Is the media the main cause of drug addiction?

 Health psychology to explore the reasons and psychological theories for the rise in drug addiction. There is the nature argument (derived from the biological approach) which states that genes play an important role in substance abuse. Some individuals may have the A1DRD2 potential gene, meaning they have reward deficiency syndrome. This focuses on a deficit in the dopamine system, meaning they lack a sufficient number of dopamine receptors in their brain to produce pleasure naturally. This means they are unable to produce feelings of well being. So these individuals self medicate to help raise the levels of ‘feel good chemicals’. On the other hand, there is the nurture argument. Learning theory suggests the imitation of role models has a large role to play in the rise of substance abuse; especially role models in the media. Perhaps if we observe someone like Russel Brand (someone seen in the media, engage in smoking or drinking casually, we are likely to imitate this as it seems appealing because of certain characteristics (He’s a celebrity, rich, higher status etc). In conclusion, both nature and nurture have significant roles in the on set of drug addiction.