Talon McKee
Anthropology: Human Origin
10/15/13
Addiction and Anthropology
\Anthropology is a relatively new branch of science, its division and
acknowledgement as a branch of scientific research from ethnology occurred as recently as
the early 1900’s in both the US and Britain. Since its division and recognition,
anthropology has made significant development in exploring many areas of the human
species; for the purpose of this paper we will be discussing the emphasis on cultural
anthropology.
Addiction has been a factor within human culture for hundreds of years. There is
evidence showing that mind altering substance use has stretched back 8 -10,000 years ago
within human culture; however, the term ‘Addiction” was not formed until the nineteenth
century. A main reason for the late development for this term is that it was not until the
nineteenth century that drug consumption in compounded and concentrated forms
capable of inducing cravings or compulsive use (Singer, 1747), were available. With the
boost of this production and use in the nineteenth century addiction became a prevalent
factor within many societies and cultures spanning the globe. The sudden rise of substance
abuse brought attention to this particular area of human culture especially in the 1970’s
when the HIV/AIDS crisis began. The crisis developed a need for anthropological
research in drug use and addiction; it was at this time, the 1970’s, that anthropology and
addiction began to intertwine. Before this time addiction had been relatively ignored by the
anthropology research community, “historically anthropologists avoided tackling taboo
subjects such as personal violence, sexual abuse, addiction, alienation, and selfdestruction.” (Singer 1417) Since the 1970’s research has begun to span the human
addiction and substance abuse. In this short amount of time anthropological research of
substance abuse has formed several theories in an attempt to understand human addiction,
and also in an attempt to solve society’s problems regarding drug use.
Within the development of this field there have been four models proposed. The
first of these was proposed in an attempt to understand the use of mind altering substances;
the cultural model. “The anthropological approach to human interaction with psychotropic
drugs” (Singer, 1747) is the cultural model. The basis for this model was drawn from a
study on a group of people known as the Camba. Within their cultural ideologies
consumption of a substance similar to alcohol at levels to maintain a drunken state for one
to two days was expected and deemed normal on festival days occurring on a few days of
each month. Drinking was culturally accepted and provided affirmation to the Camba by
maintaining group social health. It was from this behavior that anthropologists determined
excessive and continuous use of mind altering substances is addictive and harmful to the
individual. This study focused fundamentally on the use of alcohol. Further explanation of
the cultural model states the limitations and fundaments of alcohol abuse, “most
consequences of alcohol consumption are mediated by cultural factors rather than being
narrowly determined by pharmacobiological factors” (Singer, 1748) on a physical,
economic, psychological, or interpersonal level. “The way people comport themselves
when they are drunk is determined not by alcohol’s toxic assault upon the seat of moral
judgment, consciousness or the like, but by what their society makes of and imparts to
them concerning their states of drunkenness.” (Singer, 1749) This study heavily analyzes
the many factors concerning alcohol use to better understand its use and abuse. However, a
man named Robin Room states that anthropologists tend to downgrade the severity of the
problems associated with alohol abuse. Since then more focus has been directed to
ethnohistorical research on the changing patterns of consumption both through time and
across societies; also the examination of the impact of globalization consumption and
consequence of its use. (Singer, 1749)
The other three models have less research as a collective mass and will receive less
attention. The second model is the lifestyle model, it encompasses “specific cultures and
subcultures that have their own (more or less) unique configuration of evolving knowledge,
attitudes, norms and behavior” (Singer, 1749) and also attributes from the cultural model
such as “the distinctive way in which all human communities engage the world through a
socially generated and shared set of understandings, meanings and values” (Singer, 1749).
The lifestyle model attempts to engage the strong points of the cultural model while also
developing aspects that are viewed as important when trying to understand the human
relation with drug use.
The third proposed model, the critical medical anthropology model, attempts to
fully understand the context of drug use within society in consideration of macrolevel
structures such as the significant economic inequalities and institutions of social control,
also social processes such as dominant media, and the relations of power such as social
class and country development. (Singer, 1750) With the consideration of environmental
factors in the equation of drug use there are further attempts to understand the full
situation of drug use.
The fourth model is the experiential model that suggests that addiction not only
offers suffering but in some cases it offers opportunities for new experiences, new social
relationships some of which provide positive occasions for the drug user. (Singer, 1751) It
is this model that tries to truly understand all aspects of the addictions, motivations and
validation.
The importance of addiction and anthropological research in this field is an
important and pressing field. With more experience and research there are many
opportunities for anthropologists to help understand societies struggles with addiction and
to possibly provide solutions to the problem. In addition to the issues discussed within this
paper about drug addiction, other anthropologists are studying factors surrounding other
addictions such as gambling and its associations to other mental disorders. (Addiction,
1737) And also the relations between drug addiction and abuse and its effects on later
generations is being researched. (Chiott, Coary, Benatide, 1781) Research will continue
within the field of drug addiction anthropology and further success is yet to be made within
this fascinating field.
Works Cited:
 Singer, Merill Addiction: addiction and its sciences 2012
 No stated author, Addiction: addiction and its sciences 2012 (Addiction)
 Chiott, Jennifer C., Coary, Kate B., Benatide, Katherine E. Addiction: Addiction
and its sciences.
(Three different scientific articles).