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Abstract
Very few contemporary approaches on addiction specifically aim to address the question of why people who are well-aware of harmful consequences continue to perform addictive behaviours. The aim of this article is to introduce a model of addiction which addresses this question. This model integrates the existing theoretical approaches on addiction in one framework by arguing that the majority of contemporary accounts of addiction are not mutually exclusive in the sense that the occurrence or prominence of one process does not preclude the occurrence of another. Moreover, the suggestion is that the majority of these accounts are in effect supportive of and cooperate with each other in order to shape a background on which addiction flourishes. This approach views addiction as a matter of synergy where many social, environmental, historic, personal, neurological and chemical mechanisms simultaneously work together in order to form behaviours extremely resistant to change. The conclusions of the present analysis point out the necessity of: (1) approaching addiction in a more complex manner by providing a detailed analysis of and grouping the multiple sources of addiction into one integrative model, (2) exploring the synergetic effect of diverse accounts in the development and perpetuation of addiction and (3) emphasizing the significance of individual perception of addiction and individually tailored approaches to treating it. The limitations of the present analysis are also outlined.