Theoretical framework for addressing substance abuse

There are two main theoretical frame work which best address the issues of substance abuse. They are:

i) The Disease model

The Disease model of alcoholism/addiction, which was credited to Mr. E.M. Jellinek, is probably the most controversial and debated topic in the entire field of substance abuse/addiction. As with many concepts and theoretical models in the addiction field, the disease concept was originally applied to alcoholism and has been generalized to addiction to other drugs as well. The "disease of addiction" is viewed as a primary disease. That is, it exists in and of itself and is not secondary to some other condition.

Natural Recovery from Alcohol Problems and its Implications on the Disease Model of Addiction and the DSM-IV Diagnostic Criteria for Alcohol Dependence / by Candice Nelson, B.A.

ii) The Biopsychosocial Model

According to Francesc Borrell Carrió et. al (2004), the biopsychosocial model is both a philosophy of clinical care and practical clinical guide. Philosophically, it is a way of understanding how suffering, disease, and illness are affected by multiple levels of organizations, from the societal to the molecular. At the practical level it is the way of understanding the patient’s subjective experience as an essential contributor to accurate diagnosis, health outcomes, and humane care.

Biopsychosocial model (Wikipedia)

Biopsychosocial Model Thirty Years Later

The Biopsychosocial model in Anglo-American psychiatry: past, present and future? / by Prof David Pilgrim, Lancashire NHS Mental Health Care Trust and Department of Sociology, Social Policy and Social Work, University of Liverpool