Biological Approach Flashcards
What are biological approach assumptions?
1) to understand human behaviour, we must look to biological structures and processes within body
2) mind lives in brain so thoughts, feelings, and behaviour have a physical basis - contrasts behaviour approach which sees mental processes of mind as being separate from physical brain
How do genes influence behaviour?
1) genes are inherited from parents and influence physical and psychological characteristics
2) twin studies show that concordance rates for identical twins (monozygotic) are 68% compared to 31% for non-identical twins (dizygotic)
What is a genotype?
What is a phenotype?
1) genotype is the specific genetic make-up of an individual
2) phenotype is how the genes are expressed in physical, behavioural, and psychological characteristics
What is heritability?
The extent to which any characteristic is influenced by genes
How does evolution influence behaviour?
1) modern behaviour is the result of natural selection
2) natural selection suggests that any genetically determined behaviour will enhance survival (and reproduction) and will continue into future generations
3) occurs naturally in nature as some traits give possessor certain advantages (eg liking the taste of sweet foods which are rarely poisonous compared to bitter foods which are poisonous)
4) lacks test ability so may be considered pseudoscientific
What is adaptive behaviour?
A behaviour increasing the chances of survival based on a gene mutation creating a new version of a gene
How do biological structures influence behaviour?
1) scientific regions of brain are linked with specific processes (eg hearing, speaking, comprehension, face recognition, etc)
2) damage to cerebral cortex causes disturbances in thought or language
3) abnormal behaviours may occur is structure of brain is damaged or unusual
4) it is difficult to determine cause and effect between an individual’s biology and mental illness as it is not clear whether differences and behaviours cause a condition or are the result of a condition
How does neurochemistry influence behaviour?
1) an imbalance of neurochemicals in brain could be cause of mental illness (eg low levels of serotonin in OCD)
2) it is difficult to determine cause and effect between an individual’s biology and mental illness as it is not clear whether differences and behaviours cause a condition or are the result of a condition
What are the strengths of the biological approach?
1) scientific way of investigating behaviour as it uses a range of objective, precise methods that are not open to bias and are based on reliable, objective data
2) useful practical applications as understanding biochemical processes in brain led to development of psychoactive drugs that treat mental illnesses, like depression, meaning sufferers are able to manage their condition
What are the limitations of the biological approach?
1) brain chemistry alone can’t account for all cases of mental illness as a study by Andrea Cipriani et al. (2018) compared antidepressant drugs and found variations in effectiveness
2) regards nature as largely responsible for behaviour and has little regard to effect of experiences and environment (nature vs nurture)
3) determinist as it views behaviour as governed by internal, genetic causes we have no control over and disregards free will - creates argument if brain chemistry accounts for everything, is there a moral responsibility for anything?
