Craving
The term craving is generally delined as a state of desire, longing, or urge for a drugthat is responsible for ongoing drug-use behavior in drug-dependent individuals. Craving is also viewed by many drug-abuse researchers and clinicians as the main cause of relapse among drug users attempting to remain abstinent. During periods of abstinence, drug-dependent individuals often complain of intense craving for their drug. Several systems for diagnosing drug abuse include persistent desire or craving for a drug as a major symptom of drug-dependence disorders.
The belief that an addict's inability to control drug use is caused by craving and irresistible desire was a prominent feature of descriptions of addictive disorders provided by many nineteenth-century writers. Craving continued to be important in many models of addiction developed in the twentieth century. The use of craving as a key mechanism in theories of addiction peaked in the 1950s, supported largely by E. M. Jellinek's writings on the causes of alcoholism.
Jellineckcontended that sober alcoholics who consumed a small amount of alcohol would experience overwhelming craving that would compel them to continue drinking. The proposal that craving and loss of control over drinking were equivalent concepts was adopted by many clinicians and addiction researchers.
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