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Thomas S. May, M.A.Medical Writer |
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Born to Be High: Is Addiction Fate for Some?
Thomas S. May, Medical Writer Introduction Jonathan Hall (not his real name) admits--with a smile--that he can't resist temptation. He smokes at least one pack of cigarettes a day, and he can hardly wait to down a few glasses of his favorite Scotch after getting home from work. He also likes to light up a joint once or twice a month, and he doesn't deny having tried harder drugs like heroin and cocaine.
Hall's brother Steven, however, is repulsed by the smell of smoke, and the
hardest drug ever to enter his system was a small glass of champagne,
which he drank at his brother's wedding.
What makes these two men behave so differently? Obviously, they have different personalities, but is there such a thing as an addiction-prone or addictive personality?
Although most experts agree that there is no such psychiatric illness as an "addictive personality disorder," recent research indicates that certain personality characteristics do make it easier for some people to become addicted to drugs.
Patricia Conrod, PhD, a
clinical
psychologist and addiction expert at State University of New York at
Stony Brook, says that many experts believed there was such a thing as an
addictive personality up until 20-30 years ago. "Extensive research in the
1970s and 1980s … failed to provide support for a single predisposing
personality type," she says. All or Nothing One reason why some experts thought that personality was responsible for addictions was because they found that substance abusers are often addicted to several drugs at the same time. For example, heavy drinkers are also likely to be smokers, and they are often addicted to other drugs as well. Conrod explains why this could be: "The reason for this is that many addictive substances tend to share a common feature--namely, the tendency to increase activity in the brain's 'reward center,' which is involved in pleasure and arousal." Another reason why people can be addicted to several substances at once is "cross-sensitization," according to Roel Verheul, PhD, a clinical psychologist with the Amsterdam Institute for Addiction Research in the Netherlands. During cross-sensitization "intake of one drug might alter the brain in such a way that it becomes more sensitive to the reinforcing properties of other drugs," he says.
Many studies have also found that psychiatric disorders have become more
common among drug addicts. Drug abusers are often diagnosed with one or
more personality disorders, but different addicts have different ones and
some of them have none at all. As a result, most experts now agree that
there is no single addictive personality that might predispose a person to
abuse alcohol or other drugs. Susceptibility
Conrod says that "sensation seekers"--people who constantly seek out new
experiences--appear to be at an increased risk for drug abuse. People who
tend to be impulsive and those who often suffer from anxiety are also more
likely to become addicts than the general population, according Conrod.
In a study published in the Psychology of Addictive Behaviors (September 2000), Conrod and her colleagues examined the personality characteristics of 293 female substance abusers. The investigators found that the women were addicted to different kinds of drugs and that they could be grouped according to their dominant personality traits. For example, women who were impulsive were addicted to cocaine, and sensation seekers were dependent on alcohol.
The findings by Conrod and her colleagues appear to provide support for a theory of addiction proposed by Verheul. In a recently published article, Verheul suggests that certain personality characteristics can lead people down different pathways to addiction. He names three pathways:
He says that people with impulsive personalities who find it difficult to control their own behavior follow the behavioral disinhibition pathway because they are not focused on what they do and how it can affect them. They often engage in deviant behaviors, including abusing alcohol and drugs. People who are prone to anxiety and are looking for a chemical way out of it might end up on the stress-reduction pathway to addiction. These people are at a higher risk of abusing alcohol, heroin, and antianxiety medication, according to Verheul. People who seek out stimulating, new experiences and find them especially pleasurable might take the reward-sensitivity pathway to addiction. These individuals often become addicted to alcohol, as well as stimulants like cocaine and amphetamines, Verheul says.
Verheul says he believes that certain personality characteristics may
predispose some people to become addicted to drugs, but he points out that
many people "become addicted for other reasons and do not display any of
the personality traits mentioned." He says that nobody is "destined" to
become an addict.
Thomas S. May is a medical
journalist based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He has a master's degree in
psychology from Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia. Source: Medscape Health
Reprinted from Medscape Health for Consumers.
Thomas S. May is a medical
journalist based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He has a master's degree in
psychology from Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia. Source: Medscape Health
Reprinted from Medscape Health for Consumers.
Thomas S. May is a medical
journalist based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He has a master's degree in
psychology from Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia. Source: Medscape Health
Reprinted from Medscape Health for Consumers.
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