Biological approch to explaining OCD

Question 1

What are the two biological approaches to explaining OCD

Answer 1

Genetic explanations and neural explainations

Question 2

Outline genetic explanations as a biological approach for explainingOCD

Question 3

Genetic explanations focus on whether individuals inherit a genetic pre-disposition to developing OCD

Answer 3

What do genetic explanations focus on

Question 4

What have family studies shown in the role genetics play in developing OCD

Answer 4

Family studies have shown that relatives of OCD are more vulnerable to developing OCD
eg if his ocd patients 37% had parents with OCD and 21% with siblings

Question 5

OCD caused by a single gene

Answer 5

However, OCD seems to be polygenic.

This means that OCD is not caused by one single gene but that several genes are involved

Taylor (2013) found evidence that up to 230 different genes may be involved in OCD

Question 6

What do the neural explanations for OCD include

Answer 6

They include neurotransmitters

Question 7

The genes causing OCD can vary from person to person what is this word called

Answer 7

Aetiologically heterogeneous