the biological approach
- Created by: Hannah Jeffery
- Created on: 27-04-14 15:13
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- The biological approach
- the relationship between behaviour and the body's various physiological systems
- Assumptions
- all behaviour is associated with changes In the brain function
- psychopathology is caused be changes in the structure, function of brain or activity of neurotransmitters/ hormones
- the development of the body, including the brain is influenced by genetics
- most behaviours normal or disordered is inherited from parents
- all behaviour is associated with changes In the brain function
- infection
- bacteria or viruses eg syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease which can cause brain damage and so abnormality
- 14% of people with Schisophrenia's mother had flu during the first trimester
- lead to poor development of neurons
- biochemistry
- neurotransmitters send communications between cells
- an imbalance of neurotransmitters can lead to mental illness
- low levels of serotonin= vulnerability to depression
- excessive amounts of dopamine can lead to schizophrenia
- genetics
- certain conditions are inherited
- monozygotic twins have 100% the same genes
- would not always both develop same mental illness
- environment also contributes to mental illness
- Brain damage
- changes in brains structure can lead to abnormality
- Alzheimer’s disease, a type of dementia caused by the loss of cells in the nervous system
- damage to the head or external (blow) or internal (stroke, tumour) can lead to mental problems
- the resulting problem depends on where the damage occurred and the function of the section that was damaged
- Phineas Gage who had an iron bolt go through his frontal lobe had serious personality problems
- Evaluation
- Brain scans eg PET scans have identified biological aspects to mental disorders
- eg people with schizophrenia tend to have larger ventricles (sacks of fluid) than the normal population
- research as shown that a lot of mental illnesses run in the family eg bipolar disorder
- effective drug treatment as mental illness is treated as an illness
- effective with depression
- Kirsch 2002 reviewed 32 studies of antidepressants did just as well with a placebo than with medication
- correlational study
- supports cognitive approach
- reductionist
- someone may be vunerable to depression due to low serotonin levels but depression with only be triggered by environmental factors
- supports nature side of nature v nurture debate
- doesn't take into account environmental factors
- helps to get rid of the negative stigma about mental illness with an increase of knowledge and it being treated like any other illness
- Brain scans eg PET scans have identified biological aspects to mental disorders
- genetics
- certain conditions are inherited
- monozygotic twins have 100% the same genes
- would not always both develop same mental illness
- environment also contributes to mental illness
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