Behavioral Theory and the Aspect of Use in the Film Leaving Las Vegas - Movie Review Example

of affiliation: Introduction Leaving Las Vegas is a Remarkable film that depicts the highest magnitude of loneliness and acceptance through the key actors Nicholas Cage, acting as Ben and Elizabeth Shue as sera. The story begins with Ben who meets with a friend in Las Vegas and immediately we get to know his problem even as he asks the friend for some money, which he gets but under instructions that he should not drink from the same Bar. Ben plays the role of a man who is strongly trapped in alcoholism and sees no problem in the life he leads. Though not clearly shown, Bens drinking habits seem to have began following a misunderstanding in his family that saw the wife and the only son leave. Faced with this issue Ben resorts to drinking not knowing that he is slowly getting isolated and even sometime finds himself in trouble fighting with women in the bar for the reason of wanting to have sex with them. The worst happens when he is fired from his work place and decides to change his residence. Having learned nothing from his past experiences Ben opts to leave Los Angeles for Las Vegas to drinks himself to death. Over the past decade research studies have focused on the subject of substance abuse and as a result developed an etiological theory to help explain drug abuse. This work will use this movie as a basis to detail on ATOD as a behavioral theory and apply the aspect of use addressed which are Initiation, continuation, addiction, recovery and relapse Initiation Initiation is the first level where we study to uncover why a person opts to abuse drugs. This has been termed as the initial and unfortunate aspect anchoring the later process of adduction. At this stage, the choice to start abusing the drug inclines entirely on the individual’s state of mind and his/her behavior. In the movie “leaving Las Vegas” Ben’s painful past seem to be the drive for his later behavior. The pain of losing his family and later his job seem to have taken the best of him and the only way to hide it is to drink. The effect of his past environment also comes in especially when we see his interaction with PETER, an old time friend. The two seem to have had a long history together since peter knows what Ben want even before he asks and warns him saying “this is the last time I will give you money to drink. However, it is worth noting that cultural ethnic grouping depict varied statistics, in that some individuals show a low likelihood to abuse drugs in the future if they are from such an environment. Additionally, genetics has been mentioned as playing an important role by establishing a unique personality of the person open to the elements of an unstable surrounding. Some may be genetically inclined to their parents and thus pushed to abuse drugs like them while others may be genetically pushed to behave differently from their parents. Alcoholism, a concept that is included in many other diseases in the light of the disease theory plays an important role in this argument. Alcoholism is strongly linked to the effects of genetics and environment. According to one of the studies made, if a person’s genes carries the alcoholism disease, then different environments that such a person get into contact with can easily trigger the disease. In our case, Ben who was leaving in Los Angeles moves to Las Vegas and immediately moves into a bar where he unexpectedly meets peter, an old time friend. These two must be having a common behavioral history as peter easily recognizes what Ben wants and of course meets his demand. If we take Bens issues and assume he is genetically linked to alcoholism, we can say the new environment Las Vegas i.e. the Bar and the friend in only worked to trigger his craving. Here, the new environment together with the new friends served as ben’s initiation while in Las Vegas. Continuation and Addiction The aspect of continuation elucidate why a person will continue with their ATOD abuse. Reinforcement component of the behavioral theory explains this aspect in a better way. This aspect has been found to be important when it comes to reinforcing good and/or bad behavior. This concept supports addiction and reveals why a person goes on feeding on their addiction. Individuals always feel better and more outgoing when exposed to alcoholic drink or/and any other drug for the first time. This feeling is typically positive and there is tendency for them to want to experience it again and again. Ben is faced with a scary past and an unpromising future and the only way to keep going is to try not facing this reality. Alcoholism becomes his best accompaniment when trying to push this feeling away. His determination to carry on with alcoholism to fight his pain is so strong that he openly warns sera not to try stopping his drinking habit and even agrees not to interfere with sera’s promiscuous life. Ben seems to find solace in drinking and even though he sticks to sera and appreciate her genuine concern, he still feels sera cannot pull him out of the trap he faces. Ben seems to have developed a strong addiction for alcohol not just for leisure but as an antidote for his pain. Continued usage of ATOD causes the person to quickly fall into addiction. Here, we say one is addicted / or fallen into addiction once the person becomes dependent on the substance and cannot go on with his/her life normally without it. According to research, a number of factors have been identified as the cause for continued substance abuse. These includes :substance pharmacology( i.e. the drug property of producing pleasant or desired experiences), the individuals biology( whether the concerned persons posses acquired or genetic biological intolerances or predispositions to use particular substances), the substance availability and marketing(is the substance easily found , used and legalized). In addition to this, other factors known to influence the continued use of a substance is; community contexts (i.e. Does the setting or subculture surrounding the Substance usage support the continued usage of a substance? Lastly, other individual characteristics that range from the present developmental stage the mental condition which may be temporarily ameliorated at least by the substance. Recovery and Relapse Recovery aspects come in when a person has effectively mastered his/her addictions. In this movie we don’t see any effort towards recovery. Ben is greatly obsessed with his drinking habit that he fail to notice Sera concern for his deteriorating condition. At some point sera is fed up with his alcoholism and even proposes that he considers seeing a doctor. At this Ben is angered and opts to take in another prostitute only to annoy sera who decide to break the relationship. Ideally, most people at this stage face the craving for the addiction; however over time they learn to cope with it. Matrix model has for some reason proven effective when helping persons trapped in addictions. Matrix model refers to a treatment method in which the behavioral therapy, individual counseling, family education, drug testing, 12-step support, and encouragement for activities that do not lead to drug abuse is offered as a package (National Institute of Drug Abuse, 2010). To effectively recover from ATOD and maintain the new status one should attend programs that include narcotic Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). These programs will not only help in the individual’s recovery but also stop them from relapsing. Relapsing which is the last aspect in this work refers to a situation where a person goes back to abusing ATOD following their recovery. Difficulties in maintaining the life-altering change has been mentioned as a major reason for some people experiencing relapses. Developing new friendships and taking on new life is part of the change in many instances. The process of making new friends can prove challenging and depressing, however, it is not accomplished, and any person who has recovered from drug abuse risks relapsing, thanks to the old friends. Additionally, everyplace such an individual goes carries the risk triggering his memory, a factor that may invoke the craving for particular drug. In this movie, Ben moves from Los Angeles to Las Vegas and the places he visits and even the people he meets only work to heighten his drinking habit. This movie begins with Ben visiting a certain bar where he unexpectedly meets peter an old friend. Clearly, the place of meeting and even their conversation says more about their drinking character. It is this environment and even friends that trigger his craving and support the continuation of his drinking habit. Many people who are struggling to recover from substance abuse confess that their craving can be triggered by simple things like a commercial or even a mere sign. ATOD abstinence is usually a difficult move for people who were once addicted and in most cases such people can’t exercise it on their own. Conclusion Leaving Las Vegas movie offers a good example of how slowly one can get trapped in addiction of drugs. Ben the main character struggles with alcoholism and nothing seems to work in his world. He loses his family, work and finally decides to change his residence but the character continues. In this movie we see the effects of failing to get through recovery process as Ben finally drinks himself to death just as he had predicted. Taking the perspective involved in treatment, relapse and recovery play an important part in the whole process. The increased level of relapses is a frustrating issue and the idea of a “cure “is in most cases elusive. Substance abuse career reflect an episodic nature, with seasons of abstinence, reduction of use and relapse the ongoing pattern. These events are usually influenced by external cause that includes availability of the substance, and societal pressures. References Stevens, P., & Smith, R. (2009). Substance abuse counseling: Theory and practice. (5th ed., p. 4). Boston: Pearson. Read More