This is a
story about a factory. It’s not the best job in the world, but it’s not the
worst job either. After several years, the factory starts to have some success
and increases its profits. The owner of the factory decides to enhance worker
morale by providing free plain bagels in the morning for breakfast. The factory
workers are immediately pleased with the free bagels and it becomes a treat to
look forward to every morning. The workers happily praise the factory owner for
his kindness providing the delightful free bagel breakfast every work day.
After a few
weeks since the bagel breakfast experiment is going so well, the factory begins
to provide a variety of types of bagels for the factory workers including
various flavored cream cheeses. The factory also provides coffee and juice for
the factory workers free breakfast. The workers are even happier. Not much
later, again since the breakfast program is working so well, the owner hires a
part time breakfast cook to make eggs and bacon for deluxe bagel sandwiches. Soon,
a variety of flavored gourmet coffee choices are offered as well. As expected,
with each added improvement, the factory workers are more and more pleased with
the free breakfast program and all of the positive changes.
After a
while, the factory gets another huge contract which increases profits even
more. Since the free breakfast program is going so well, the owner decides to
provide a full breakfast buffet every morning with a full omelet station, as
well as added choices of waffles, pancakes, sausage, bacon, fresh fruit, fried
potatoes, hash browns, with many choices of drinks, flavored syrups and
toppings. The factory workers are ecstatic with this amazing breakfast program
which increases morale, attendance and gets workers to work early every day.
After
several months at the factory however, things start to change. For one thing, the
factory workers attitude declines. The free breakfast buffet was once viewed as
a special luxury and treat but soon is viewed as a necessity and some less
grateful workers begin to complain about various aspects of the buffet. Other
factory workers start treating the breakfast buffet with less appreciation by
wasting food and leaving a huge mess behind in the morning.
Around the
same time, the factory’s profits start to dwindle due to problems in the
economy and the breakfast buffet becomes too much too for the factory owner to
afford. As a way to trim the budget the owner goes back to just providing basic
bagels and coffee for the workers in the morning. The workers respond with the “Great
Bagel Riot” in which several employees end up getting fired for throwing bagels
in anger and protest. Some workers even quit in anger and they could be heard
grumbling about the owners “cheap, lousy breakfast” as they walked off the job.
The owner thinks to himself about how just a few months ago, everyone was so
happy with the free bagels and coffee and how things had really changed for the
worse rather quickly.
What is the
moral of the story? It has nothing to do with breakfast. This story is an
illustration of a common substance use related phenomenon of tolerance. Most people are quite
familiar with tolerance:
Tolerance, n. – the power
of enduring or resisting the action of a drug (Usually occurring over time with
regular use)
Questions for Discussion:
Can you explain how the breakfast story illustrated tolerance?
(Think about how it took more and more to get the effect desired by the owner) –
How can you compare this with substance use?
How has tolerance come into play in your life particularly with
substance use? (If you had a high tolerance, please explain without bragging
about it)
How does tolerance play a role in the process of substance use
progressing to substance dependence and then even possibly addiction in some
cases?