Malda, Reid & White-Bard 1

Substance Abuse and Addiction caused by Nature and Nurture

California Reid, Rena Malda & Sommer White-Bard

Intro to Psychology

GNED-1106-AA6

February 2nd, 2019

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Part 1:

Nature

• Studies prove that children with parents who are addicted to substances, are

eight times higher risks than the average child to engage in drug use/abuse.

(Dawn, 2018).

• According to adoption studies adopted children are more likely to become

addicted to drugs or alcohol no matter how they were raised by their adopted

parents, if their real parents had suffered from mental health issues or from

addiction themselves. (Dawn, 2018).

• A study suggested and proved, that when investigating identical twins, there was

a pattern in whether if one struggled with substance abuse, so did the other.

(Dawn, 2018).

• The general population has an advantage when it comes to avoiding addiction on

those who have genetic predisposition to impulsiveness combined with genetic

predisposition to addiction vulnerability. (Dawn, 2018).

Nurture

Parenting Styles

• Neglectful, authoritarian parents and permissive parents are more likely to raise

children who suffer from substance abuse than a caring authoritative parents

child. (Dawn, 2018).

Trauma

• According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, data claims children,

teens and young adults are more likely to suffer from drug or alcohol addiction if
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they have experienced any physical, sexual, psychological trauma, abuse and or

neglect. Undeveloped individuals are self-medicating with certain drugs or

alcohol, sometimes even eventually becoming mentally and physically dependant

on it. (Dawn, 2018).

Exposure to Drugs / Alcohol at a young age

• Parents who give their underage children alcohol or drink around them

inadvertently may suggest to them that it is harmless and yet fun. Exposure to

drinking in the home at a young age could result in alcohol use and abuse at a

young age. (Dawn, 2018).

Influences

• Individuals who grow up or are at some point in their life surrounded by friends,

family, classmates, colleagues and community members who engage in drug or

alcohol use / abuse will have a harder time maintaining a healthy sober lifestyle

and getting out of the group they associate themselves with in order to build

better relationships with non-users. (Dawn, 2018).

Part 2:

Addiction can be termed as a person's’ self-destructive behaviour/psychological

dependence of one or more illegal substances. The behaviour is repeated over and

over, although they know it’s not right, they cannot control it. It can be almost impossible

to stop the behaviours whether they want to or not without the proper help, intervention

and maintenance. We have zoned in on the substance abuse classification in addiction,

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this can include things like heroin/opioids, cocaine, amphetamines and alcohol (just to

name a handful). (DiClemente, 2018)

After studying both sides of the argument, nature versus nurture and addiction,

we have concluded that the effects of nurture play an extensive role in what contributes

to addiction and substance abuse. Nurtures effect on addiction would include parenting

styles, trauma, influences and exposure to drugs and alcohol at a young age.

Parents who participate in abusing alcohol and drugs means that the substances

are around in a home and are quite possibly being done in front of children and family

members. Quite often the addict with make excuses for their use of these substances

and convince themselves that nothing is wrong and there are no negative effects of

having and using these substances openly around a household. Children are little

sponges and though sometimes we feel like they cannot pick up on certain things they

are always noticing a lot more than what we expect them to be. Sometimes parents will

even give these ‘legal’ or ‘illegal’ substances to underaged children as a joke or ‘just try

it’ to see their reaction or give them a taste. Exposing children to these sorts of things at

such a young age can make them view these substances and behaviours as

acceptable, giving them a preconceived notion that it’s okay to do these things as the

very person they look up to/who raises them are giving it the ‘go-ahead’ in a positive or

funny nature.

Unfortunately, in this day and age there are children and even adults facing

major traumas that change their lives in such dramatic fashion. Things such as

sexual/physical abuse, psychological trauma and neglect are examples of some trauma

that someone could experience. Some people cannot find a proper way to deal and
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cope with these traumatic experiences, some hide them out of shame and

embarrassment in fear of being shamed/not believed. They find ways to make the pain

more manageable by turning to a substance to numb it or help them forget about it.

Using these substances can only numb/hide it for so long and repeated use of certain

substances can then produce a physical/psychological/or chemical dependency. (Wood,

et al. 2017)

People who have others around in their lives, whether it be a family, friends or

people in the community that are using alcohol and drugs can have a predisposed

position to use these harmful substances as they are around and can be easily

available. If you are hanging out with individuals who use such things it can bring on

curiosity, interest and a sense of wonder as they are usually accepted and viewed as

“okay.” Poverty has a huge example in this sort of thing as people are living in low

income, crime ridden communities and stuck in this cycle of distress turning to drugs

and alcohol to cope. It can be hard to maintain sobriety living and being around other

addicts and users and even harder to dissociate with these people.

In conclusion, although genetics being passed down could have a role in

substance abuse it most likely isn’t the main cause. Nurture seems to have more

research behind it to explain how substance abuse occurs, whether it be the influences

of others, parenting styles, trauma, or just even seeing it around you at a young age and

it is becoming the "norm. So therefore, nurture is one of the sole causes of substance

abuse and addiction in the human race.

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Reference

Dawn, T. (2018, August). Nature vs. Nurture: Which Makes Us Addicted? Both,

Actually. Retrieved from https://thedawnrehab.com/blog/nature-vs-nurture-addiction/

DiClemente, C.C. (2018,). Addiction and Change, Second Edition: How Addicted

People Recover. Guilford Publications.

Wood, S. E., Wood, E. G., Boyd, D. R., Wood, E., & Desmarais, S. (2017). The World of

Psychology. Toronto: Pearson Canada.