THEORETICAL MODEL AND APPROACHES 1
Theoretical Model and Approaches
Nicholas A. Enix
School of Behavioral Sciences, Liberty University
Author Note
Nicholas A. Enix
I have no known conflicts of interest to disclose.
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Nicholas Enix
Email: Nenix@Liberty.edu
THEORETICAL MODEL AND APPROACHES 2
Theoretical Model and Approaches
The Cognitive Behavioral Model supports that a person who has thoughts will then use
those thoughts to lead to a certain behavior. Capuzzi & Stauffer (2020) write that Cognitive
Behavioral Model is when a person has an undesirable feeling such as depression and anxiety
and will drink to cope with that feeling. Capuzzi & Stauffer (2020) also share that a person may
be seeking out a different feeling such as excitement or arousal and will use substances to
achieve this feeling change. They elaborate that a person will continue to go to these behaviors to
help them in achieved repeated behaviors which is referred to as positive reinforcement (2020).
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy first began in the 1960s with psychiatrist Aaron Beck (Corey,
2021). Beck’s therapy model is similar to that of the Cognitive Behavioral Model as the goal of
the therapy is to identify thoughts and behaviors and to replace them with different thoughts and
behaviors to lead to more positive results (Corey, 2021).
The Bible has a much to say about our thoughts and temptations to indulge in the
behaviors of our world. In John 8:44, John writes that the devil is the father of lies (English
Standard Version, 2016). John is referencing how the devil will sow seeds of doubt in a person,
and he is behind our harmful behaviors and sinful patterns. As Cognitive Behavioral Model is
about a pattern of thoughts and behaviors that may be harmful, it can be understood that the devil
is tempting us to do things that may not align with our Biblical beliefs. Another Biblical example
of temptation and Cognitive Behavioral Model is that of Jesus being tempted by the devil when
Jesus was in the wilderness for 40 days in Matthew 4 (English Standard Version, 2016). Jesus
was struggling with negative thoughts and emotions after being in the wilderness in isolation for
so long and the devil tempted Jesus to break his fast.
THEORETICAL MODEL AND APPROACHES 3
The Cognitive Behavioral Model explains addiction well as a person who is struggling
with addiction will often have thoughts of use to escape their current reality or use substances to
enhance a feeling (Capuzzi & Stauffer, 2020). This repeated behavior of escape of reality or
seeking out substances often with disregard of consequences is the powerless of addiction that is
mentioned in Alcoholics Anonymous (2018).
A theoretical model of addiction is the Family Model. The family behavioral model
suggests that a family member or family dynamic influences and encourages the family member
to use substances (Capuzzi & Staffer, 2020). This can be done by a substance abusing household
or it can be done by enablers (2020). Farhoudian et al., 2022, write that family and friends can be
the biggest influencers or harms in an addict’s recovery journey. They found that in 23 different
studies that family was the biggest reason for a person to be struggling with addiction whether it
be substances in the home, parental absence due to their substance use, or a positive view of
substances (2022).
The Bible is full of its implications on the importance of family and how family can be
supportive of one another to do good things for the Kingdom of God. A prime example of
supporting a spouse rather than enabling them is in Ephesian 5:21-33 where Paul writes that
husband and wives are to support one another to grow the Kingdom of God (English Standard
Version, 2016). When looking at substance use, the Bible is clear that the body is a temple of
God (1 Corinthians 6:19-20, English Standard Version, 2016), and with this being known
harmful substances are not healthy for the body which is the temple of God. A family being
supportive should be helping a family member in growing the Kingdom of God like Ephesians
says and not hurting the temple of God by enabling addiction and creating environments that are
tough for recovery.
THEORETICAL MODEL AND APPROACHES 4
The Family Behavioral model helps explain addiction more clearly as an addict often
identifies some family members as their biggest trigger (Farhoudian et al., 2022). With family
being a trigger for some people, the impact that family can have on the addict is vast and can be
harmful or helpful. So, an addict may need to avoid family members who enable them or make it
harder to stay sober in that environment.
A third theoretical model is that of the Developmental Model which shares that an
individual may go through things in a period of life that can be impactful on their future
development (Capuzzi & Stauffer, 2020). It poses the question of “During what precise age
range is the onset of marijuana use most risky for adult use, and does this age range vary across
sex?” (p.13, 2020) When looking at Developmental Model and how life can be impacted by
going through addiction, trauma or major changes in life, the Erikson Model of Development can
be helpful (Orenstein & Lewis, 2022). Erikson suggest that life is broken into eight different
stages, and if major changes happen in each stage then his model supports how the individual
may cope with that change (2022).
The Bible supports the protection of adolescent as they are young and vulnerable, but the
Bible also supports protection of each other as we age to be mindful of the sins of the world. The
Bible is not explicitly clear on a development model but does support protection of people during
different phases of their life. In Proverbs 22, it says that parents are to raise their children in the
way of God, and they are not to leave that way of life even when they are old (English Standard
Version, 2016). This responsibility of parents to protect their children supports the
developmental model because children need the guidance, and this can become a generational
guidance and set of practices.
THEORETICAL MODEL AND APPROACHES 5
The Developmental Model helps explain addiction well because a child can go through
something and it be traumatic, but to an adult that situation may not be as traumatic. Erikson’s
Model of Development supports this as he writes about the coping abilities of an adult. In
conclusion, when development is considered and problems during certain stages of life, addiction
can result from problems dependent on the stage of development the person is in.
The fourth theoretical model is the Subcultural Models which is that a person’s age,
ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, family background or religion can impact a person to be
more prone to addiction (Capuzzi & Stauffer, 2020). Hays & Erford (2023) talk about how
societal impacts can effect a person which includes discrimination, societal norms, and family
makeup. They write that in different cultural makeups some norms are present like a whole
family, or a split family and those trends have an impact on a person’s substance use and mental
health disorders.
The Bible and Christian beliefs have standards and truths that address the Subcultural
Model in that a family unit is between a man and a woman who are to be fruitful and multiply
(English Standard Version, 2016, Genesis 1:28). This standard in Christianity can make it so that
the family can be more supportive and go through less struggles than a split household. Jesus
throughout his ministry addresses loving others and those who are different. In the parable of the
Good Samaritan in Luke 10, Jesus shares how a Samaritan man helps a man who he should
dislike and was left for dead (English Standard Version, 2016). This shows how the Christian
principle is to love all people regardless of their differences.
In regard to addiction, the Subcultural Model explains addiction very well. In prison,
nearly 70% of incarcerations are related to drugs and alcohol and of those people incarcerated
THEORETICAL MODEL AND APPROACHES 6
nearly 1/5th of those incarcerated people were in foster care at some point in their life (Bureau of
Justice Statistics, 2016). With this information, it shows a subculture that has a consistency of
addiction and that these factors can impact addiction being present.
THEORETICAL MODEL AND APPROACHES 7
References
Alcoholics Anonymous. (2018). Alcoholics Anonymous: the story of how many thousands of men
and women have recovered from alcoholism. Alcoholics Anonymous World Services.
Bureau of Justice Statistics. (2016). Survey of Prison Inmates (SPI). Bureau of Justice Statistics.
https://bjs.ojp.gov/data-collection/survey-prison-inmates-spi#4-0
Capuzzi, D., & Stauffer, M. D. (2020). Foundations of addictions counseling (4th ed.). Pearson
Education.
Corey, G. (2021). Theory and Practice of Counseling and Psychotherapy (10th ed.). Cengage
Learning.
Farhoudian, A., Razaghi, E., Hooshyari, Z., Noroozi, A., Pilevari, A., Mokri, A., Mohammadi,
M. R., & Malekinejad, M. (2022). Barriers and Facilitators to Substance Use Disorder
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Treatment, 16(16), 117822182211184. https://doi.org/10.1177/11782218221118462
Hays, D. G., & Erford, B. T. (2023). Developing multicultural counseling competence: A systems
approach. Pearson Education Inc.
Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). Crossway Bibles.
Orenstein, G. A., & Lewis, L. (2022, November 7). Erikson’s stages of psychosocial
development. National Library of Medicine; StatPearls Publishing.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK556096/
