Addiction PSYA4
Incompletely. With no AO2/AO3 YET.
- Created by: Smyrna
- Created on: 02-02-14 16:35
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- Addiction
- Stages of addiction
- 1. Initiation
- 2. Maintenance
- 3. Replase
- Biological Explanation
- 1. Dopamine reward Systems
- - Dopamine is usually activated when you're happy/pleasured.
- Nearly all drugs overstimulate the brain by flooding it with dopamine, creating a pleasurable feeling
- Normal dopamine activity; small amounts released into the brain
- [Altman et al] Alch and nicotine increase levels of dopamine
- The Dopamine system is linked to the motivational processes in the mesolimbic system
- People with addiction might have a sensitive mesolimbic system
- 2. Opiod System
- Naltrexone is used to block opiod receptors
- Too much dopamine could be balanced out with other neurochemicals
- Balancing two competing neurochemical systems; which some people can do. E.g, people that overeat but don't become addicted
- Olds and Milner [1954] found that rats would press a leaver of a mild electric shock for stimulation. They would continue to press leaver in preference to other rewards such as food, an inmate etc.
- Genetics and drugs
- Noble [1991] people who suffered from an alcohol addiction had a particular D2 dopamine receptor gene. People who have this gene have low lvels of dopamine and drink/take drugs in order for the dopamine to flow
- Family and addiction
- Sarafino [1990] alcohol addiction is 4x more likely in children with alcoholic parents, even when adopted
- Aqraqal and Lynskey [2008] there is a moderate to high genetic influence in addiction to concordance rates [extent to which twins are similar]
- Enviromental factors
- Genetics may predispose an individual. But the environment does trigger the addiction
- Fowler [2007] 1214 pairs of twins. Found that environment was more important for the initiation of addiction, but genetics played a greater role in the progression of a heavier addiction
- 1. Dopamine reward Systems
- Stages of addiction
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