Behavioural Explanations of Addiction

1. Behavioural Explanations of Addiction

2. Behavioural explanations state that all behaviours are learned and therefore can be unlearned. • Behaviours are learnt through classical, operant and vicarious conditioning, and social learning theory

3. Classical Conditioning • Unconditioned stimulus produces an unconditioned response • Neutral stimulus + unconditioned stimulus produces the unconditioned response • Eventually, the neutral stimulus becomes a conditioned stimulus, and produces a conditioned response that was previously unconditioned

4. Gambling • With classical conditioning models state that the addiction is caused by becoming conditioned to the excitement or arousal associated with gambling, so they feel bored, unstimulated, and restless when they are not gambling

5. Research Support • Robins et al. (1975) Found that Vietnam veterans who had become addicted to heroin while in Vietnam, and then returned to the environment back home, were less likely to relapse than civilians who had returned to the same environment in which the had originally developed their addiction.

6. Evaluation of Classical Conditioning • Useful in explaining motivation to commence a session, but not as useful in explaining persistent gambling behaviour • It is unlikely that classical conditioning will affect all types of addictive behaviour in the same way