive to DA due to high conc of it & thus start to release less
- means you eventually need a larger quantity of it to trigger release of enough DA to experience the same mood modifying effect
- eg: after continued heroin use addicts will start to need higher dosage of drug to get high (at same intensity)
4
Q
cross tolerance
A
- can lead to cross tolerance where tolerance to the effects of one substance increases your tolerance to another (eg: alcohol, sedatives - anti anxiety meds)
- typically because they act on similar receptors in brain or have similar function
5
Q
relapse
A
- when a person reverts back to their addiction after abstaining for a period of time eg: for months or yrs
- could be to the worst or extremest form of their bev
- can be triggered by anything eg: negative event or the resurfacing of a traumatic memory
6
Q
withdrawal
A
- physical & psychological symptoms experience when an addict stops taking or reduces dosage of their drug
- eg: anxiety, insomnia, nausea, tremors
- risk of withdrawal symptoms occurring increases with dosage and length of use
