Biological Basis of Mental Disorders Lecture Powerpoint

Question 1

Biopsychiatry

Answer 1

Study that aims to understand mental disorder in terms of biological function (looks at mental illness like a physical illness) as human behavior and thoughts are related to many biological processes

Question 2

Example of biological basis for depression

Answer 2

An overactive area of the brain - brodmann area 25, is overactive in them

Question 3

Genetic link in bipolar and schizophrenia

Answer 3

First degree relatives of people with either schizophrenia or bipolar disorder are at increased risk of both these conditions

Question 4

Infectious disease that can be strongly associated with OCD development

Answer 4

Streptococcal infection

Question 5

Psychodynamic model of abnormality

Answer 5

Idea that psychological illness comes from repressed emotions and thoughts from experiences in the past, that treatment involves getting patient to admit to what is being repressed

Question 6

Cognitive model of abnormality

Answer 6

Idea that behavior is the result of abnormal thinking (unhealthy thought processes) through an ABC theory where an activating event, belief withthat event, and a consequence of feeling bad

Question 7

Behavioral model of abnormality

Answer 7

Idea that regards abnormal actions as learned behavior, behavior not necessarily the thought process (people pay attention to me when I’m drunk so i keep drinking)

Question 8

Socioeconomic factors associated with mental illness (4)

Answer 8

• Be female
• Divorce
• Live alone
• Single parents

Question 9

Nature vs nurture

Answer 9

Question of whether certain aspects of behavior are products of genetic or learned influences, ultimately a combination of both (biopsychosocial model)

Question 10

Personality

Answer 10

Individual difference in pattern of thinking, feeling, and behaving combined determination from genetic temperament and environmental influences

Question 11

4 personality types (temperament)

Answer 11

-Sanguine (optimistic, active social)
Choleric (short tempered, fast irritable)
Melancholic (analytical wise quiet)
Phlegmatic (relaxed and peaceful)

Question 12

Neuroplasticity

Answer 12

Ability of the brian to change as a result of one’s experience, brain’s ability to reorganize itself and form new neural connections thru out life. This allows neurons to compensate for injury or disease (CVA, audism, addiction, depression, etc) or develop further and make new connections through psychotherapy and mediation

Question 13

Kindling

Answer 13

Development of hypersensitivity to a stimulus that initially causes very little response that after repetition produces a full response, the idea that small misfires in the brain in repetition can lead to massive impact (seizure, depression, etc) that sees actual structural changes in neurons occur in response to stimulation leaving an enhanced susceptibility for lifetime persistence

Question 14

Nuclei of the brain definition

Answer 14

Compact cluster of neurons with specific functions

Question 15

Basal ganglia

Answer 15

Group of nuclei in the brain that functions in motor behavior and cognitive motivation, attention, and learning, and has been implicated in psychiatric diseases such as anxiety, depression, psychosis, and OCD

Question 16

Dopamine is elevated in this condition and low in these 3

Answer 16

Schizophrenia, ADHD/fatigue/depression

Question 17

Norepi is elevated in these 2 conditions and decreased in these 2

Answer 17

Manic episodes and panic attacks, ADHD and depression

Question 18

Serotonin

Answer 18

Released by the brainstem to help control mood, appetite, and sleep and is implicated in major depression, sleep disorders, and mood disorders

Question 19

Mesolimbic and mesocortical pathways

Answer 19

Reward dopamine pathways in the brain that carry messages form midbrain to limbic system and cortex, abnormal function is implicated in schizophrenia and addiction

Question 20

Accumbens nucleus

Answer 20

Nucleus of cells that is a major destination in the mesolimbic pathway that has a close relationship with the ventral tegmental area (VTA), and is the central link in reward system where anything rewarding activates dopamine neurons in the VTA which project into the accumbens nucleus increasing dopamine in this area, majorly linked to addiction promoting desire while decreasing satiety and inhibition

Question 21

Locus coeruleus

Answer 21

Major adrenergic nucleus in brain that contains norepi producing cells that have an excitatory effect on most of the brain, when stimulated by a lack of drug it drives addiction to do anything necessary to receive stimulation again, involved in panic attacks, PTSD, anxiety, and drug abuse majorly

Question 22

Amygdala definition

Answer 22

Part of limbic system located in temporal lobe that controls emotional arousal, survival instincts, and memory. When stimulated results in aggression, strongly linked to libido (low T has smaller amygdala) and appears to be linked to BPD, anxiety, and PTSD

Question 23

Suprachiasmic nucleus

Answer 23

Part of hypothalamus that sits above the optic chiasm and acts as the pacemaker for circadian rhythms implicated in SAD, depression, schizophrenia, etc