Behaviorist Theory Of A Drug Reinforcer's Life

It is shown that people that tend to be involved in the use of drugs do so after making a voluntary choice (Heyman, 2009). The major use of drugs for social and non-medical preferences can lead to dependence and further addictions, it is a choice that people tend to make and from that it can lead to wanting it more, do it more with friends and further it becoming an addiction, that then effects the brain and body. When drugs are used in the wrong way they can cause many health issues but some people still tend to refer to drug addiction as a disease. Yes, There has been compelling evidence that addiction is a disease, however the result shown are weak and inconclusive. Results of different brain scans are shown by The National Institute of Drug Abuse (2017) are used to back up that addiction in fact is a disease, however the brain scans used in this research are not symbolic of any abnormal changes. The research by The National Institute of Drug Abuse do point out that changes in an individual’s brain is shown as evidence that addiction is a brain disease, however this argument can be shown as mistaken as changes in many human brains can be seen as not exclusive in addicts, although they can occur when a person is normal (Branch,2011). To top it off the information that is stated by the NIDA however doesn’t show evidence of the behaviour of addicts being involuntary or

When I learnt that I was going to be shadowing at a clinic for service users with drug and alcohol problems I was quite worried and intrigued as to what would take place. Then I realised I had to be holistic and also realistic, and although I am not close to anyone that has a heroin, crack cocaine or even an alcohol addiction I have been surrounded by people that have used certain drugs such as cannabis or cocaine. I also feel that I will not always know that this is the case as not everyone demonstrates through their behaviour that this is an issue for them, also some individuals feel ashamed as drug and alcohol use is frowned upon and individuals will deny using drugs. Some individuals explain that they use drugs as a way of numbing their problems or to gain confidence and self esteem. Beliefs about oneself and about the role of drugs or alcohol in one's life are sometimes called existential models (Greaves, 1980). Khantzian (1985) has proposed that addicts use drugs to offset

People use drugs as a solution to reduce stress, to relieve the boredom, for enjoyment and also to forget all the dilemmas they have. Besides, drug also can act as an energy booster. For example, when students take drugs, they able to stay up all night to study and complete all of their assignments while for athletes they able to perform well during the competition and at the same time to stay fit. Sometimes, people use drugs as they are curious how the taste of drugs is and want to experiment the feeling of drugs. They think by taking drug only once will not give any bad consequence to them. It is true for some people, but others when they

Brain chemistry can affect different addicts more then others. Drugs and alcohol are more of the main addictions that brain chemistry affects. Once taking these addictive substances your internal natural drug dopamine is lowers causing you to seek more external addictive substances. This causes craving and makes it a lot harder for the addict to stop. In Olds and Milner’s later experiments, they allowed the rats to press a particular lever to arouse themselves, to the effect that they would press it as much as seven-hundred times per hour. This region soon came to be known as the "pleasure center". Using drugs and alcohol stimulates the pleasure center in the brain that makes your brain think, “feels good- want more“. This can make it increasingly harder for an addict to stop using, until they hit a point called “rock bottom”. This is where choice comes back into play.

First of all, there is the Structural-Functional perspective way people view drug addiction as. The structural-functional perspective is the role the drugs do for the person or the weakening of the norms. It is the way they affect the person and what it does to them that makes them be addicted to drugs. For some people drugs relieves them. It takes them away from their problems from a while and they feel stress free and because of that feeling they receive from the drugs they like it and continue to take more and more. Those with this type of perspective well most likely disagree with this view of drug addiction and would want the problem to decrease.

To understand addiction further, it is important to look at how drugs have neurological effects in a human body. Drugs can be ingested in various ways; while some are taken orally, some are smoked (cannabis) while others are injected directly into the blood stream (Heroin). Once in the body, they mainly affect the reward pathway in the brain, known as the dopaminergic pathway, which in turn gives pleasure. Even though all drugs affect the reward and motivation pathways in the brain, their speed depends on the way the drug has been consumed. Over constant use of drugs, the cognitive functions are impaired as the effects become more prominent in learning, memory

The difference between recreational use and addiction occurs when people need alcohol/drugs in order to socialize (Henderson 24). The addict may associate the substance with positive social experiences, “I finally felt like I could fit in and socialize.” (24)

This research paper will evaluate the biological aspects of addictive substance or behavior and how it affects the brain and organs. Biological aspects include dopamine levels that are replaced in the brain due to the reward system being overtaken and the absorption rate of the drug once it is ingested will be discussed. The biological aspects are extensive and permanent if the individual does not get the help they need. Furthermore the clinical issues of addictive substance or behavior will be discussed along with medical treatments and ethical issues. This includes treatments such as counseling

For many years, individuals have battled substance abuse and addiction. My position comes from hearing about it, having seeing results from it, and reading about it, also developing my own thoughts about addiction. Weil and Rosen (1993) believe that a drug use (and addiction) results from humans longing for a sense of completeness and wholeness, and searching for satisfaction outside of themselves. McNeece and DiNitto (2012) says the reason why people continue to use drugs to the point of becoming a physically and/ or psychologically dependent on them are more complex, some have tried to explain this

Addicts use drugs to overcome their feelings. If an addict is feeling sad, happy, or angry, they use. This leads to their addictions. After a while, the addict can’t hold a steady job,

According to the biological perspective, drug use may start off as casual, but through continued use, it produces changes in the brain that influences the onset and maintenance of drug addiction. (Horvath et al., 2013). Drugs have their most prominent effects on the function of neurotransmitters. Almost all major drugs of abuse activate the reward system and cause a flood in the levels of dopamine which is a neurotransmitter that is involved in pleasure. As a result, not only do people learn to associate drug use with pleasure, but the brain also starts to reduce its own natural dopamine production in adjustment to the levels of dopamine produced by the drugs. This is called tolerance, and the consequences of tolerance are highly influential

Drugs and alcohol provide only temporary feelings of exhilaration but can have detrimental after effects such as addiction. For me personally, I don't think these side effects are worth the temporary high. Imagine these shortcuts as a delicious dessert or snack such as a cookie. Eating the cookie is pleasurable, but once it has been finished, the feeling is gone. That feeling of pleasure does not last. Then you decide to eat another cookie, and another, and then another just to feel that pleasure again. But after your fifth cookie or so, the cookie just doesn't deliver as much anymore. You become trapped in a hedonic treadmill (aka hedonic adaptation). Every time you obtain something, like winning the lottery, you may feel ecstatic at first, but you'll eventually get used to it and want more. Well what is happiness then? Oh, the million dollar question no one has been able to concisely answer yet! My apologies, but I can't give you a perfect answer, except that from my interpretation, it'll allow you

I discussed drug addiction in my additional post. I never thought about classical conditioning been used as a treatment to help a person transition in the withdrawal process. Classical conditioning provides explanation for the high, tolerance, withdrawal, and relapse (Chance 2014, p.116). Chance (2014) discussed how the drug a person is taking is the unconditional stimulus, and the high is the unconditional response. I have myself the question, “How and why do people take drugs?” I thought it was a mental or peer pressure thing. I agree that the environment plays a factor into a person relapsing. How do we really control the cravings or stop a person from relapsing?

“The overstimulation of this reward system, which normally responds to natural behaviors linked to survival (eating, spending time with loved ones, etc.), produces euphoric effects in response to psychoactive drugs. This reaction sets in motion a reinforcing pattern that “teaches” people to repeat the rewarding behavior of abusing drugs ”(“Understanding Drug Abuse). Using addictive drugs floods the limbic brain with dopamine, taking it up to as much as five or ten times the normal level. A person with elevated dopamine levels now has a brain that begins to associate the substance with an outside neurochemical reward (“Your Brain on Drugs”). As a person continues to abuse drugs, the brain adapts to the overwhelming surges in dopamine by producing less dopamine or by reducing the number of dopamine receptors in the reward circuit. The result is a lessening of dopamine’s impact on the reward circuit, which reduces the abuser’s ability to enjoy the drugs, as well as the events in life that previously brought pleasure. The decrease in normal dopamine levels encourages the addict to keep abusing drugs in an attempt to bring the dopamine function back to normal, except now larger amounts of the drug are required to achieve the same dopamine high, an effect known as tolerance (“Understanding Drug Abuse ). That is what leads to the state of addiction, which leaves the person in a cycle of craving, using, withdrawal, and relapse.

Have you ever dealt with the effects of drug addict? A drug is a person who is addicted to drugs or alcohol, which has a psychological effect when ingested or otherwise introduced into the body. The effects of drug use can vary depending on the person. According to “Causes and types of narcotic addiction: A Psychosocial View” in the Psychiatric Quarterly it says, “The causes of drugs stem from the manner of which you were introduced to it whether it be by abnormal curiosity, chance encounters with addicts and narcotic peddlers, or prolonged illness” (Ausubel). The effects of drugs can be have different effects on everyone differently depending if its for pleasure or for relieving pain Most of the effects of drugs occur in the brain, where it increases the level of dopamine at a specific site possibly giving the addict the pleasure they were feigning for (Robbins). As a child I didn’t know much about drugs except for what your parents and teachers at school tell you which is, “Just Say No.”