Sunday 8 June 2014

The Cognitive Model of Addiction - Applied to Smoking

  ▲ Initiation    Maintenance   ▲ Relapse

  The concepts of of coping and expectancy can be applied to this model.
 Perhaps people begin to smoke because they are bored and it relieves their mood. The smoker's expectancies of smoking can be wide-ranging. It may facilitate social interaction, make them look more attractive or perhaps control their appetite and weight. Regardless if these are true these expectancies may motivate someone to initiate a smoking addiction.
  Self efficacy can also be applied to initiating smoking; the smoker may in fact know their habit is dangerous and addictive however believe they are totally in control of their behaviour.

  Maintenance can be addressed through reference to 'Beck's Vicious Circle' of addiction. 
 The individual may be unhappy or lead a stressful life and may therefore start smoking. However this may lead to the ill-health problems associated with smoking, as well as financial difficulties and social isolation. All these problems may result in a negative mood; the person will then reach for a cigarette to relieve this negativity, and thus the cycle continues.
  The concepts of coping may also explain the maintenance of smoking.
 People will continue to smoke because they believe it enhances their ability to concentrate for longer, or carrying out repetitive tasks without getting bored.
  Self efficacy is also an issue in the maintenance of smoking.
 The individual may feel they can give up whenever they feel like doing so, however it could that once initiated they are unable to cope with the side effects of withdrawal, and therefore not give up.

  A smoker may relapse due to due to coping, expectancy and self efficacy
 The negative feelings of withdrawal can easily be relieved if the person smoked a cigarette. Relapsed smokers may also feel that if they have given up once, they are able to whenever they want. They may therefore believe that a return to smoking won't be permanent because they have had the experience of quitting before.

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