I still don’t understand the distinction between “physical” and “psychological”, especially when the thing being manipulated by the drug is the central nervous system.
Surely psychological phenomena are also physical ones, insofar as they are seated in the brain and the rest of the body? Do you have an example of a pure case of “psychological addiction”? The only thing I can think of is the social aspect of consuming the drug. But then, I can think of a great number of activities that, when removed, cause “withdrawal” in the form of longing for the social interaction, none of which fit the common-sense definition of “addiction”.
So I’m left to conclude that this distinction is a false one. For the purposes of things we generally consider to be drugs, the only possible kind of addiction physiological.
Surely psychological phenomena are also physical ones, insofar as they are seated in the brain and the rest of the body? Do you have an example of a pure case of “psychological addiction”? The only thing I can think of is the social aspect of consuming the drug. But then, I can think of a great number of activities that, when removed, cause “withdrawal” in the form of longing for the social interaction, none of which fit the common-sense definition of “addiction”.
So I’m left to conclude that this distinction is a false one. For the purposes of things we generally consider to be drugs, the only possible kind of addiction physiological.