Institute of Criminology, School of Social and Cultural Studies, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand.
Aust N Z J Psychiatry. 2009 Nov;43(11):1049-56. doi: 10.3109/00048670903270449.
Drug use creates a significant amount of harm in modern societies. From an evolutionary perspective, the pervasive use of drugs and the ongoing risk of drug addiction can be explained in terms of the action of drugs on evolved motivational-emotional systems. Addiction arises through interaction of these evolutionarily ancient systems, designed to promote the pursuit of natural rewards, and contemporary environments where purified and potent forms of drugs are readily available. This evolutionary analysis is extended to account for developmental patterns in problem drug use, and to explain the existence of behavioural addictions, such as problem gambling. The paper concludes by considering some of the clinical and public policy implications of the evolutionary perspective presented.
药物滥用在现代社会造成了巨大的危害。从进化的角度来看，药物的广泛使用和持续的成瘾风险可以用药物对进化而来的动机-情绪系统的作用来解释。成瘾是通过这些古老的进化系统的相互作用而产生的，这些系统旨在促进对自然奖励的追求，而在现代环境中，纯净而有效的药物很容易获得。这种进化分析扩展到解释问题药物使用的发展模式，并解释行为成瘾的存在，如赌博问题。本文最后考虑了所提出的进化观点的一些临床和公共政策意义。
