Rat Park Research Paper

Drug addiction has become a burden on our society. In fact, according to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, in 2010 about 23. 5 million Americans were addicted to drugs and alcohol. Furthermore, drug addiction takes a huge toll on the economy. Every year, a huge amount of money is used to pay for treatments, or even worse, to buy drugs. That’s why many scientists have conducted experiments and research in order to understand more about drug addiction, its causes, and how to get rid of it. Lauren Slater, in the chapter “Rat Park,” writes about some experiments made since the 1960s about drug addiction and the causes that lead to it. In these research studies, some argue that drug addiction is caused by the brain, others that drugs are inherently addictive. However, I don’t agree with them. I believe drug addiction is not only caused by the environment, but also the availability of drugs and the sensation they provide. One cause of drug addiction is the environment. In the Chapter “Rat Park,” Slater writes about an interesting experiment made by Bruce Alexander, Robert Coombs, and Patricia Hadaway. Alexander and his …show more content…
When someone takes drugs, he seems to be in another state of mind that includes either a sensation of excitement or peaceful feeling. James Olds and Peter Milner discovered, according to experiments they made on rats, that “throughout the brain there are hot spots of pleasure.” This means that once you get used to that sensation of pleasure, then you start to crave the substance that makes you feel that way. In “Rat Park,” Slater writes about Emma Lowry who was addicted to Oxycontin due to her pain in her back after surgery. Emma Lowry’s addition is very understandable, and can be related to the sensation provided by drugs to her. In fact, taking Oxycontin was relieving her from her pain by putting her in a peaceful place without pain, which made her