Responsibility and the Social Dimension of Addiction

Addiction in practice possesses a distinct social dimension. Consistent empirical evidence shows that a range of social challenges can significantly increase the likelihood of developing and sustaining addiction. These challenges include economic recession; violence and public safety concerns; deficits in housing, education, and healthcare; marginalization of social minorities; social injustice and inequality; and political instability. Philosophers have reason to investigate whether and to what extent these social factors might mitigate or exempt a person’s responsibility and blameworthiness for addiction-related wrongdoing. However, current discussions on addiction and responsibility predominantly emphasize the physiological and psychological aspects of addiction, focusing on how it affects a person’s responsibility through its influence on cognitive and volitional capacities. Attention to addiction’s social dimension is notably lacking. In this article, I articulate and defend a duress-like approach to excusing addiction-related infractions that is particularly suited to addressing the intricate social factors involved in addiction and helps to fill existing theoretical gaps in the current literature.