Biological Approach Flashcards
What are the three assumptions of the biological approach?
Evolutionary influences
Localisation of brain function
Neurotransmitters
What is evolutionary influences
Natural selection- Darwin (the genes will be passed on to the next generation)
Example = altruistic behaviour, the parents risk their life to save their offspring, altruism is an inherited trait as saving an offspring enhances survival in that gene pool
EEA = environment of evolutionary adaptive mess
Eg 2 millions years ago when humans moved from forest life to savannahs in Africa
The human brain has evolved in response to the social organisation of our system
More likely to survive eg those who are better at forming alliances are good at forming relationships are more likely to survive in complex social world
What is localisation of brain function?
Areas of the brain are responsible for different functions
What are the four lobes of the brain?
Frontal lobe
Parietal lobe
Occipital lobe
Temporal lobe
What is the cerebral cortex
The area of the brain responsible for higher order cognitive functions
What is the frontal lobes function
Thinking and creativity
Linked to personalities
What is the function of parietal lobes
Receive sensory information eg temperature, touch and pain
What is the temporal lobe
Memory processing
Processing auditory information
What is the occipital lobes function
Visual processing
Receive information directly from the eyes
What is Broca’s area
Left hemisphere
Associated with speech production
Located in posterior portion of frontal lobe
What is neurotransmitters?
Neurones are electrically excitable cells that form the basis of the nervous system
A chemical messenger
Released from presynaptic vesicles
What is neurotransmitters and mental health
Serotonin play a role in our mood, sleep and appetite
Too little = depression
Antidepressants work by increasing the availability of serotonin at the post synaptic receptor sites
High dopamine levels = schizophrenia, drugs can block dopamine activity
What is the therapy for the biological therapy?
Drug therapy
What are the main components of drug therapy?
Antipsychotic drugs
Antidepressant drugs
Anti anxiety drugs
What are antipsychotic drugs
Treats psychotic mental disorders eg schizophrenia
Person with psychotic disorder has lost touch with reality and has little insight in their condition
Conventional antipsychotics = combat positive symptoms of schizophrenia ev delusions and hallucinations, block the action of dopamine in the brain to bind to the receptors
Atypical antipsychotic drugs act by temporarily occupying dopamine receptors, and then rapidly dissociating to allow normal dopamine transmission- lower side effects
What are anti depressant drugs
Lack of serotonin
Antidepressants reduce the rate of réabsorptions, and block the enzyme that breaks down the neurotransmitter
Selective serotonin reputable inhibitors are prescribed- block the transporter mechanism that réabsorba serotonin into presynaptic fell, and more serotonin is left in the synapse, prolonging the activity and making the next transmission of the impulse easier
What are typical anyipsychotics
Bind to the dopamine receptor to block their action, caused by increased dopamine, eliminate hallucinations and delusions
What are atypical antipsychotics
Combat both positive and negative symptoms of SZ
temporarily bind to dopamine receptors and rapidly dissociate to allow normal dopamine transmission
What are the examples of anti depressant drugs
MAOIS
SSRIS
What are MAOIs
block the enzyme that breaks down serotonin
depressed individual is already lacking serotonin
this raises serotonin levels, start to feel happier
What are SSRIs
increase the binding into presynaptic neurone to prevent the serotonin from being absorbed back in
eradicates symptoms of depression
What are the steps in the drug process
Seeks help from medical professional
Medical professional makes decision onto the type of mental illness
Prescribe the most appropriate drug
Pick up prescription
Take drugs every day and in 4-6 weeks return for a catch up
Behaviour of individual will be monitored and will be decided if they need to carry on with the drug therapy alone, change to another drug or just to stop
Effectiveness of drug therapy
Soomro = 17 pieces of research where effects of SSRIs on patients with OCD, patients who were given SSRIs were found to be a lot more effective than patients give placebo, evident by the reduced levels of OCD
Unclear how long it lasts for
