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Asked by anon-353139 on 8 Mar 2023.
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Stephen Jackson answered on 8 Mar 2023:
Understanding addiction is not straightforward. It is clear that there are brain mechanisms and chemicals involved in the processing reward that contribute to addiction but it is also clear that addiction is strongly influenced by social/environmental factors (e.g., particular contexts / situations or social /physical cues).
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Joanne Cummings answered on 8 Mar 2023:
Some would argue there is a biological element for addiction, others perhaps would view it via a societal lens. It is difficult to disentangle the nature/nurture aspect of it, and most likely there is an interaction between the two.
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Kirsten Russell answered on 8 Mar 2023:
Understanding why some people are impacted by addictions whilst others are not is really complex. We know that a combination of different factors increase or reduce a persons risk for addiction (e.g. biological, environmental, and psychological). This means that no one factor will explain whether a person will experience addiction or not. It is important that we bear this in mind when supporting people with addiction too!
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Eileen Xu answered on 8 Mar 2023:
It’s due to both! You’re right, social factors and how your brain works are really important in understanding addiction. Genetics is in there too – it’s a complicated picture and I think unfortunately there’s not one sole reason.
We know that risk for addiction can run in families (genetic), that some people’s brains might be more sensitive to reward chemicals than others (brain) and that people who might be more isolated or have experienced trauma might be more at risk (social). While it’s complicated, I think that understanding each of these contributions in more detail can better inform us on how to support those at higher risk for addiction.
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