COURSE INTRODUCTION
PSY292
ADDICTION

Excessive internet use in European adolescents What determines differences in severity.pdf - Adobe
Acrobat Reader DC Dysfunctional impulsivity in online gaming addiction and engagement | Blinka |
Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace - Mozilla Firefox ckx1981.pdf -
Adobe Acrobat Reader DC Excessive Internet use for Sexual Purposes Among Members of Sexaholics
Anonymous and Sex Addicts Anonymous - 10720162.2018.1431166 - Mozilla Firefox Gaming under the
influence: An exploratory study | Request PDF - Mozilla Firefox Sexting as a predictor of sexual
behavior in a sample of Czech adolescents - 17405629.2017.1295842 - Mozilla Firefox

MODELS OF ADDICTION
•Historical development of substance use
•Historical understanding of substance use – e.g. Addiction as a moral failure
•Current understanding of addictions – addiction as a brain disease, genetic susceptibility to
addiction
•Psychological models of addiction – e.g. addiction as a learned and imitated behaviour
(behaviourism); substance use as mood regulation (psychodynamics)
•Environmental factors of addictions  - role of family, role of peer groups, adolescence as the
problematic age

WHAT IS ADDICTION
•Definition
•Diagnostics:
•International Classification of Diseases 11th revision (World Health Organisation) •Diagnostic and
Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5th revision (American Psychiatric Association)
•

SUBSTANCE USE
•Chemical properties, ways of administrations, effects, risks factors & comorbidities, prevalence,
specificities
•
•Legal drugs: Alcohol, tobacco, caffeine, prescription drugs
•Illicit drugs: Cannabis, amphetamines (speed, pervitin, ecstasy), cocaine, heroin & opiates, new
psychoactive substances (synthetic opioids), hallucinogens (LSD, ketamine)
•
•

BEHAVIORAL ADDICTIONS
•Can one be addicted to behaviour? Is it the same addiction as to substances? Controversies and
current state of knowledge
•Gambling
•Internet gaming disorder and other excessive online behaviours
•Sex and porn addiction
•Eating disorders as behavioural addictions
•Excessive excessing
•

ADDICTION – WHAT TO DO?
•Prevention
•Counselling and therapy (12 step program, KBT therapy, motivation enhancement approach,
psychodynamic psychotherapy)
•Stages of change
•Harm reduction
•

TIMETABLE
1.3.
Historical understanding of substance use and addiction
8.3.
Biological basis of addiction
15.3.
Psychological basis of addiction
20.3.
Environmental basis of addiction
29.3.
Summarizing definition of addiction. Diagnostics
5.4.
Legal drugs: alcohol, tobacco, caffeine
12.4.
Illicit drugs: opioids, cannabinoids, stimulants
26.3.
Behavioural addictions I: Gambling, sex and porn
3.5.
Behavioural addictions II: Digital media, eating disorders
10.5.
Prevention, therapy, harm reduction

EVALUATION
•Final essay
•Work in a group of 2-4 people
•Choose one of the following films
•Discuss the film in the group
•Write an essay about that film in which you use knowledge from this course (there will be one
essay per group)
•Essay can be creative but it must be critical and evidence based
•Evaluation will be based on: depth of understanding of addiction (usage of theories etc. you learn
in the course); support of your claims by evidence from the film; critical thinking; use of further
sources
•

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