Lutz, Gladys

Addictive practices in the workplace: reconceptualization and new perspectives - 2015.


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The scientific problem, formulated in terms of “addictive practices in the workplace”, incorporates the analysis of individual responsibility and psychopathology. Alongside medical and legal initiatives, we mobilize clinical approaches to begin the real work of research and intervention as we study addictive practices and the effects of ambivalence on work and personal health. Historically, studies of “addictive practices (or addiction) in the workplace” has helped to raise awareness of the consumption of alcohol and drugs and to improve the management of problematic users. Today, the challenge is to shed light on the nature of substance use at work, on the intensity of the situation and the physical and mental repercussions that are carefully hidden from view. The results of chemical dependency may lead to legal and illegal action, increasingly implemented but rarely questioned regarding their effect on professional activities.