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Focus on the pharmacology of drugs themselves will not be sufficient to understand drug use. Instead, social, psychological and other political and economic dimensions of the problem must be recognised. Central to this is a need to move away from the concept of “addiction” to a view of substance use that recognises the cueing and greater choice that seems to exist among users. If simply “changing your mind” about giving up then changing your circumstances can lead to changed behaviour, attention should focus more on how to change minds and behaviour, and less on pharmacology.