Ending versus controlling versus employing addiction in the tobacco-caused disease endgame: moral psychological perspectives

Even though interest in reducing or eliminating tobacco-caused diseases is a common goal in tobacco control, many experts hold different views on addiction as a target of intervention. Some consider tobacco-caused addiction as a tobacco-caused disease to be eliminated alongside the other diseases. Some consider tobacco-caused addiction as a much lower priority disease to be eliminated, and a subset of this group is prepared to employ addiction to tobacco (nicotine) as a tool to reduce other tobacco-caused disease. These varying attitudes towards ending, controlling or employing tobacco addiction to reduce damage from tobacco use constitute quite different approaches to tobacco control and cause conflict among those in tobacco control. Moral psychological analyses argue that there is more than scientific evidence involved in supporting this continuum of approaches. Divergent values also influence positions in tobacco control. Attention to these values as well as the scientific evidence should be included in policy and practice in tobacco control. It is not that one constellation of values is necessarily superior, but debates need to be informed by and engage discussions of these values as well as the scientific evidence.