Reply to comment

Last week I posted about reward pathways and commented on the idea of autonomy. I think it is interesting to bring in the idea of purpose. The "purpose" of reward functions is to reinforce behaviors to ensure survival. Addiction changes the effect of reward pathways, however, by reinforcing behaviors that can be detrimental to physical or emotional health. A basic example is when eating triggers a reward pathway. Normal eating (not over-eating) is not considered to be an addictive behavior. Alcohol consumption, on the other hand, is considered by many to be addictive. The same chemical processes are occurring but one is considered to be an addiction and the other is not. The original "purpose" of reward pathways is lost in the case of addiction even though the processes are essentially the same.

This makes me wonder about the idea of "purpose" in terms of brain functions. "Purpose" seems to imply a designer who created the brain and pathways within it that are meant to perform certain functions. If this is the case then the design seems to be flawed becase the purpose of a reward pathway is not always fulfilled. Or maybe there is no designer and pathways should not be considered to have a purpose.