A matter of craving-An archeology of relapse prevention in Swedish addiction treatment

This article concerns how craving is approached and handled, how it is 'made up', in the practice of so-called relapse prevention (RP) for addiction problems. There is a lack of research on what RP in general, and craving in particular, 'is' and can become across settings. Drawing upon science and technology studies (STS) and critical addiction research, we analyze how craving is enacted in manuals and training material related to the intervention, and in interviews with professionals in the Swedish treatment system. Adopting an archeological approach, we scrutinize different layers of craving enactments in RP, in search of assumptions that give rise to what John Law refers to as 'collateral realities'. We identified three collateral realities: 1) 'The materialization of craving'; 2) 'The transcendence of the individual' and 3) 'The merging of treatment and everyday life' The data show that the brain, cognition, emotions and behavior are enacted in RP as demarcated targets of intervention that the individual can transcend and control. This approach, in turn, relies on the more foundational tenet that there are no clear-cut boundaries between different identities (I/me/self; body/brain/cognition), between different settings (inside/outside treatment; real/imagined situations) or between different points in time (now/then/before). We discuss the relevance and usefulness of addiction treatment realities where craving is approached as a stable object that can be effectively treated, and where interventions inaugurate neoliberal governance of responsibilized individuals.

Automated summary

This article examines how craving is approached and handled in relapse prevention for addiction problems. Drawing upon STS and critical addiction research, the study analyzes how craving is enacted in manuals, training materials, and interviews with professionals. The findings reveal three collateral realities of craving: the materialization of craving, the transcendence of the individual, and the merging of treatment and everyday life. The data suggest that in RP, the brain, cognition, emotions, and behavior are perceived as intervention targets that individuals can transcend and control. This approach relies on the assumption that there are no clear-cut boundaries between identities, settings, or points in time. The article discusses the relevance and implications of treating craving as a stable object and the neoliberal governance of responsibilized individuals initiated by such interventions.