Alexander and others designed an interesting research project to investigate ppsychological and situational variables in the appearance of addiction (Adult, Infant and Animal Addiction). Previous studies had shown that laboratory animals, under the right conditions, will persistently ingest or self-administer opiates and other drugs. They choose morphine in preference to water, and in large enough quantities to produce withdrawal symptoms. These findings bolstered the notion that drugs (particularly narcotics) are intrinsically and dangerously irresistible (Alexander, 2001: 78). However, Alexander et al. argued these studies failed to take into account the setting in which the animals were housed: often strapped in to self-administration machines, constrained and isolated. In contrast, the team built a deluxe “rat park,” which mimicked the natural environment and gave the rats room to play and socialize. This phase of the experiment showed that rats in Rat Park were less likely than caged rats to be lured into drinking morphine.

The researchers then habituated both groups of rats to morphine and put them on a cycle of no fluid days, morphine-only days, and morphine & water choice days. In all phases, the caged rats consumed more morphine than the others, sometimes up to 8x as much. In contrast, the Rat Park rats actually decreased their consumption slightly over the same period! The researchers theorized that learning about the drug's withdrawal effects reduced their willingness to ingest it. They concluded that, just as with human beings, an animal's response to being offered and withdrawn from narcotics is influenced by situational factors. When given reasonable alternatives, these animals chose ordinary pleasures and activities over both the initial temptation of the drug, and the eventual motivation to avoid withdrawal discomfort (p. 84).

And when there are no reasonable alternatives, drugs can have a positive, adaptive value (for example, Murray & Ferguson, 2003; Tatarsky, 1998).

Sarah’s response: Dr. Gabor Mate posits that crystal meth and other stimulants are used by many people attempting to self-medicate for otherwise untreated and often undiagnosed Attention Deficit Disorder.

Many people use drugs in order to distance themselves from their own negative thoughts and feelings. After a few days in detox, painful memories start to surface which are simply too awful to face, and this is often a precipitating factor in a relapse. While it no doubt brings with it a considerable set of drawbacks and risks, drug use is what helps some people to get through the day.