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psychology component 3 > Addictive Behaviours > Flashcards

Addictive Behaviours Flashcards

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1
Q

How is addiction defined?

A

Not having control over using something, to the point where it could be harmful to you
A dependency on a substance

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2
Q

What is the DSM-5?

A

Diagnose mental disorders
Chapter for substance related and addictive disorders
No behavioural disorders involved ev gaming

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3
Q

What are the six criteria’s to diagnose addiction?

A

Salience
Mood modification
Tolerance
Withdrawal symptoms
Conflict
Relapse

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4
Q

What is salience

A

The activity has become the most important thing in the individuals life
It dominates their thoughts

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5
Q

What is mood modification

A

May use to boost their mood or to relax them

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6
Q

What is tolerance

A

Individual needs more to achieve the same effect

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7
Q

What are withdrawal symptoms

A

Physical eg insomnia or nausea
Psychological eg irritability or moodiness

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8
Q

What is conflict

A

Conflict between themselves, family and friends
May compromise their job or family to engage in addictive behaviour

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9
Q

What is relapse

A

A strong tendency to return back to that behaviour

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10
Q

What are the two biological explanation of addiction

A

The role of dopamine
Addiction gene

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11
Q

What is key brain area implicated in addiction

A

The Mesolimbic pathway
The reward pathway

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12
Q

What does the reward pathway reinforce

A

Pleasurable feelings
Makes us want to do it again
Eg eating drinking sex

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13
Q

What area of the brain is dopamine released from

A

Ventral tegmental area

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14
Q

Where is the jolt of pleasure felt in the brain

A

Nucleus accumbens (NAC)

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15
Q

What links the ventral tegmental area and nucleus accumbens?

A

The mesolimbic pathway
Where we feel pleasure

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16
Q

What research supports the mesolimbic pathway

A

Dopamine levels increased when given a gambling task, levels raised if either a win or a loss
Alcohol is seen to increase dopamine levels in the brain

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17
Q

What is tolerance and withdrawal

A

Where the brain adapts to the drugs: experience to try and reach equilibrium
The drug alters the function of the brain and upsets the balance, the brain will adapt to minimise the effect and restore to normal function.
The brain does this when the drug is present, when it is not, the brain is out of balance and causes symptoms of withdrawal.
Causes people to take the drug again
The effects of the drug are diminished each time, higher and higher dosage is needed

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18
Q

What did volkow find in users if cocaine in tolerance and withdrawal

A

There was a reduction in both the number of D2 receptions and a reduction in the release of dopamine, as the brain tried to maintain equilibrium from the surge of dopamine they were facing

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19
Q

What part of the brain is responsible for the maintenance of addiction?

A

Thé frontal cortex

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20
Q

What are the responsibilities of the frontal cortex

A

Planning
Problem solving
Impulse control
Memory
Judgement

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21
Q

What is the evidence supporting that the frontal cortex is linked in with addiction

A

Cocaine addicts showed impaired performance in tasks that would use the frontal cortex eg decision making

Research has shown a decrease in D2 receptors and decrease in dopamine release, a tolerance has been built

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22
Q

What is a limitation of the dopamine theory

A

Not all addictive behaviours increase dopamine levels eg can i as
Dopamine doesn’t perform one function, also helps to avoid unpleasant stimuli or regulates hormone release

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23
Q

What is a methodology issue with using dopamine

A

Used animals, may not be affective with humans
Performed in labs, not every day lives, people are heavily controlled which may affect the amount of neurotransmitters released

24
Q

What is the problem with the role of dopamine being reductionist?

A

Dopamine causes addiction in some people but not all people
Doesn’t explain why the start engaging

25
Q

What are the ethical issues with the role of dopamine?

A

May feel helpless
Takes away the feeling of responsibility
Addicts are not personally responsible if their dopamine system has been hijacked

26
Q

What are the strengths with the role of dopamine

A

Reduces social stigma
Addiction seen as a disease
Addicts may seek help

27
Q

What are Addiction Genes

A

Where people carry genes that may make them more prone to developing an addiction

28
Q

What is an inheritance study that supports addiction genes

A

Kendler- large scale study in Sweden
Children of biological parents who had drug addiction were at much higher risk of drug addiction themselves (adopted family)
Risk was also much higher depending on environmental factors

29
Q

What are the two genes known as the addiction genes

A

DRD2 and ADH

30
Q

What is DRD2

A

Dopamine gene
With A1 variation, have fewer dopamine receptors

31
Q

What does DRD2 gene do?

A

Codes for how many D2 receptors someone has for dopamine to be able to bind

32
Q

What does the A1 variant cause to happen
What effect does this have

A

Causes fewer dopamine receptors in the brain, gives us a sense of pleasure

People experience less pleasure when taking part in activities eg sex and has to overcompensate to gain satisfaction

33
Q

What did comings et al find about DRD2

A

48.7% of smokers carried A1 varient of DRD2 gene compared with 25.9% of general population
Gambling = 50.9% carried A1 in comparison with 25.9% of non addicts

^ shows varient is found in addicts and can influence addiction

34
Q

What gene links with ADH

A

ALDH

35
Q

What do ADH and ALDH genes do

A

Breaks down alcohol in the body
Breaks the toxin down

36
Q

Why does a fast acting ADH enzyme and a slow ALDH enzyme cause a decrease in the risk of alcoholism

A

Causes toxic acetaldenyde to build up, people feel symptoms from alcohol much quicker eg flushing and nausea
Seen in East Asian population

37
Q

How does a slow ADH enzyme and a fast ALDH enzyme increase the risk of alcoholism

A

People who carry slow ADH slowly break down the toxic, not allowing them to feel the consequences

38
Q

What is the support from twin studies on addiction genes

A

Used interviews to assess alcohol abuse and dependence among twins
Concordance rates = 48-58% variance in alcohol addiction is genetic
As MZ share 100% of their genetic makeup

39
Q

What are the methodology issues with addiction genes

A

Users engage with multiple drugs rather than one, specific genes with specific drugs
Drugs come in and out of fashion, availability limited
Only focused on frugs or alcohol, not focused on behavioural eg sex or gaming

40
Q

What is the problem with addiction genes being deterministic
What is the advantage

A

Feelings of helplessness
Lack of free will
People may want to remove certain genes

Reduce stigma
Can encourage treatment

41
Q

What are the social and ethical implications with addiction genes

A

High addictive potential, they can be forced to get a vaccine or participate in prevention programme
Low addictive potential could deem them as immediately more guilty
Low addictive potential may participate in more antisocial behaviour
Addicts may commit more crime knowing their punishment is less

42
Q

What are the individual differences explanations

A

Eysencks personality theory

Cognitive biases

43
Q

What are eysencks three dimensions of personality and what are they like

A

Extroversion, outgoing
Neuroticism, agressive
Psychoticism, impulsive

44
Q

What are these 3 personality’s caused by

A

An under active nervous system

45
Q

What does a high extraversion show in addiction

A

Francis = 10 studies found a negative relationship with extraversion and addiction
Research is conflicted
Cant establish if research is linked to extraversion or not

46
Q

What is the link with psychoticism and addiction

A

High impulsivity, no consequences, no planning
High in addiction
People ignore or do not take into account the consequences, they engage in the behaviour anyway

47
Q

What is the research that supports high psychoticism and addiction

A

Stevens
Impulsive individuals were less successful in treatment programmes as they were more likely to drop out and could not maintain abstinence

Dalley
Impulsive rates increase cocaine intake —> they stimulated the part of the brain that is linked to impulsivity

48
Q

How is neuroticism linked to addiction

A

People tend to be moody and prone to depression
People self medicate to deal with the stress and worry they are dealing with

49
Q

What is the research to support addictive behaviours and neuroticism

A

Baumeister
Low self esteem leads peopke to act in a way that is self defeating
They used addiction to avoid their negative feelings about themselves

Sinha
Stress leads to relapse, individuals may feel as though they need the addictive behaviour to overcome it

50
Q

What are the problems with the cause and effect of eysencks personality theory

A

Cant establish the cause of the behaviour
Cuomo
Prisoners who experienced child hood trauma grow up with impulsivity and become addicted in later life

51
Q

What are the methodological issues with eysencks personality theory

A

People may lie, but have a lie scale on it
People unable to self reflect
Social desirability bias
Interview bias addicts may lie about addiction

52
Q

What is the myth of the addictive personality in EPQ

A

there are numerous traits linked to addiction
Traits are not unique to addiction
Also find high neuorisms and psychoticism scores in criminals

53
Q

What are the ethical issues with EPQ

A

Determinism, doesn’t look at environmental or situational factors
Could he positive, make people feel like there is less stigma attached
Removes free will, people may give up or refuse treatment
Implications for treatment, not easy to modify someone’s personality, but addicts may be given cognitive skills for prevention of addiction

54
Q

What are cognitive explanations

A

The way people think about behaviour, rather than the behaviour itself
Engage in behaviours that have negative outcomes, but do it anyway

55
Q

What are heuristics

A

Guide decision making
Rely on less information
Can lead to systematic deviations from logic or probability
Result in errors called cognitive biases

56
Q

What are availability heuristic

A

Schémas
Mental shortcut
Probability judgements
Can call certain memories more easily than others

psychology component 3 (4 decks)

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