La boulomanie apparaît depuis plusieurs années comme une addiction à part entière dans le large spectre des dépendances. À la différence des autres, la dépendance au travail bénéficie souvent d’une image positive dans le sens où elle donne aux autres l’illusion du bien-être du sujet concerné, de sa motivation et de son engagement dans une activité donnée. De nombreux auteurs ont tenté au fil des 30 dernières années de définir ce concept et d’en préciser les mécanismes propres. Tous les points de vue théoriques, du modèle psychanalytique aux modèles plus contemporains, mettent la question de l’estime de soi au centre de la problématique de la boulomanie. En effet, le narcissisme, articulé à l’évolution sociologique de nos modes de vie occidentaux, permettrait de mieux cerner l’identité psychique de l’individu et ainsi de mieux comprendre cette tentative de reconstruction de soi. En caractérisant les traits de personnalité des individus boulomanes, le médecin est amené à prendre en charge le plus précocement possible cette nouvelle forme de dépendance, afin de prévenir les nombreuses complications personnelles, professionnelles, sociales, relationnelles et sanitaires. Devant la forte prévalence de la dépendance au travail, il nous semble important de rechercher une symptomatologie évocatrice d’une boulomanie afin d’envisager et de proposer aux patients boulomanes une prise en charge spécifique et adaptée.

Workaholism surfaced some years ago as a veritable addiction in the wide sense of the term, dependence. It differs from other sorts of dependence in that it is very often viewed in a positive perspective in the sense that it conveys to the person concerned the illusion of well-being, as well as a motivation and dedication in their professional activity. During the past 30years, several authors have attempted to define this concept and to determine its characteristics. Robinson believes that workaholics have an approach to life whereby their work feeds on time, energy and physical activity. This provokes consequences that affect their physical health and interpersonal relationships. They have a tendency to live in the future rather than in the present. For Scott, Moore and Micelli , the compulsion for work is not necessarily viewed as being detrimental to one’s health. Spence and Robbins highlight the notion of the pleasure experienced at work in their theoretical approach. The prevalence of the dependence on work is estimated at between 27 and 30% in the general population. It is correlated to the number of hours of work per week and tends to be higher as annual revenue increases. The sex ratio is 1, and the parents of children 5 to 18years of age are the most susceptible to considering themselves workaholics. The physical and psychological consequences of professional exhaustion are characterized primarily by the decrease in self-esteem, symptoms of fatigue, anxiety, depression, irritability and the manifestation of physical problems including cardiovascular ailments, as evidenced by hypertension, as well as heart and kidney complications. All the theoretical point of views, from the psychoanalytical models to the contemporary models, highlight self esteem as being the centerpiece of the question regarding the problem of workaholism. In fact, the narcissism articulated from the sociological evolution of our western way of life permits us to delineate the psychic identity of the individual better, and therefore, to understand this reconstructive attempt of one’s self better. In characterizing the personality traits of workaholic individuals, the doctor/therapist is required to deal with this new form of dependence as early as possible, in order to anticipate and avert the numerous personal, professional, social, relational and sanitary complications. Faced with this large prevalence of dependence on work, it seems important to us to look for a symptomatology that would emanate a signal of workaholism so as to envisage and propose to workaholic patients a specific course of action that would be adapted to their needs.