Addiction
UNIT 4: PSYA4
lcb@beauchamp.org.uk
Content
The Psychology of Addictive Behaviour
Models of
Addictive
Behaviour

Biological, cognitive and learning approaches to
explaining initiation, maintenance and relapse, and
their applications to smoking and gambling.
Vulnerability to
Addiction

Risk factors in the development of addiction, including
stress, peers, age and personality.
Media influences on addictive behaviour.

Reducing
Addictive
Behaviour


The theory of planned behaviour as a model for
addiction prevention.
Types of intervention and their effectiveness, including
biological, psychological and public health interventions.
Starter
Answer the 5 questions in your booklet
to review your psychological knowledge
of the behaviourist (i.e. learning) model
from AS-Level.
You have 5 minutes!
Basic principles of the learning
approach
 Addictive behaviours are acquired habits which are
learned according to the principles of CC, OC and
SLT.
 Addictions can be unlearned.
 Addictions are not ‘all or nothing’ categories i.e.
there are degrees of addictive behaviour.
 Addictions are no different to any other behaviour.
Pair activity
Using your psychological knowledge from AS, discuss
and make notes in the table in your booklet on…
Classical conditioning
2. Operant conditioning
3. SLT
1.
Where possible, think how it may link to addictive
behaviours.
Classical conditioning
 Learning through association.
 Linking two things together.
 Conditioning means learned.
Stimulus
An event which causes a
response e.g. food
Response
A reaction made because the
stimulus has been detected e.g.
salivation.
Pavlov
UCS
UCR
NS
CS
CR
Who remembers Little Albert?
Put the 3 words below next to the correct terms to explain
the process of classical conditioning in this example (you
will need to use them more than once!)
Step 1
UCS = unconditioned stimulus
UCR = unconditioned response
Step 2
NS = neutral stimulus
+
Step 3
UCS = unconditioned
stimulus
CR = conditioned response
CS = conditioned stimulus
Anxiety
UCR =
unconditioned
response
Rat
Noise
Operant conditioning
 Learning through reinforcement.
 Dependent on consequences of actions (e.g. reward).
Positive reinforcement – Behaviour = pleasant
consequence = behaviour repeated.
2. Negative reinforcement – Behaviour = unpleasant
consequence removed = behaviour repeated.
3. Punishment – Behaviour = unpleasant consequence =
behaviour not repeated.
1.
Social Learning Theory
1.
The observation and imitation of influential role
models in the environment.
2.
Witness reinforcement.
3.
Imitate observed behaviour with anticipation of
receiving similar reinforcement (vicarious learning).
4.
More likely if identify with role model (e.g. same
age/gender) or if of high status/position of power and
admire them.
Independent task
1. Complete the table in your booklet
(comparing and contrasting biological and
learning models of addiction).
2. Colour-code if the term belongs to the
biological approach or the learning approach
of addictive behaviour.
You have 10 minutes.
Be prepared to feedback.
What’s next?
In today’s lesson we are going to look at how the
learning approach explains the initiation,
maintenance and relapse of smoking addiction.
RECAP: What do these terms mean?
1. Initiation?
2. Maintenance?
3. Relapse?
Stages in addiction
1. Initiation – the process whereby an individual
starts to become addicted.
2. Maintenance – the process whereby people
continue to behave addictively even in the face of
negative consequences.
3. Relapse – the process whereby individuals who
have managed to give up their addictive habits (i.e.
they are in remission) start to show signs and
symptoms of the addictive behaviour again.
Learning Approach - Smoking
Read the information in your booklet on the
learning approach to smoking addiction.
Summarise the approach for each stage in
your booklet or draw into pics.
You have 10 minutes!
Maintenance of smoking addiction
Step 1
UCR = unconditioned response
Feel relaxed
UCS = unconditioned stimulus
Sitting with friends
Step 2
NS = neutral stimulus
Smoking cigarette
+
Step 3
CS = conditioned stimulus
Smoking cigarette
UCS = unconditioned
stimulus
Sitting with friends
UCR =
unconditioned
response
Feel relaxed
CR = conditioned response
Feel relaxed
The individual learned that smoking can provide the same rewards (i.e. feeling
relaxed) as the original UCS (i.e. sitting with friends).
Research (A02)
 Complete the gap fill in your booklet and
read the information on Cue-Reactivity
Theory.
 You have 10 minutes.
 Q&A!
EVIDENCE – FOR OR AGAINST?
1. Read the three studies in your booklet.
2. Decide if they support or contradict the
learning model of smoking addiction.
3. Explain why in the boxes provided!
Read the evaluation paragraph and
summarise the two main points in the box
provided.
IDA – A02
Pair discussion
 Discuss and make notes on the four IDA
evaluation points in your booklet.
IDA
Gender bias in smoking addiction research
 The onset and development of smoking follows different patterns in men
and women.
 Research found that women start smoking later than men and that there
are gender-related differences in relation to the stages and context of
smoking.
Real-world applications
 Effective forms of drug prevention programmes should target adolescents
(most vulnerable to influence of peers).
 Resistance training can inform them of the social pressure of smoking and
hopefully reduce the risk of addictive behaviour.
IDA
Nature vs. nurture
 The learning approach supports nurture (environment), ignores
nature - biological approach (i.e. innate, genetics, biochemistry).
Determinism vs. free will
 Deterministic because it suggests smoking addiction is influenced
by external factors (environment/learning/social pressure/peers
and parents) – however could be argued free will as choose who to
look to as role model – SLT.
 To evaluate learning explanations use other approaches
e.g. biological!!!