“What are the psychological causes of drug abuse?”

Hi,

Thank you for your question. Some of the psychological causes of drug abuse include the following: experiencing an abnormality or "psychopathology" that manifests itself as mental illness, learning unhealthy behavior in response to the environment, having unrealistic or dysfunctional thoughts and beliefs that create uncomfortable feelings which in turn determines
negative behavior to cope with the stress, being developmentally immature, and lacking problem solving skills and motivation.
I hope this information has been helpful!

Best,

Jenna Torres, PsyD

Hello and thank you for your question,

I cannot identify one psychological cause for drug abuse. Addiction is a multifaceted issue that typically has several indicators and not just one cause. Many use substances as a means of escape from troubling thoughts and/or emotions. Pain and prescription drug issues can also be a trigger for drug abuse. There are too many issues involved and each person's story is unique; therefore, it is difficult to identify one specific psychological cause.

Respectfully,

Patricia Harris | MA, MS, LPC

There are many factors that likely contribute to drug abuse. I work from a biopsychosocial model that discusses the biological, psychological, and social aspects of the person. Some people are born genetically predisposed to addiction, meaning these people are at greater risk to become addicted and abuse drugs based on genetics alone regardless of other factors. Others may abuse drugs because of environmental reasons, poor role modeling by primary care givers, escape/avoidance of problems, maladaptive coping skills, boredom, peer pressure, or accidentally becoming addicted from prolonged use following a legitimate reason such as recovery from a surgery to name a few; the reasons are endless.

For that one I'd have to refer you to my books: Out of the Rabbit Hole: Breaking the Cycle of Addiction, and Lasting Recovery: A Guide to Recovery from Addiction. Deborah A Berberich, PhD.
Both are available on Amazon.

Check this link out...
https://www.helenfarabee.org/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=58686&cn=1409
or
https://dualdiagnosis.org/addiction-mental-illness-one-cause/