Biological Approach

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  • Cognitive Approach
    • Assumptions
      • combo of biology and psychology (physiology)
      • mind lives in the brain, thoughts, feelings and behaviour all have a biological / physical basis
      • genes, neuro chemistry, brain structure and the nervous system are all responsible for behaviour
      • behaviour has a genetic and neurochemicalbasis
      • behaviour is adaptive and has evolutionary purpose
    • Twin studies
      • Monozygotic twins (mz) - share 100% genes.
        • if one got depression you'd expect the other would too
      • dizygotic twins (dz) - share 50% genes.
      • Gottesman and Shields (1966)
        • tested schz in 24 MZ twins and 33 DZ twins. Concordance rates for severe schz was 75% for MZ and 24% for DZ
        • natural environment and links can be seen
        • population validity, hard to generalise.
        • twins share the same environment, harder to see if there are genetic factors or not
    • Family studies
      • Weissmen et al (2005)
        • longitudinal research into 3 generations
        • grandchildren were 60% more likely to develop depression if grandparents had it
        • longitudinal - rich in detail
          • hard to generalise
      • if all natural abilities and genes are inherited then we should be able to see traits and behaviours within families
      • concordance rates to measure influence
    • Nature VS Nurture
      • phenotype = how genes are expressed physically, we can see them such as hair colour, this can have environmental influence
      • genotype = genetic codes in DNA that is inherited and passed between generations
    • Biological structures
      • brain hemisphere
      • endocrine system is where hormones are secreted
      • nervous system is where messages are carried
  • higher concordance = higher chance the trait is genetic
    • when researching we look for concordance
      • lower concordance = higher chance the trait is environmental
      • concordance is the extent the same characteristics are shared
      • Genetic basis of behaviour
        • we are born with 23 chromosomes which form the basis of development
        • biological approach uses humans to determine if illnesses etc have a genetic or environmental influence
        • twin, adoption and family studies are used
        • Cognitive Approach
          • Assumptions
            • combo of biology and psychology (physiology)
            • mind lives in the brain, thoughts, feelings and behaviour all have a biological / physical basis
            • genes, neuro chemistry, brain structure and the nervous system are all responsible for behaviour
            • behaviour has a genetic and neurochemicalbasis
            • behaviour is adaptive and has evolutionary purpose
          • Twin studies
            • Monozygotic twins (mz) - share 100% genes.
              • if one got depression you'd expect the other would too
            • dizygotic twins (dz) - share 50% genes.
            • Gottesman and Shields (1966)
              • tested schz in 24 MZ twins and 33 DZ twins. Concordance rates for severe schz was 75% for MZ and 24% for DZ
              • natural environment and links can be seen
              • population validity, hard to generalise.
              • twins share the same environment, harder to see if there are genetic factors or not
          • Family studies
            • Weissmen et al (2005)
              • longitudinal research into 3 generations
              • grandchildren were 60% more likely to develop depression if grandparents had it
              • longitudinal - rich in detail
                • hard to generalise
            • if all natural abilities and genes are inherited then we should be able to see traits and behaviours within families
            • concordance rates to measure influence
          • Nature VS Nurture
            • phenotype = how genes are expressed physically, we can see them such as hair colour, this can have environmental influence
            • genotype = genetic codes in DNA that is inherited and passed between generations
          • Biological structures
            • brain hemisphere
            • endocrine system is where hormones are secreted
            • nervous system is where messages are carried
  • if one got depression the other could too, but it is less likely
    • Adoption studies
      • looks at people being separated
    • Neurochemistry
      • dopamine = reward, pleasure and motivation
      • oxytocin = love
      • serotonin = mood
      • neurotransmitters - messengers that travel through neurons to control behaviour
      • knowledge helped drug therapy
    • Evolution
      • however free will?
      • Darwin (1859) proposed natural selection
      • genes are best suited to an environment, making it more likely to survive
      • behaviours such as phobias and aggression are then explained
    • hard to separate nature and nurture
      • identical and non-identical twins and members of the same family all have genetic simulates, so any similarity in the way they behave must be genetic from a biological perspective
        • the fact that family members are exposed to similar conditions is a CV. this is a problem as findings can be easily interpreted as supporting nurture over nature
      • Overall Evaluation
        • drug therapy
          • real life application, increased understanding of biochemical processes in the brain has led to the development of psychoactive drugs that treat serious mental disorders such as depression
        • scientific method, controlled setting, validity and replicability, based on reliable data
        • reductionist - environmental influences are ignored
        • the approach is deterministic, as it sees that human behaviour is governed by internal biological causes, not free will
        • causal conclusion about neurotransmitters are hard to estabish, as the approach claims to discover causes where only an association exists

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