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Cognitive theory of depression and learning theory of addiction

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Psychological explanations focus on how we think and what we learn, rather than our genes.

Cognitive theory of depression (Beck)

Aaron Beck argued that depression is caused by negative, irrational thinking.
The cognitive triad: negative views of the self ('I'm useless'), the world ('everyone is against me') and the future ('nothing will ever get better').
Negative schemas: developed from earlier experiences, such as criticism in childhood; they are triggered by later events.
Cognitive errors (faulty thinking): for example overgeneralising (one failure means I always fail) or focusing only on the negatives.
Strengths: supported by research showing depressed people often think more negatively; it led to CBT, which works for many people.
Weaknesses: cause or effect? Negative thinking may be a result of depression, not its cause. It ignores biological factors such as genes and serotonin, and may seem to blame the person.

Learning theory of addiction

Classical conditioning (learning by association): cues linked with the drug (a lighter, a certain friend, a pub) become associated with its effects, and trigger cravings.
Operant conditioning (learning by consequences): positive reinforcement: the drug gives a pleasant feeling, so use is repeated. Negative reinforcement: taking the drug removes unpleasant withdrawal symptoms or stress, so use is repeated.
Social learning theory (learning by observation): people imitate role models such as parents, friends or celebrities, especially if they see them rewarded (vicarious reinforcement).

Evaluating learning theory

Strengths: it explains why cues cause relapse, and why addiction often starts with friends or family who use the substance. It has led to treatments, such as avoiding cues and using reinforcement for staying clean.
Weaknesses: it cannot explain why many people try drugs but only some become addicted; genes may explain this. It is less able to explain the physical side of addiction, such as tolerance.
Worked example

Explain how negative reinforcement can keep a smoker smoking.

  1. When a smoker goes without a cigarette, they feel irritable (withdrawal).
  2. Smoking removes this unpleasant feeling.
  3. Removing something unpleasant strengthens the behaviour.

Answer: Smoking removes unpleasant withdrawal feelings, which negatively reinforces smoking, so the smoker repeats it.

Key idea

Beck's cognitive theory says depression comes from negative thinking: the cognitive triad, negative schemas and cognitive errors. Learning theory says addiction is learned through classical conditioning (cues), operant conditioning (positive and negative reinforcement) and social learning (role models).

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