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| Article - Abstract. To view full article click on the article title. | |
CBHD: On Addiction - Harold O.J. Brown A generation or so ago the famous psychiatrist Karl Menninger asked, "Whatever became of sin?" Today we know the answer. Sin became an addiction. This phenomenon is part of what we might call the medicalization of all ills. This may appear to make our failings less sinful, but it does not necessarily lead to a cure. Some things that used to fall under the heading of conduct can indeed conveniently be redefined as sickness: abuse of alcohol is a prime example. No longer is the problem drinker to be shunned as a debauchee: he or she is an alcoholic, addicted to alcohol, and needs to be treated, not tried. Webster's unabridged dictionary gives two relevant definitions of addiction: (1) compulsive use as of a drug; and (2) extreme devotion. There is a good deal of folklore that sees excessive drinkers as fitting into the second meaning, devoted to the bottle. However, it is, alas, sadly evident that for many the question is no longer one of devotion, which they might alter, but of compulsion, which they cannot. Even so, seeing alcoholism as a medical problem has not made it completely amenable to a medical solution. There are drugs to administer, institutions to stay in, counselors to consult, but these medical approaches are not always effective. Full Article: http://www.cbhd.org/resources/healthcare/brown_1998-10-09.htm |
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2006 Ethics-Governance.com |
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