Free will in addictive behaviors Addictive

Abstract

Certainpeopleareatriskforusingalcoholorotherdrugsexcessivelyandfordevelopingproblemswiththeiruse. Their susceptibilitymightarisefromavariety offactors,includingtheirgeneticmake-up,brain chemistry,family background,personalityandotherpsychologicalvariables,andenvironmentalandsocioculturalvariables.More- over,aftersubstanceusehasbecomeestablished,thereareadditionalcognitive-motivationalvariables(e.g.,sub-stance-related attentional bias) that contribute to enacting behaviors consistent with the person's motivation to acquire and use the substance. People who are at such risk are likely to choose to use addictive substances even though doing so entails negative consequences. In the sense of complete freedom from being determined by causal factors, we believe that there is no such thing as free will, but de fi ned as ability to make choices from amongmultipleoptions,eventhoughthechoicesareultimatelygovernedbynaturalprocesses,addictedindivid- uals are free to choose. Although they might appear unable to exercise this kind of free will in decisions about their substance use, addictive behaviors are ultimately always goal-directed and voluntary. Such goal pursuits manifest considerable fl exibility. Even some severely addicted individuals can cease their use when the value ofcontinuingtheuseabruptlydeclinesorwhenthesubjectivecostofcontinuingtheuseistoogreatwithrespect to the incentives in other areas of their lives. Formal treatment strategies (e.g., contingency management, Sys- tematic Motivational Counseling, cognitive training) can also be used to facilitate this reversal.