Biological Approach

Question 1

What are antipsychotic drugs used for?

Answer 1

To treat psychotic mental disorders

Question 2

What is the biological cause of schizophrenia?

Answer 2

High levels of neurotransmitter dopamine

Question 3

What are the two types of antipsychotic drugs?

Answer 3

Conventional and atypical

Question 4

How do conventional antipsychotics treat positive symptoms of schizophrenia?

Answer 4

They block the action of dopamine neurotransmitters binding to dopamine receptors- blocking the uptake of dopamine, reducing its activity.

Question 5

How do atypical antipsychotics treat negative symptoms of schizophrenia?

Answer 5

It temporarily binds to dopamine receptors and then rapidly dissociates, allowing normal dopamine transmission.

Question 6

What is the biological cause of depression?

Answer 6

It’s thought to be due to insufficient amounts of neurotransmitter serotonin being produced in the synapse

Question 7

What is selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors? (SSRI’s)

Answer 7

These are the drugs used to treat depression

Question 8

How do SSRI’s work?

Answer 8

SSRIs bind onto pre-synaptic neuron so that serotonin cannot be reabsorbed. This increases the amount of serotonin in the synapse, prolonging its activity which can be received by the post-synaptic neuron.

Question 9

Which type of antipsychotics have more side effects?

Answer 9

Conventional

Question 10

What are the assumptions for the Biological Approach- Drug Therapy?

Answer 10

Medical model of illness, behaviour is determined by neurotransmitters, behaviour is influenced by LOBF.

Question 11

What does the biological approach assume about psychological disorders?

Answer 11

They all have a physiological cause ( known as the medical model)

Question 12

What is one strength of drug therapy in terms of Drug Vs. Placebo?

Answer 12

Thee is supporting evidence for the effectiveness of the drug versus placebo

Question 13

What did Soomro et al (2008) find when reviewing 17 studies of the use of SSRIs with OCD patients?

Answer 13

He found them to be more effective than placebos in reducing the symptoms of OCD up to three months after treatment.

Question 14

What did Kahn et al (1986) find after following 250 patients over 8 weeks?

Answer 14

Found that Benzodiazepines to be significantly superior to placebos for treating stress and anxiety.

Question 15

GRADE BOOSTER COUNTER ARGUMENT
Drug Vs. Placebo

Answer 15

However, one of the issues regarding the evaluation of treatment is that most studies are only three to four months duration, and therefore little longitudinal data exists- so findings should be applied with caution.

Question 16

What is one strength of drug therapy in terms of cost?

Answer 16

It’s cheaper for patients compared to other treatments ( e.g- psychotherapy) and in the UK, drug treatments are prescribed on the NHS. The practitioner has to invest less time in the patient because they only need to meet with the patient every couple of months after the initial consultation to discuss whether the drugs are having a positive effect and whether the patient is making progress.

Question 17

What is Raine, Bachsbaum and Lacasse 1997?

Answer 17

‘Brain abnormalities in murderers indicated by positron emission tomography’

Question 18

What method was used in Raine, Bachsbaum and Lacasse 1997?

Answer 18

Quasi experiment

Question 19

What is the independant variable of Raine, Bachsbaum and Lacasse 1997?

Answer 19

IV: Murderers who had pleaded NOT GUILTY BY REASON OF INSANITY or non murderers

Question 20

What is the dependant variable of Raine, Bachsbaum and Lacasse 1997?

Answer 20

DV: Brain differences, demonstrated by PET scans

Question 21

What experimental design was used in Raine, Bachsbaum and Lacasse 1997?

Answer 21

Matched pairs- Participants matched by age and sex.

Question 22

Who was in the experimental group in Raine, Bachsbaum and Lacasse 1997?

Answer 22

41 murderers who had plead NGRI were instructed to be medication free for two weeks before brain scanning. All had some form of mental impairment.

Question 23

Who was in the control group of Raine, Bachsbaum and Lacasse 1997?

Answer 23

41 non-murderers, who had been matched on sex and
age with the participants in the experimental group.
6 of the control group had Schizophrenia, these were
matched with the 6 Schizophrenics in the experimental
group.
Other 35 control participants had no history or family history of psychiatric illness