Psychological Aspects of Tobacco Addiction - Coursework Example

Tobacco Addiction Name: Course: Tutor: Date: Introduction Tobacco is a drug mainly consumed through smoking. Through this process the nicotine within the tobacco is absorbed into the blood stream through the lungs. The nicotine then makes its way to the brain where it induces feelings of joy and happiness. Unfortunately this feeling only lasts for a few minutes. This feeling is what prompts a user to continue using tobacco - they use it to pursue the happy feeling. Tobacco in most countries used socially. Although many countries have laws that regulate the use of the drug, the laws are often not strictly followed. This means that tobacco users are more likely to use other hard drugs or rather are more capable of transitioning into harder drugs, which induces even more feelings and in the process may fall into addiction. It is for these reasons therefore that there exist laws to govern the use of tobacco within any society. Tobacco consumption and the subsequent addiction is an issue of concern and the existing statistics point to this need. According to the World Health Organization (2010), tobacco is the second major cause of death in the word. At the beginning of this millennium, 1.22 billion people used tobacco and it related products. Thus, if it is assumed that 1% prevalence occurred each year then in 2010 it is estimated that almost 1.5 billion people are using tobacco. Tobacco use has over the years been much higher in males than in females but recent research has shown that prevalence among males especially in developed countries has peaked and has even began declining. Among females unfortunately, the rate is still increasing. Further, among the youths, with a focus on teenagers as of 2002, 20% of young teens smoked globally. This means that if the trend continued that way, 80,000 to 100,000 teens aged between 13-15 years began to smoke everyday. Estimates also show that half of that number will continue to smoke for the next 15 to 20 years, WHO further states that half these affected children come from Asia. Medical research shows that in China alone over two million deaths occur annually due to tobacco related complications. Tobacco use is also predicted to kill over 250 million children and adolescents who are alive today. This is due to the various effects it has on the health of the user and the passive user; a passive user implies the person who gets to either inhale tobacco smoke because they are near an active user. It is estimated that a third of these deaths will occur in developing nations alone. Tobacco alone is the cause of almost 20 diseases including a number of cancers and the impact it has on the global disease burden has not been fully realized. This means that tobacco has even more potential effects on the user and the passive user. Estimates also show that tobacco is responsible for about 2.6% of the global death and disease burden. This is projected to triple by 2020. This means that for every 1000 tonnes of tobacco produced 1000 people will eventually die from either directly or indirectly using tobacco. The numbers are in deed shocking and call for proper legislations on tobacco. Tobacco industry is estimated to be worth hundreds of billions of dollars, subsequently contributing billions in the form of taxes, employment either directly or indirectly and some tobacco companies are even known for sponsoring various social issues within our societies. This unfortunately doesn’t justify the harm tobacco use has caused to our societies. The same governments will again use the same billions to come up with various solutions on tobacco related complications. At times the governments end up spending even more to help those suffering from tobacco use (Franzese, 2009). This paper will therefore look at the various issues surrounding tobacco use and tobacco addiction. Social Learning Theory Social learning theory has been used in more than one case to explain why smoking or rather the used of tobacco is rapidly gaining popularity among the youth (Hanson et al, 2008). This theory has been used and is greatly supported by a numerous studies attesting to the influence of peers and family members to an individuals smoking behaviour the social learning theory (SLT) stipulates that young people tend to pick up habits through observing and appreciating what is going on around them. In this case smoking within any society is seen as a habit only people of a certain class can sustain. The branding and advertising of tobacco products has therefore been portrayed as a ‘well to do’ habit and that only the rich can smoke and look good at the same time. The youth therefore will appreciate this image, consequently wanting to identify with such an image. STL states that learning occurs through close contact; for example a teenager might want to experience smoking through observing a parent smoking or a role model smoking. This same teenager may continue to smoke through peer pressure. In this case the teenager may meet several other individuals who also smoke and through encouragement continue to engage in the habit to a point of addiction (Akers 2009 & Jacobson 2001). According to the social learning theory, this is also learnt through close contact and as explained above through imitation of their superiors. Therefore what the youth pick up can be directly or indirectly be linked to the society from which they come from. The theory continues further to explain that for such a habit to sustained, the teenager must have a constant supply of tobacco or any other drug. This is where the industry in most cases carries the blame (Ammerman, 1997). In the developed world, tobacco can easily be accessed through vending machines especially cigarettes. This therefore means that the little money the teens get in the form of allowances or lunch money goes into fuelling the habit even further. What is saddening is that in some developing nations the laws are so lax that in some cases adults send children to buy tobacco products for them. This exposure is what STL describes as being passed on from the adults to teenagers. This means that the children will grow in curiosity and eventually start smoking. Other factors will come in after the teen has picked up the habit like the price of tobacco products and the economics surrounding the use versus the availability of the same products. The end result in all this is an addiction that can be used to fuel the tobacco industry for another 20 years. In the same view, a lot will be lost in terms of diverted resources (Wagner 2001). Branding in the Context of SLT: According to Eadie et al (1999), branding is a fundamental process by which solutions are provided to a consumer through availing relevant information about a consumer product. In this aspect, branding is therefore an important learning process availed to everybody who wants to access that information. Relating to the fundamentals of the social learning theory is the fact that branding and the consequent advertising of the said brand is a way of passing information to the society. Eadie et al in their article have gone a head and described marketing, as it involves a brand, as a solution-providing process. The solution in this case is offered to the consumer regardless of their age or gender. Marketing as described above can therefore be described as social way of learning about a particular product that is available in the market (Eadie et al 1999). Branding and the Youth: Adolescence is considered a transition to adulthood in any society. It is a stage when an individual seeks to establish an identity that will perhaps make him stand out among peers. It is thus a critical stage for anyone. During this period the society tends to be a very important factor that can not be ignored. It is when one is curious about a variety of things within the society. Branding comes to play because as described above it is a source of information. In contemporary times branding and in deed marketing takes things a step further. The commercial information is rarely censored and in many ways created to attract the consumer. This commercial information is therefore a key source of learning to a youth or in this case an adolescent. It is in this stage that they tend to pick up information despite the consequences that may follow. They are looking for an identity and many turn to the society for clues (Monti, Colby & O’Leary, 2004). The main source of information therefore becomes the very same source of all negative images and information. Fortunately, laws have been enacted in many states that ban the use of public media to advertise tobacco products and other addictive products such as alcohol. Unfortunately the same manufacturers use other methods to pass on the information. Supermarkets are such places where all kinds of goods are displayed for public viewing. Depending on the kind of exposure that an adolescent has then such places can prove to be the very source of tobacco and other addictive substances. This though depends on the kind of exposure the youth has had from the society (Eadie et al 1999). This information can also be accessed through the public media. As described above, adolescents tend to identify themselves with a certain image. This can therefore be used to pass on information about tobacco products and other addictive substances, for example a famous celebrity may be seen on television smoking therefore initiating the curiosity among teenagers because they identify with him or her. Therefore as much as advertising is made to look as a crucial source of information, the information being passed on can be manipulated to impact a number of people differently. There are loop holes that exist enabling such manipulation of information for example, one may access information on tobacco products online and it is a fact that many youths today spend a lot of their time on the Internet. For a long time, the Internet has been considered as the only free and unrestricted source of information. The issue of familiarity has been a major concern for quite some time. Familiarity of some products tends to increase the chance that an under age may get access to it; for example, alcohol has been popularized so much that its familiarity within the society is at a high level. It comes in different brands and in different percentages therefore rendering it so familiar in the society. This in event has also diminished the chance that an underage will walk away from some products like tobacco and other addictive products. Unfortunately, this is what the brand manufacturers want. Increased familiarity of the said products translates directly to increased sales because a greater number of people access the product at any one time. In this case the number of youths using tobacco products increases in real time despite the harm it may cause. As described earlier a teenager is under going a period of extreme changes. All over a sudden what may have been considered as wrong may be accepted and seen under new light during this stage. This is because the developments taking place within brings about a change in perspective. They want to be considered as mature or adult and within this ‘adult stage’ a lot of things are considered as fair. They also want to stretch the boundaries and experiment with a lot of things. This is because of the curiosity within. The exposure they get especially from substances considered as wrong may well determine if they are going to use it or not. Experimenting at this stage is very common. Teens tend to experiment a lot with a number of things so that they fit in with the crowd. Smoking therefore comes as the easy thing to do and before they know it they are addicted. Another issue that comes to play is they smoke or use tobacco products to challenge the authority, in this case if the parents smoke the teenagers tend to smoke because they both identify and want to feel what the parents are feeling. When challenged to stop they push back using the same explanations. This to them provides an avenue to challenge the authority. Social learning theory therefore stipulates that to make sure that the youth learn the correct values, adults should practice the same values. Branding of tobacco should not involve the use of catchy phrases that may and will attract new users. Cigarette packs should have proper marking of what tobacco use does to any human being. This awareness is among the few methods that have caused awareness about the impact of smoking (Monti, Colby, O’Leary, 2004). In conclusion, tobacco has been in use for a very long time. Its use has also for a long time been associated with class and importance; for example, not even one advertisement will show an individual suffering from cancer or any other effects of tobacco. This is manipulation of information. The social learning theory has been used to illustrate why the habit is rising amongst the youth. The explanation is that because the youth are exposed to such branding and marketing strategies, they eventually end up with an addiction. This may vary depending on the kind of exposure the youth has had, availability of the product in question and their capacity to access the product. In most countries tobacco products are readily available and affordable. This has been seen as a strategy to ensure that the industry has new smokers every year. Branding is therefore one of the factors ensuring that the youth get into smoking and stay smoking. On the flip side, branding may also hold the key in ensuring that the youth stop the habit and consequently save the future generation from the habit, going by the social learning theory. References Akers R. L. (2009).Social Learning and Social Structure: A General Theory of Crime and Deviance. New Brunswick, N.J: Transaction Publishers. Ammerman R, T. Hersen M. (1997). Handbook of Prevention and Treatment with Children and Adolescents: Intervention in the Real World Context. New York: Chichester,Wiley. Hanson, G, R. Venturelli, P, J. Fleckenstein, Annette E. (2008). Student Study Guide to Accompany Drugs and Society. New York: Jones & Bartlett Pub. Jacobson P, D. (2001). Combating Teen Smoking: Research and Policy Strategies. Ann Arbor Univ. of Michigan Press. Franzese R, J. (2009). The Sociology of Deviance: Differences, Tradition, and Stigma. Springfield, Ill: Charles C. Thomas. Wagner E, F. (2001). Innovations in Adolescent Substance Abuse Interventions. New York: Pergamon. Monti P, M. Colby S, M. O'Leary T, A. (2004). Adolescents, Alcohol and Substance Abuse: Reaching Teens through Brief Interventions. New York; London: Guilford. Eadie D, Hastings G, Stead Martine, Mackintosh A M. (1999). Branding: Could it hold the key to Future Tobacco Reduction Policy? Health Education. MCB University Press. PDF Journal. WHO, Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean. Tobacco Free Initiative. Retrived 24th August, 2010 from http://www.emro.who.int/tfi/facts.htm. Read More

This means that tobacco has even more potential effects on the user and the passive user. Estimates also show that tobacco is responsible for about 2.6% of the global death and disease burden. This is projected to triple by 2020. This means that for every 1000 tonnes of tobacco produced 1000 people will eventually die from either directly or indirectly using tobacco. The numbers are in deed shocking and call for proper legislations on tobacco. Tobacco industry is estimated to be worth hundreds of billions of dollars, subsequently contributing billions in the form of taxes, employment either directly or indirectly and some tobacco companies are even known for sponsoring various social issues within our societies.

This unfortunately doesn’t justify the harm tobacco use has caused to our societies. The same governments will again use the same billions to come up with various solutions on tobacco related complications. At times the governments end up spending even more to help those suffering from tobacco use (Franzese, 2009). This paper will therefore look at the various issues surrounding tobacco use and tobacco addiction. Social Learning Theory Social learning theory has been used in more than one case to explain why smoking or rather the used of tobacco is rapidly gaining popularity among the youth (Hanson et al, 2008).

This theory has been used and is greatly supported by a numerous studies attesting to the influence of peers and family members to an individuals smoking behaviour the social learning theory (SLT) stipulates that young people tend to pick up habits through observing and appreciating what is going on around them. In this case smoking within any society is seen as a habit only people of a certain class can sustain. The branding and advertising of tobacco products has therefore been portrayed as a ‘well to do’ habit and that only the rich can smoke and look good at the same time.

The youth therefore will appreciate this image, consequently wanting to identify with such an image. STL states that learning occurs through close contact; for example a teenager might want to experience smoking through observing a parent smoking or a role model smoking. This same teenager may continue to smoke through peer pressure. In this case the teenager may meet several other individuals who also smoke and through encouragement continue to engage in the habit to a point of addiction (Akers 2009 & Jacobson 2001).

According to the social learning theory, this is also learnt through close contact and as explained above through imitation of their superiors. Therefore what the youth pick up can be directly or indirectly be linked to the society from which they come from. The theory continues further to explain that for such a habit to sustained, the teenager must have a constant supply of tobacco or any other drug. This is where the industry in most cases carries the blame (Ammerman, 1997). In the developed world, tobacco can easily be accessed through vending machines especially cigarettes.

This therefore means that the little money the teens get in the form of allowances or lunch money goes into fuelling the habit even further. What is saddening is that in some developing nations the laws are so lax that in some cases adults send children to buy tobacco products for them. This exposure is what STL describes as being passed on from the adults to teenagers. This means that the children will grow in curiosity and eventually start smoking. Other factors will come in after the teen has picked up the habit like the price of tobacco products and the economics surrounding the use versus the availability of the same products.

The end result in all this is an addiction that can be used to fuel the tobacco industry for another 20 years. In the same view, a lot will be lost in terms of diverted resources (Wagner 2001). Branding in the Context of SLT: According to Eadie et al (1999), branding is a fundamental process by which solutions are provided to a consumer through availing relevant information about a consumer product.

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