Ch. 3 Causal Factors And Viewpoints Flashcards
Correlate
A variable (X) that is associated with an outcome of interest (Y)
Risk Factor
Only if X is shown to occur before Y
Variable Risk Factor
If X can be changed
Fixed Marker
If X cannot be changed
Variable Marker
Changing X does not lead to a change in Y
Causal Risk Factor
Changing X leads to a change in Y
Study of causes and risk factors for abnormal behavior includes:
- Necessary, sufficient, and contributory causes
- Feedback and bidrectionality in abnormal behavior
- Diathesis-stress model
Etiology
Factors that are related to the development (or cause) of a particular disorder
Necessary cause
A condition that must exist for a disorder to occur
(E.g alcohol use disorder: access to alcohol; PTSD; traumatic event)
Sufficient Risk Factor
A condition that guarantees the occurrence of a disorder all on its own
No matter how much you change the environment, the disorder will happen
Contributory cause
A condition that increases the probability of developing a disorder but that is neither necessary nor sufficient for it to occur
Studied the most in psych science
Distal Causal Factors
May contribute to or cause a disorder, but not for awhile
Proximal Risk Factor
Immediate, following closely after psychological event
Reinforcing contributory cause
Factor that maintains a disorder
Causal Pattern
More than one causal factor involved
Two-way (Bidirectional) Influences
Effects can serve as feedback that can influence causes
Diathesis-Stress Model
Combination of diathesis + stress to cause disorder
Diathesis
Relatively distal, necessary, or contributory cause; not sufficient to cause disorder
Stress
Response of individual to taxing demands
Could be distal or proximal
Necessary or contributory
Not sufficient on its own
Additive Model
The diathesis and the stress simply add up, or sum together
(E.g no/ low diathesis and high stress could still cause disorder and vice versa)
Interactive Model
Some amount of diathesis must be present before stress will have any effect
Protective Factors
Buffers against the likelihood of negative outcomes, including for people who are @ risk
Resilience
Ability to successfully adapt to very difficult circumstances
Greater protective factors create greater resilience
Biological Perspective
We try to understand how factors such as genetics, neurobiology, and hormonal responses can influence psychopathology
Sociocultural Perspective
Understand how social and cultural factors can influence the way that we think about abnormal behavior
Biopsychosocial Viewpoint
Acknowledges that biological, psychological, and social factors all interact and play a role in psychopathology and treatment
Biological Perspective’s 4 Major Categories of Biological Factors relevant to Maladaptive Behavior
- Genetic Vulnerabilites
- Brain dysfunction + neural plasticity
- Neurotransmitter + hormonal abnormalities in the brain or other parts of the CNS
- Temperament
Genes
Very long molecules of DNA that are present at various locations on chromosomes
Carries of the info that we inherit from our parents
Exist in alleles
Chromosomes
Chain-like structures within a cell nucleus that contains the genes
Polymorphism
Naturally occurring variations of genes
Polygenic
Caused by the action of many genes together in additive or interactive fashion
Genotype
Total genetic endowment
Phenotype
Observed structural and functional characteristics (physical traits, behavioral tendencies, etc)
Genotype-Environment Interaction
Sensitivity or susceptibility to environments by people who have different genotypes
Genotype-Environment Correlation
When the genotype shapes the environmental experiences a child has
Passive Effect
How larger environment interacts w/ someone’s genotype, changing phenotype
Evocative Effect
Someone’s genotype may cause them to behave in ways that evoke certain reactions from other people and the environment
These reactions from others reinforce the genotype
Active Effect
Natural tendency to seek out and build environment that compliments one’s traits- thereby enhancing those traits
Behavior Genetics
Field that studies the heritability of mental disorders and other aspects of psychological functioning such as personality and intelligence
Family History or Pedigree Method
An investigator observes samples of relatives of each pro and or index case (carrier of disorder in question) to see whether the incidence increases in proportion to the degree of hereditary relationship.
Normal population compared as a control.
Main Limitation of family history method
People closely related genetically also tend to share similar environments
Twin method
The use of identical and non identical twins to study genetic influences on abnormal behavior
Concordance rate
The percentage of twins sharing a disorder or trait
The Adoption Method
Comparison of biological and adoptive relatives with and without a given disorder to assess genetic versus environmental influences
Many genetic effects on psychological characteristics ___________ with age.
Increase
Shared Environmental Influences
Those that would make children in a family more similar, whether the influence occurs within the family (family discord and poverty) or in the environment (two- high quality schools, with one twin going into each)
Nonshared Environmental Influences
Those in which the children in a family differ (unique school experiences, unique features of upbringing in home: treating one child differently than the other)
Linkage Analysis
Genetic research strategy
Occurrence of a disorder in an extended family is compared with a genetic marker for a physical characteristic or biological process that is known to be located on a certain chromosome
Association Studies
Genetic research strategy
Comparing frequency of certain genetic markers known to be located on certain chromosomes in people with and without a particular disorder
Neural Plasticity
Flexibility of the brain in making changes in organization and function in response to pre- and postnatal experiences, stress, diet, disease, drugs, maturation, and so forth
Positive Effects of Prenatal Experiences in Rat Experiement
Rats housed in complex, rich environments had offspring less negatively affected by brain injury early in development than those without same positive prenatal experiences
Negative Effects of Prenatal Experiences in Monkey Experiment
Pregnant monkeys exposed to unpredictable loud sounds had infants that were jittery and showed neurochemical abnormalities
Formation of new neural connections after birth is dramatically effected by ____________ a young organism has.
Experiences
Rats reared in enriched environments show __________ and ________ cell development in certain portions of the cortex as well as more __________ per neuron.
Heavier; thicker; synapses
Developmental Systems Approach
Acknowledgement that genetic activity influences neural activity, which in turn influences the environment and that these influences are bidirectional
Brief Description of Communication of Neurons
Transmissions of electrical impulses travel from the cell body or dendrites of one neuron down the axon.
Neurotransmitter substances are released into the synapse then act on the postsynaptic membrane of the dendrite of the receiving neuron, which has specialized receptor sites where the NT substances pass on their message
The NTs can stimulate that postsynaptic neuron to either initiate an impulse or inhibit impulse transmission.
Synapse
A tiny fluid-filled space between the axon endings of one neuron and the dendrites or cell body of another neuron
Neurotransmitters
Chemical substances that are released into the synapse by the presynaptic neuron when a nerve impulse occurs
What is monoamine and what does it do?
It is an enzyme that quickly destroys NTs
What does the reputable mechanism do?
Returns NT substances to storage vesicles in the axon endings by reabsorbing or effectively sucking them back up into the axon ending
Most researchers ________ that imbalances in NTs are only part of the causal pattern involved in the etiology of most disorders
Agree
Possibilities of NT imbalances
-Excessive production and release into the synapses
-Deactivation of release in the synapse by reputable or degradation by certain enzymes
-receptors in postsynaptic neuron may be abnormally sensitive or insensitive
Chemical Circuits
Clusters of neurons sensitive to a particular NT, forming neural paths between different parts of the brain
Five most studied NTs in relation to psychopathology
Norepinephrine, Dopamine, Serotonin, Glutamate, and Gamma Aminobutyric Acid (GABA)
Class of NTs called Monoamines. Why are they in this class?
Norepinephrine, dopamine, serotonin
Each synthesized from a single amino acid
Functions of Norepinephrine
Emergency reactions our bodies show when we are exposed to an acutely stressful or dangerous situation
Attention, Orientation, Basic motives
Functions of Dopamine
Pleasure and cognitive processing
Implicated in schizophrenia and addictive disorders
Functions of Serotonin
Effects how we think and process information from our environment
Behaviors and moods
Important role in emotional disorders like anxiety or depression and in suicide
Medications used to treat various disorders have the ________ as their site of action.
Synapses
Agonists
Medications that facilitate the effects of a NT on the postsynaptic neuron
Antagonists
Medications that oppose or inhibit the effects of a NT on a postsynaptic neuron
Hormones
Chemical messengers secreted by a set of endocrine glands in our bodies
