Addiction presents a double paradox for a social scientist. At first, it appears as a narrow field of social and health policy, but at the same time social science research of addictions covers most areas of study in these disciplines: (public) health, socialand psychological risk factors, social control, power and politics, economics and culture. Second, ddictions are biophysiological conditions beyond doubt, and as such, as invariable as the human body. Nevertheless, the forms they take, the transitions from normal behaviours to dependence, the boundaries drawn to define them and societal reactions to as well as ideas regulating them vary historically and culturally. In themselves, such paradoxes are not unique to addictions – any disease is more or less subject to them. But these paradoxes concern addictions in a special way. > > > > Read More
