Biological Flashcards
What is the biological key question?
How effective is drug therapy for treating addictions?
In 2013/2014 how many opioid users were there in the UK?
293,879 opiate users
What ‘replacement’ drugs are provided to opioid users to help reduce their symptoms of withdrawal?
Methadone or Buprenorphine
Give some symptoms of drug addiction
Cravings, seeking drugs, withdrawal symptoms, irritability
How does Buprenorphine
Buprenorphine is a similar shape to heroin and so binds to the opioid receptors blocking them partially which stops the withdrawal symptoms but doesn’t give feelings of euphoria
What is an alternative therapy for drug addiction other than drug treatment?
Counselling, support groups e.g. alcoholics anonymous
Why is the biological key question a key issue in terms of crime in society?
Drug addiction leads to theft owing to the need to find money to buy drugs
Why do drug users need to take more and more drugs each time in order to achieve the same high?
Repeated exposure to recreational drugs can lead to tolerance and withdrawal symptoms which
continues drug use and can lead to social and economic costs so needs to be treated.
Why do drug users need to be weaned off drugs instead of them taken away all at once?
When a user stops taking they experience withdrawal symptoms such as shakes, sweating, sickness and by gradually reducing drug in take a person reduces the effects of these symptoms
How does heroin affect the brain/body?
Heroin reduces GABA (an inhibitory neurotransmitter) which causes an increase in
Dopamine. Heroin effects the opioid receptors in the brain. This action suppresses physical pain. This
chemical effect of heroin slows the motor functions which is why you feel so relaxed and out of it when
you’re taking heroin.
How does methadone work?
Methadone mimics the action of heroin at the synaptic level through dopamine and endorphins
How is buprenorphine used to help to wean a person off drugs?
Over time, the dose of buprenorphine
is gradually reduced until it can be stopped completely
When should a person begin to take their buprenorphine and why?
in binding with the receptor it ‘pushes’ heroin out and so
a person can have severe withdrawl…so it’s best to wait until you’re already suffering withdrawal to take
it
Give 2 pieces of evidence that support the argument that drug therapy is effective at treating drug addiction
Jones (2004) - Buprenorphine prevents withdrawal, allows for a more individual treatment process (it is
long lasting and thus more flexible when it can be given) and has less chance of overdose
&
Marteau et al found it 6 times safer than methadone
What did rat park (Alexander) suggest about the effectiveness of drug therapy in treating addiction?
Alexander et al (1978) showed that substitute prescribing may not be needed (or the ideal method) Rat
park took drug addicted animals and put them into a lush and exciting social cage, over time they weaned
themselves of their addiction because their environment replaced the euphoria they got from the drugs
What is the aim of the biological practical?
Aim: To conduct a correlation to the relationship between testosterone (shown by 2D:4D ratio) and aggression
(shown via aggression questionnaire)
Which research method did we use to collect our results?
Correlation
What is the alternative hypothesis for your biological practical?
There will be a positive relationship between 2D:4D ratio, and score on an aggression
questionnaire.
What is the null hypothesis for your biological practical?
There will be no relationship between 2D:4D ratio and score on an aggression questionnaire.
What are your two co-variables in the biological practical?
2D:4D ratio and scores on an aggression questionnaire / 15
What type of sampling did you use in your biological practical?
Opportunity sampling
What was the sample of your biological practical?
______ people from college in the North of England, aged between 16 and 20
What questionnaire did your sample complete in the biological practical?
30 questions about their aggressiveness and measured
on a 5 point scale giving them a total for aggression
How did you measure the participants level of testosterone exposure in the biological practical?
measuring the length of their ring finger and index finger and measuring the
ratio between the two
(2D:4D ratio)
What graph could you use to plot the results of the biological practical?
Scatter graph
Why was the sample of your biological practical neither androcentric or gynocentric?
both males and females in the finger ratio measures/aggression questionnaire making it more
generalisable. This means the results would be more representative about the correlation between finger ratio and
aggression in a wider population
How was your biological practical reliable?
The questionnaires about aggression and the finger measures are standardised which means it can be easily
repeated. This is good because the procedure can be repeated to see if the results about the correlation with finger
ratio and aggression would be the same.
What is the strength of you collecting quantitative data in your biological practical in terms of mean aggression scores /15 and 2D:4D ratio?
A strength is it used quantitative data from the aggression quesitonnaires which allows for statistical
testing/analysis. This is good because we can to see if the results about aggression and finger ratio are due to chance
How is your biological practical ethical?
The study is ethical as participants knew we were measuring their aggression levels and their finger ratio as a
proxy for testosterone when they consented. This means we have consent for the research as participants were fully
aware of the purpose and that we would discuss their aggression
How is your sample NOT representative in your biological practical?
Why is this a problem?
This has small opportunity sample from the same sixth form college in the north east completing the aggression
questionnaire so not generalisable because they might share characteristics. This is a problem because the results
about the relationship between aggression and finger ratio might not be applicable to non-teenagers.
Why might there be issues with social desirability in your biological practical and how do these affect the validity of your results?
when people are answering the questionnaire on their aggression levels they may change their answers to appear either more or less aggressive which makes the findings less valid
What is an issue with using a 5 point scale on your aggression questionnaire and how does this affect validity?
5 point scales used on the aggression questionnaire can be subjective in interpretation e.g. ‘4’ might mean
different things to different people. This is an issue because the results about the correlation between finger ratio
and aggression might be less valid if people interpret the aggression scores differently
Can we establish cause and effect between the 2D:4D and aggression scores/15? How does this affect validity?
No. We can only see a relationship between 2D:4D and aggression scores/15 and this reduces validity
What may be an ethical issue with your biological practical?
Taking part in the study might have been upsetting for some participants to answer questions about their own
temper/aggression. This means the study has breached the ethical guideline of protection from harm because of the
psychological harm linked to understanding their aggression
What were the results of your biological practical? (remember that you can make up the number for your correlation coefficient but it needs to be between -1 and +1)
There is a ______________ correlation between the 2D:4D ratio and aggression score on a questionnaire out of 15 (rs = -0.79, CV = 0.464).
What is evolution?
The change in a species over time through natural selection
What is natural selection?
Where genes which are beneficial for survival in a certain environment are selected for through better survival or reproduction
What is the Environment of Evolutionary Adaptation?
The environment you currently live in that your genes are operating in
What is “the warrior gene”?
MAOA which effects serotonin meaning higher aggression
What is a genotype?
The complete gene profile of an individual
What is a phenotype?
The visible traits of an organism which is how their genes interact/are expressed in a certain environment
What is the belief about aggression coming from evolutionary theory?
Aggression was beneficial to the survival/reproduction of our ancestor
What are reasons aggression is thought to be beneficial?
Ancestors were able to use aggression to gain and protect their resources beneficial for survival, Ancestors were able to scare off rivals meaning they were able to mate and reproduce, Ancestors were able to deter partners from infidelity
How does sexual selection work for aggression?
Aggression would help males gain dominance and resources and so women were attracted for more aggressive males
Why are females seen as less aggressive than males?
Physical aggression is too risky i.e. harm to unborn children- a selection for social aggression instead
What did Mazur find?
Males show an increase in fighting behaviours around puberty due to this being when partner selection becomes a factor
What did Daly & Wilson find?
58 / 214 cases of murder motivated by sexual jealousy, confidence in paternity and warning to potential rivals
What did Miller find?
55% of women in abusive relationships cite their partner’s jealousy as a factor in their partner’s behaviour
What did Buss & Shackleford find?
Some cultures have more aggression than others- this shows aggression is environmental not purely due to genes
Which of these is an alternative theory saying we might learn aggression from role models around us meaning this theory might be incorrect?
Social Learning Theory
Which of these is a true evaluation point for this theory?
It is reductionist as it doesn’t look at the influence of upbringing/modern societies impact just genes passed down from ancestors
Is this theory empirical?
No- you cannot measure the behaviour of our ancestors directly so we cannot see if this theory is correct
What is the Thanatos?
The death instinct, the source of negative emotions like aggression
What is the conscious?
The part of your mind you are aware of i.e. your current thoughts
What is the unconscious?
The part of your mind you cannot be aware of i.e. unacceptable desires and violent urges
What is the Preconscious?
The part of your mind you can become aware of if you wish i.e. memories
What is the Id?
The part of your psyche which works on the pleasure principle meaning it wants instant gratification
What is the SuperEgo?
The part of your psyche which works on the morality principle meaning it wants to follow the rules and gives you guilt to control your behaviour
What is the Ego?
Operates on the reality principle meaning it weighs up the other two components and will decide which to give into and when
How does Thanatos link to aggression?
It is the source of aggression so if you have a strong Thanatos it might lead to more aggressive impulses and if the Thanatos is turned outward it is aggression
How does the Id link to aggression?
If you have an aggressive impulse it will encourage you to act and if it is frustrated and stopped from getting some other desire it might create aggressive impulses
How does the SuperEgo link to aggression?
It is the thing which makes you feel guilt for breaking rules and norms so if you have a strong one it might decrease the chances of aggression
How does the Ego link to aggression?
It weighs the desires of the other two components so will be the final decider on if you act aggressively or not
How do defence mechanisms tie to aggression?
They are a method to protect your ego by redirecting energy, this might cause you not to be aggressive or to direct the aggression onto a safe target
What is Catharsis? and how it ties to aggression
The positive result of chanelling energy into a different format meaning you release built up aggressive impusles by being aggressive in sport or watching a violent movie
What did Geen and Quanty find?
Expression of aggression can have a positive effect in terms of decreasing physiological arousal
What did Verona and Sullivan find?
They found that when participants administered either aggressive via shock or non aggressive responses after being made angry, heart rate was found to have reduced in those administering the aggressive responses showing evidence that catharsis is a credible explanation
What did Bushman find?
Those who took part in a cathartic activity via venting were actually more aggressive than those who didn’t have a chance to release their aggression.
Why is this theory more holistic than others?
It is holistic as it takes into account both nature and nurture due to everyone having these components but their upbringing influencing them
Which of these is a true?
The theory is not empirical as you cannot measure the components directly
Which of these is an alternative theory saying we might learn aggression from role models around us meaning this theory might be incorrect?
Social Learning Theory or another biological theory
Why is this theory useful?
Psychodynamic theories have been used to create talking therapies which many have found useful to deal with personal issues
Which brain system/area is linked to aggression?
The Limbic system
What is the Limbic system responsible for?
Fight or flight
What does the Amygdala do?
It is the source of emotions like aggression so higher activity would lead to more aggression
What does the Hypothalamus do?
controls hormone levels like Testosterone so more activity meaning more aggression
What does the PFC do?
responsible for self-control and emotional regulation so more activity meaning less aggression
Which part of the brain carries signals between the other named parts?
Periaqueductal area
What did Raine demonstrate?
NGRI participants had higher activity in the right amygdala and less activity in the PFC
What does KluverBucy Syndrome demonstrate?
Animals with removal or damage to their Amygdala show less aggression
What is a criticism of KluverBucy?
Animals brains and systems are different to humans and so the results might not apply to explain human aggression
What is a mains trength of looking at brain areas for a source of aggression?
This is an empirical explanation as you can measure brain activity levels directly using brain scans making it a more objective and credible explanation of aggression