The following discussion is restricted to the psychodynamic study of “compulsive drug use,” which, as a rule, is based on severe inner conflicts, developmental disturbances, and serious family pathology.

Inasmuch as most "drug abusers" are inaccessible to psychoanalysis proper, it is not surprising that, despite the huge upsurge over the last decade of drug abuse in general, and of intensive, compulsive drug use in particular, only a few psychoanalytic studies have appeared which could try to explore in depth the possible etiology of this illness.