The Cultural Framing of Addiction

A paper by Robin Room, 2003

"... a secular equivalent for possession as an explanation of how a good person can behave badly..."

R. Room

Abstract

"The concept of addiction is historically and culturally specific, becoming a common way of understanding experience first in early nineteenth-century America. This paper considers the relation to the concept of elements in current professional definitions of addiction (as dependence). Addiction concepts have become a commonplace in storytelling, offering a secular equivalent for possession as an explanation of how a good person can behave badly, and as an inner demon over which a hero can triumph. "

Link - Open Access

https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/The-Cultural-Framing-of-Addiction-Room/2eec2cd1e558822442bd70e569486a1b6453fe7d

Link - Direct Download

http://www.doctordeluca.com/Library/AbstinenceHR/CulturalFramingOfAddiction03.pdf