The problem of addiction is one of the major problems faced by the humans in the modern society. The constantly rising amount of the people getting addicted to a number of substances is because of a number of causes. The individual needs to understand the difference between the ‘use and abuse’ of the substance before relating to the issue. The use is the terminology used when an individual uses a substance for personal use and recreation (Rhemtulla et al., 2016). The use becomes abuse of the substance when the person is too addicted to it continue their daily routine. The reasons for addiction in the contemporary society are numerous. In this essay the substance abuse or the addiction issue is analyzed as a social issue rather than a health problem. To substantiate the claim the various sociological factors are analyzed along with their effect on the different people pushing them into substance abuse. In the this context a number of social factors like peer pressure and family, economic factors like poverty and environmental factors like availability are analyzed. The substance abuse of any product is harmful for the human body.
The family and peers play an important role in the nurturing of the individual, helping in their cognitive development and shaping their social habits. The dependency of a substance starts as a recreation in most cases and the person gradually becomes to addict of the emotional or psychological emotions that is aggravated by the substance and starts abusing it. The abuse of the substance is often caused by a number of reasons such as the family history of the individual. It is often seen that the children of the families who have a background of substance abuse have a tendency of substance abuse (Cook et al., 2017). It is not a general problem in the society or the disease in the user, just the social issue that forces them to turn into substance abusers. One of the major issues seen in the families in the society among the people suffering from substance abuse is the family troubles they go through. The individuals belonging to broken families or in the families where there are constant issues in the house tend to have a greater affinity towards substance abuse. The family issues may also lead to substance abuse in a number of situations such as the pressure of providing for the family and the problems the individual is facing in sustenance of family life. The effect of peers on an individual is a major situation often leading to substance abuse among a large number of individuals. It is a general trend that the individuals acquire the habit of substance abuse from their peers (Jalilian et al., 2015). The effect of the society is also a major influence, which may lead to substance abuse. The substance abuse may also be result of the peer pressure that the individual faces in the society. the peer pressure is not only due to the peers using the substance but the frequency of the use of the substance also depends on the peer pressure that the individual faces in the society. it can be therefore seen that the habit is not hereditary but the dependence starts as an acquired taste and gradually becomes a habit. The overall situation in this scenario shows that the substance abuse starts as a recreational or escapist habit but takes the form of a substance abuse.
The social pressure may not be the only reason which leads to the substance abuse among the individuals in the society. it is often seen that the people from the upper affluent class or the impoverished class of the society are involved in the substance abuse in the society. The economic issue therefore has a major part to play in the habit of substance abuse (Potter-Efron, Potter-Efron & Carruth, 2016). The two classes which are involved in the substance abuse have very similar mindsets which leads to this problem. They are involved in spending their time on the sustenance and there is often no hope for the betterment of their condition. The situation thus presented affects the individual, if too affluent they have no shortage of money or the supply of the necessary materials to fulfill the needs of their substance leading to the substance abuse. Among the poorer class of the society the substance abuse is often as escapism or a recreation after a days of herd work but that habit gradually takes toll on the individual as they get addicted to the euphoria given by the substance. The substance abuse among the rich is different they get addicted to euphoria as they have time and do not have to work too hard for their living and they see the recreation as once a while opportunity.
In the due time the different situation and the escapism from the emotional and the stressful life causes the substance abuse among the rich in the society. The overall situations in the society and the poverty of the people have led to the substance abuse in the society (Segal, Morral & Stevens, 2014). One of the major problems in the society that accentuates the rise of the substance abuse in the society is the over criminalization in certain societies. This is a major problem in most of the societies in the third world countries where the children gradually get habituated to the substance abuse as the criminal societies causes them to have addictive substances. The poverty in the society also causes depression in most individuals which leads to substance abuse. Therefore, it can be seen that the substance abuse is not randomly distributed in the society but marginalized to certain parts of the society, which helps in establishing the fact that it is social habit not a disorder. The generalization of the habit is not viable in the context as the habit has a number of factors affecting them.
There are a number of issues leading to substance abuse other than the normal psychological problems in the societies. The substance to be abused by the individuals is usually generally easily available in the societies in which the societies they are abused. The substance abuse in the society that are impoverished is mainly due to the easy availability of the cheap addictive things in the society. The different needs of the individual vary and there are a number of psychological issues which leads to substance abuse (Edlund et al., 2015). When a person is born in a society like the ones in the small town of Mexico and Colombia, the easy availability of the different addictive substance causes the citizen to have a number of substance abuse issues. It is also seen a number of situations that the substance abuse is a result of the psychological issues that the people are facing. The substance abuse in the society is also a result of a number of determinants that are guided by media and the social factors in the society. the overhype of the hippies gradually led to the era where the majority of the population towards substance abuse. Similarly, in the case of affluent societies larger number of people suffer from abuse of wine and costly alcohol in the society. it is not the case that they need to escape from anything, it is just the acquired taste that takes a toll on the individual and makes them abusers. The habit is of the effect not the substance itself, which shows that it is a social habit. The substance abuse is rarely for the taste of the substance that the individuals abuse in the society; mostly it is the euphoria that the person gets after using it. The high is not a disorder that can be treated it is just a habit, which can be changed. Therefore any treatment for the abuse of a substance is as addictive as the previous, for example people quitting cigarettes often get addicted to nicotine patches (World Health Organization, & World Health Organization. Management of Substance Abuse Unit., 2014). The opinion of use and abuse is very subjective to the user of the individual. The amount of the substance needed to affect the person varies with person to person. What may be the use for one person will be abuse for another. It is therefore very subjective and the individual choice of the people is what marks the difference between the use and abuse. The substance is therefore an object the use and abuse depends on the individual.
Therefore, the use and abuse of a substance is the individual choice of the user not a disease. It is high time that the society should understand the use and abuse of a substance is a personal choice. It is not a disease to be treated but a habit, which can be changed with time. If at all, the society wants to change the habit it has to accept it as a habit. The perception of the society of the habit has to change if it wants to change the habit.
References
Cook, A., Spinazzola, J., Ford, J., Lanktree, C., Blaustein, M., Cloitre, M., … & Mallah, K. (2017). Complex trauma in children and adolescents. Psychiatric annals, 35(5), 390-398.
Edlund, M. J., Forman-Hoffman, V. L., Winder, C. R., Heller, D. C., Kroutil, L. A., Lipari, R. N., & Colpe, L. J. (2015). Opioid abuse and depression in adolescents: results from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Drug and alcohol dependence, 152, 131-138.
Jalilian, F., Karami Matin, B., Ahmadpanah, M., Ataee, M., Ahmadi Jouybari, T., Eslami, A. A., & Mirzaei Alavijeh, M. (2015). Socio-demographic characteristics associated with cigarettes smoking, drug abuse and alcohol drinking among male medical university students in Iran. Journal of research in health sciences, 15(1), 42-46.
Martin, C. S., Langenbucher, J. W., Chung, T., & Sher, K. J. (2014). Truth or consequences in the diagnosis of substance use disorders. Addiction, 109(11), 1773-1778.
Potter-Efron, R., Potter-Efron, P., & Carruth, B. (2016). Aggression, family violence and chemical dependency. Routledge.
Rhemtulla, M., Fried, E. I., Aggen, S. H., Tuerlinckx, F., Kendler, K. S., & Borsboom, D. (2016). Network analysis of substance abuse and dependence symptoms. Drug and alcohol dependence, 161, 230-237.
Segal, B., Morral, A. R., & Stevens, S. J. (2014). Adolescent substance abuse treatment in the United States: Exemplary models from a national evaluation study. Routledge.
World Health Organization, & World Health Organization. Management of Substance Abuse Unit. (2014). Global status report on alcohol and health, 2014. World Health Organization.
Essay Writing Service Features
Our Experience
No matter how complex your assignment is, we can find the right professional for your specific task. Contact Essay is an essay writing company that hires only the smartest minds to help you with your projects. Our expertise allows us to provide students with high-quality academic writing, editing & proofreading services.Free Features
Free revision policy
$10Free bibliography & reference
$8Free title page
$8Free formatting
$8How Our Essay Writing Service Works
First, you will need to complete an order form. It's not difficult but, in case there is anything you find not to be clear, you may always call us so that we can guide you through it. On the order form, you will need to include some basic information concerning your order: subject, topic, number of pages, etc. We also encourage our clients to upload any relevant information or sources that will help.
Complete the order formOnce we have all the information and instructions that we need, we select the most suitable writer for your assignment. While everything seems to be clear, the writer, who has complete knowledge of the subject, may need clarification from you. It is at that point that you would receive a call or email from us.
Writer’s assignmentAs soon as the writer has finished, it will be delivered both to the website and to your email address so that you will not miss it. If your deadline is close at hand, we will place a call to you to make sure that you receive the paper on time.
Completing the order and download