2nd Year Winner – The Rat Park Experiment: An adaptive approach in prevention and treatment of substance dependency, by Paulina Moscicka
Drug abuse is characterized by a strong and recurring desire to consume a substance despite adverse social and health consequences (Zou, 2017). The road to recovery for addicts is complex because frequent use of the substance often leads to dependency, tolerance building and painful withdrawal.
Problematic drug use is a global issue and places great strain on society and the economy. For instance, substance dependency is linked to interpersonal crime and community violence, lowers workers productivity and costly treatment of health conditions associated with drug use (Singer, 2008). The state of prohibition creates a black market for drugs that skew economies to drug production and money laundering (Singer, 2008).
Consequently, many nations have declared a war on drugs, employed zero-tolerance policies and harsh punishments for substance offences. However, studies have shown that punitive measures and strict policies based on prohibition do not work. For instance, policies adopted by China and Singapore are known to be particularly strict on illicit drug users, yet research has demonstrated that this approach is unsuccessful in decreasing the number of cases of substance abuse in those countries (Swensen, 1999).
Therefore, it would be advantageous for all politicians to consider a different approach regarding drug addiction since policies based on the popular consensus has futile results. This paper explores the Rat Park experiment (1978) and the wider implications and lessons that can be drawn from the study.
Aleksander (1978) constructed a series of experiments known as the Rat Park experiment. The researchers created a context that encouraged the natural behaviour of rats by provided mates, toys, and space to play. In the subsequent condition, rats were separately housed in small cages. Both conditions had a choice of self-administering water or morphine. The researcher found that rats placed in the social environment consumed significantly less morphine than rats in isolated cages (Aleksander, 1982). The rats from the enriched enclosure consumed almost exclusively water. Furthermore, there were no cases of overdose as opposed to the rats housed in isolation (Aleksander, 1982).
The results highlighted how environmental stressors can lead to a downward spiral of substance addiction. Although the Rat Park experiment has several methodological issues and subsequent replications yielded mixed results, the findings are widely supported and reflected in academic literature (Khoo, 2002). Countless studies have demonstrated how enriched environments reduce drug consumption, whereas stressful settings lead to addictive behaviour (Khoo, 2002). For instance, Robbins (1974) study illustrated how context and place plays a vital part in substance abuse. Despite astonishingly high rates of heroin use among US soldiers during the Vietnam war, 95% of those who developed problematic drug addictions stopped consuming opiates upon arriving back to the US (Proudfoot, 2019). Solins (2010) literature review found that neuroadaptations in the hippocampus induced by environment enrichments can prevent and eliminate drug dependency by restoring healthy functioning of the stress system. Aleksander’s (1978) and Robinson’s (1974) study demonstrates how substance abuse takes root in traumatic settings.
Aleksander (1982) utilized findings from the Rat Park study to make broader observations on the nature of addiction and proposed the adaptive approach in understanding addiction.
The adaptive orientation advocates for a culture of compassion towards those afflicted by substance dependency. According to this approach, individuals utilize drugs to sooth internal pain and life dissatisfaction. People desperately attempt to adapt to the various stressor by consuming drugs when they perceive no alternative means to emotion regulate (Aleksander, 1982). This creates a vicious cycle of addiction because substances ultimately increase the original distress and causes additional problems.
Abstinence-based policies are unfruitful because too much emphasis is placed on the pharmacology of the drug, whilst mental health factors that make people more vulnerable to addiction are overlooked. When an individual with a drug dependency has no access to their preferred substance, they seek out alternative, frequently more destructive means to emotion regulate (Aleksander, 1982).
This phenomenon has been observed during COVID19. The pandemic caused global distress and uncertainty. Many people lost social connections and experienced loneliness because of social distancing regulations. Initially, borders and trading routs were restricted or temporary closed hence, resulted in shortages of certain substances (Zaami, 2020). Consequently, drug strength and prices fluctuated (Ali, 2021). Nevertheless, in a semis-structured interview, more than half of the participants addicted to substances reported increased use and substitution of substances (Ali, 2021). Additionally, a significant number of participants reported relapsing during the pandemic (Ali, 2021). Other scholars, such as Agrawal, (2020), Sarangi (2021), Zaami (2020) and Sun (2020) noted a rise in the use of psychoactive substances triggered by emotional distress during the global crisis.
The increase in substance use during the pandemic mirror the results of Alexander’s (1978) Rat Park experiment where distress due to environmental stressors and isolation triggers substance abuse. Legislative bodies can utilize these findings in preventative measures by increasing funding and availability to mental health facilities. In improving wellbeing of individuals, people would be less enticed to consume drugs to escape emotional anguish.
Problematic substance use is a global issue with grievous personal, social, and economic consequences. Therefore, it is imperative for politicians to familiarise themselves with the lessons and implications drawn from the Rat Park study in treatment and prevention of drug abuse.
Alexander’s (1978) Rat Park experiment demonstrated how substance abuse is closely linked to emotional dysphoria that emerges from social dislocation and traumatic landscape. The findings of the study are widely supported by academic literature and real-life situations that investigate the social causes of addiction. People with drug dependency utilize drugs as a form of a maladaptive coping mechanism when faced with difficult emotions and environmental stressors.
Prohibition based policies do not work because struggling individuals will find alternative, and often more destructive ways to self-medicate. Politicians are advised to provide more employment opportunities, invest in communities, enrichment programs and mental-health facilities so that people feel more connected, accomplished, and supported. Minimizing environmental stressors and providing guidance for manifesting healthy coping skills can effectively counter and prevent substance dependency.
References
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