This initiative is not about heroin addicts in doorways or ‘the war on drugs’. It’s about how and why mainstream addictive products have been allowed to flourish for the benefit of companies at the expense of the rest of us. And how to stop them.
Addiction is defined as ‘not having control over doing, taking or using something to the point where it could be harmful to you’. (UK NHS definition).
The Addiction Economy is the term we created to describe those industries who knowingly and unashamedly erode our ability to control our usage of their products beyond the point at which it harms us.
We draw cross-sectoral lessons from 8 industries: cigarettes, vapes, alcohol, opioids, unhealthy and ultra-processed foods, gambling, social media and computer games.
Our research shows a surprising consistency in the corporate behaviour which creates and perpetuates markets for harmful products and the political actions and inactions which allow it to happen.
(The incentives that mean heroin addicts end up in doorways are much the same (money and power), but the pushers and their facilitators get knighthoods not jail sentences.)
We also want to understand why the attention of media and medicine is so focused on categorising the supposedly deficient personal qualities of the addicted individual, while the environment created by the addicters remain unscrutinised.
Ideas and Insights
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Addiction Economy Thought For Today
Check out Hilary’s daily post on LinkedIn featuring a brief observation, idea or article on the political, economic and human aspects of addiction and the progress of our research. (If you want to follow it, just go to Hilary’s Profile and click on the ‘bell’ on the top right of my profile!)
Or browse below for the archive of posts.
The concept was inspired by Seth Godin’s famous thoughtful daily email and follows on from Hilary’s previous two year LinkedIn Trust Thought For Today focusing on trustworthiness and trust in all aspects of life, politics and business.
Please don’t hesitate to comment, tag us or suggest thoughts via LinkedIn!