Under the Cortex Understanding Addiction: A General Liability or Unique Disorders?
Mar 20, 2025
Ashley Watts, a quantitative psychopathologist at Vanderbilt University, dives into the complex world of addiction. She challenges the General Addiction Liability theory, arguing against simplistic explanations for addictive behavior. Through her research, she highlights the heterogeneity of substance use disorders and how population data reveal the limitations of a single addiction factor. Ashley discusses the implications of these findings for treatment strategies, advocating for a nuanced understanding that could reshape future research and therapeutic approaches.
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First-Week Postdoc Realization
- Ashley recounted her first week in a postdoc and immediate surprise at the heterogeneity of substance use disorders.
- That early impression redirected her research toward sources of heterogeneity in addiction.
Changing Epidemic And Cultural Context
- The evolving opioid and stimulant epidemics create urgency and opportunity to improve classification and access to treatment.
- Watts notes shifting legal and cultural views on drugs also change how we conceptualize substance use disorders.
General Addiction Liability Defined
- The general addiction liability proposes a single latent propensity that increases risk across all drugs.
- Ashley Watts cautions that quantitative methods have encouraged pursuit of such unitary factors without strong theory.
