Is addiction a “brain disease” or a “psychological problem”? This post over at Mind Hacks takes a look at the question, jumping off of this ABC Radio special.

The question, of course, is not an entirely scientific one. It is also a political one. “Brain disease” indicates a condition for which the patient cannot be blamed. “Psychological problem” implies more personal responsibility.

I’ve always taken the “psychological problem” view, basically reasoning that something isn’t a “disease” if the cure is to simply stop doing it. At the same time, it’s impossible to ignore that there are powerful genetic and physiological factors that push some people toward addiction and others away. What kind of moral culpability can we pin on someone who is the victim of bad biology?

What’s hopeful here, I think, is that as we discover more and more about the genetic and other triggers of addiction — making us more likely as a society to favor treatment over punishment — these same breakthroughs might actually help us treat addiction effectively, something we kind of suck at as a society as things stand right now.