Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2011 Aug;8(8):3399-415.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph8083399. Epub 2011 Aug 18.

A framework for the specificity of addictions

Steve Sussman  1 , Adam Leventhal, Ricky N Bluthenthal, Marilyn Freimuth, Myriam Forster, Susan L Ames
Affiliations

A framework for the specificity of addictions

Steve Sussman et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2011 Aug.

Abstract

Research over the last two decades suggests that a wide range of substance and behavioral addictions may serve similar functions. Yet, co-occurrence of addictions has only been reported among a minority of addicts. "Addiction specificity" pertains to a phenomenon in which one pattern of addictive behaviors may be acquired whereas another is not. This paper presents the PACE model as a framework which might help explain addiction specificity. Pragmatics, attraction, communication, and expectation (PACE) variables are described, which may help give some direction to future research needs in this arena.

Keywords: PACE model; addiction specificity.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Diagram of the PACE model.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Brewer JA, Potenza MN. The neurobiology and genetics of impulse control disorders: Relationships to drug addictions. Biochem. Pharmacol. 2008;75:63–75. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Goodman A. Addiction: Definition and implications. Br. J. Addict. 1990;85:1403–1408. - PubMed
    1. Goodman A. Neurobiology of addiction: An integrative review. Biochem. Pharmacol. 2008;75:266–322. - PubMed
    1. Hatterer LJ. The addictive process. Psychiatr. Q. 1982;54:149–156. - PubMed
    1. Jacobs DF. A general theory of addictions: A new theoretical model. J. Gambl. Behav. 1986;2:15–31.

Publication types