In order to foresee the likelihood of someone developing an addiction one may ask which social background most likely results in higher rates of addiction. This question, however, is inherently flawed.
Although there are studies that demonstrate that families with more dysfunction have a higher chance of family addiction, this does not accurately depict the general trend of individual and familial addiction.
As addicts and alcoholics, when we look around us at our close friends within recovery, we see that social and family background is so varied, that it practically makes no difference. Therefore, it is apparent that addiction does not discriminate.
For every addict who comes from a broken home, you can find one who comes from a stable home and stable family. There are many addicts who moved around a lot, while there are addicts who never even left their hometown. There are addicts who experienced traumatic childhoods, while there are addicts who experienced very happy childhoods. Addicts come from all walks of life.
However, there is one thing that is present in the life of every addict. All addicts cannot stop using substances for long periods of time no matter how hard they try. And all of them can't figure out why. Both an addict who experienced trauma and an addict who did not will need specific help in order to stop using and recover.
The fact that anyone can end up struggling with addiction no matter their social and familial background may sound disheartening, but it can also be seen as comforting. No matter how much or how little hardships an addict experienced in their life there is a universal solution available to anyone from all backgrounds. It is not the act of reaching a certain "milestone" in their drug abuse career that defines an addict and qualifies them for rehabilitation. An addict can obtain recovery by being someone who cannot stop using and desires to stop in order to reclaim their life and secure their future.
To conclude, this also means that anyone who wants to support causes that help those struggling with addiction, whether it is an issue in their family or not, they can support these causes, because addiction does not discriminate and can afflict someone close to them whether it is expected or not.
