HS101: Chemical Dependency As a Disease

HS101: Chemical Dependency As a Disease
- Finding Supporting Evidence

Finding Supporting Evidence

Starting Places

Use a source such as one of those shown below to choose key words that will support an argument in favor of the disease model. Some examples of key words are shown in Tables 2 and 4, below.

Background article on the "Disease Concept" in
Encyclopedia Of Drugs, Alcohol, & Addictive Behavior				R 362.2903 En1
Background article on the "Disease Concept" in
Encyclopedia of Substance Abuse Prevention, Treatment, & Recovery				Online
Background article on the "Disease Concept" in
The Gale Encyclopedia of Mental Health				Online
Information on addictive "Disease Models" in
Introduction to Addictive Behaviors				R 616.86 T36
"Substance abuse," by Derek Solum, in
Psychopharmacology Educational Updates (PsychEd Up), 4, (Dec., 2008)				Online

Finding Journal Articles in Gale Academic OneFile

To access Gale databases, use the library's Database Page. If using databases from off campus, you will need your My Chemeketa user name and password. Academic OneFile is a good database to begin with.

You will have to combine multiple search terms to find articles on this topic. You will need to combine terms together in one of three strategies:

Looking for articles that actually discuss the disease model, or,
Looking for articles that discuss genetic aspects of addictions, or,
Looking for articles that discuss physiological changes in the brain due to substance abuse.

The Advanced Search screen makes it easy to combine multiple terms.
picture of Gale Advanced Search Screen

Tip: When using keywords, try truncating: theor* finds theory, theories, theoretical, etc. (* is the truncation character for Gale).

1. The Straight Key Word Search

**Table 1: Key word combination examples for disease model: mix & match as pictured above**
Key word	AND Key word
alcoholism	disease model*
drug abuse	disease concept*
substance abuse	disease theor*
addiction	disease [use alone only with addiction]
disease model [use alone]	etiology

**Table 2: Key word combination examples for physiological changes: mix & match as pictured above**
Key word	AND Key word
nucleus accumbens	methamphetamine, cocaine, etc.
mesolimbic dopamin*	alcohol*
ventral tegmental	drug abuse
FosB	substance abuse
incentive sensitization	addiction

2. Searches combining subject headings with key words:

Click the Browse Subjects button near the top of the Gale screen to look for subject headings. Click the Advanced Search Screen button to enter the headings you've found in combinations.
picture of Gale Advanced Search screen
Use the pull-down menu on the advanced search screen to change the search from "default fields" to "SU Subject."

**Table 3: Subjects with key words**
Subject	Limit by entering a word or words
Alcoholism	model* and disease
Narcotic Abuse	concept* and disease
Drug Abuse	theor* and disease
Substance Abuse	genetic

**Table 4: Subjects with key words**
Subject	Limit by entering a word or words
Brain	abuse
Hippocampus (Brain), Limbic System, etc.	alcohol*
Neurotransmitters	narcotics
Dopamine, Serotonin, etc.	cocaine, heroin, etc.
Opioids	receptors

Other Periodical Databases

The Project Cork Catalog and IDA (Index to Drugs and Alcohol) both index journal articles relating to substance abuse and chemical dependency. These and others can be found on the library's Supplementary Database page: http://library.chemeketa.edu/information/supplement.htm.

Finding books

To find books, check the book catalog under such subject headings as the ones listed in the Appendix below. You can also try a Keyword search.

For further help, ask for assistance at the Reference Desk.

Appendix: Terms for chemical dependency

The following subject terms are arranged with more specific terms listed under more general terms. The library catalog uses Drug Abuse for articles on abuse of drugs in the broad sense; articles on abuse of prescription drugs are entered under Medication Abuse.

ADDICTION  
  SUBSTANCE abuse     
      AEROSOL sniffing      
      ALCOHOLISM      
      BETEL chewing      
      CAFFEINE habit      
      DRUG abuse
          AMPHETAMINE abuse      
          INTRAVENOUS drug abuse      
          MARIJUANA abuse      
          MEDICATION abuse      
          NARCOTIC habit
              COCAINE habit      
              HEROIN habit      
              MORPHINE habit      
              NARCOTICS dealers      
              OPIUM habit 
              PHENCYCLIDINE abuse 
      DUAL diagnosis      
      SOLVENT abuse      
      TOBACCO habit

Updated:
Comments: reference@chemeketa.edu or call (503)399-5231.
Address of this page: http://library.chemeketa.edu/instruction/handouts/HS101.htm