#Exam 2- Biological Approach Flashcards
theories of aggression studies key question practical
what are the key assumptions of the biological approach
that the closer we are to someone genetically the closer characteristics we share with them
what is the ANS
the automatic nervous system which controls functions such as breathing and the heart
what makes up the CNS
the brain and the spinal cord
what is the PNS
peripheral nervous system, those things which we have conscious control of
what joins the brain together in the middle
corpus callosum
what are the strengths of the biological approach as a whole
The approach is very scientific, and grounded in the ‘hard’ science of biology with its objective, materialistic subject matter and experimental methodology.
It provides strong counter-arguments to the nurture side of the nature-nurture debate.
Biopsychology’s practical applications are usually extremely effective, e.g. the treatment of mental disorder
what are the weaknesses with the biological approach as a whole
Reductionism - the bio-psychological approach explains thoughts and behaviour in terms of the action of neurones or biochemicals. This may ignore other more suitable levels of explanation and the interaction of causal factors.
The approach has not adequately explained how mind and body interact - conscious and emotion are difficult to study objectively.
Over simplistic - neuro-biological psychology theories often oversimplify the huge complexity of physical systems and their interaction with environmental factors.
what are nerves part of
PNS
what is the process of an action
incoming information from senses
brain processes that information
brain controls outgoing behaviour
what does the spinal cord allow us to do
pass messages from
the body to the brain
the brain to the rest of the body
what are the 4 main parts of a neuron
- Cell body
- Dendrites
- Axon
- Axon terminals
what does the cell body do
Contains the nucleus, which holds the genetic information for that neuron. Also contains other material for the cell to function, such as the mitochondria
what do the dendrites do
Receive messages from other neurons in order to be able to continue to pass messages along.
what is the purpose of the axon
Plays a key role in sending messages. The axon carries the electrical impulse (message) towards the axon terminals where information can be passed onto the next neuron.
what is the purpose of the axon terminal
These have terminal buttons on the end where the nerve impulse is passed onto the dendrites of the next neuron, or to the part of the body they control, such as a muscle.
what are neurotransmitters
Neurotransmitters are chemical messengers that travel in the brain between neurons.
what is the difference between motor neurons and sensory neurons
Motor neurons receive messages from the CNS, sensory neurons transmit messages from the senses.
how do neurotransmitters work
- An electrical impulse travels down the axon to the terminal button
- Vesicles containing neurotransmitters are released into the synaptic gap
- The receptors on the nearby dendrite receives the neurotransmitter if it ‘fits’ or not. (lock and key)
what happens if a neurotransmitter is taken up
if it is taken up the message continues to travel down that neuron’s axon so the message continues.
what happens if a neurotransmitter is not taken up
If it is not taken up the message is stopped
what happens if a neurotransmitter is not used
Neurotransmitters that are not used are recycled (reuptake) back into the pre-synapse
what are the main neurotransmitters our body produces
Dopamine Serotonin GABA Norepinephrine Acetylcholine Glutamate
What is an action potential
Action Potential is the process where a nerve impulse (electrical impulse) travels down a neurone. It is an electrochemical impulse that travels along an axon in one direction only, carrying information.
How is action potential transported
it has a resting membrane potential. it is triggered by a change in the electrical potential of the neuron. nerve impulse passes down the axon stimulating release of neurotransmitters
what is an agnostic drug
Some drugs are Agonists, these bind to receptors and stimulate them to increase the messages (eg Cocaine, heroin, morphine, nicotine)
what is an antagonistic drug
Antagonists, these will bind but don’t stimulate receptors instead they reverse or deactivate the effect of agonists (beta blockers, methadone, naloxone)
what are the three ways drugs can work
block receptors- antagonist
attach to receptors to mimic the effect of neurotransmitters- agonist
prevent recycling of neurotransmitters- agonist
describe the effect of one drug in detail
amphetamine- used to make you feel alert and energised, increases dopamine and noradrenaline, increased sex drive and can cause high blood pressure- agnostic
what is the mode of action for alcohol
interferes with brains communication pathways affects how the brain works and changes mood and behaviour
-agonist
what is the mode of action for nicotine
the strong mood-altering effect occurs, acts on the brain as a stimulant and a relaxant.
agonist (mimics neurotransmitters)
what is the mode of action for cocaine
causes short-lived high following an immediate depression
agonist- stops recycling of neurotransmitters
how does taking drugs lead to addiction
most drugs work on the dopamine pathway
as repeated use occurs a tolerance is built up
people then take more to reach the same level of high, continued use then ends up being a dependency
why might someone take drugs after just taking them
the dysphoria or comedown faced straight after taking a drug motivates them to take more
what is the dopamine pathway
the pleasure principle- area of brain sensitive to dopamine and GABA causes pleasure
what is desensitisation
over time brain releases more neurotransmitters such as dopamine when not on the drug to get to a “normal” level
what leads someone to addiction and withdrawal symptoms
desensitisation
is drugs research generalisable
There is a lot of evidence to support the biological effects of drugs on the brain e.g. Olds & Milner (1954) found a pleasure centre in the brain of rats and Straiker et al (2012) looked at the effect of cannabis and found an effect in the hippocampus of mice. However, as much research is carried out on animals this is not generalizable to human beings as species are qualitatively different.
is drugs research reliable
Although research uses standardised procedures and scanning tools which accurately record information, scanning receptor activity is not straightforward and requires greater sophistication, therefore the interpretation of information can be subjective.
are drugs research applicable
Observations re: desensitisation and tolerance, work in enhancing the reliability of theories and can be used to advise treatments e.g. the effective treatment of addiction via drugs
are drugs research valid
Validity id reduced as the complexity of how the transmission works in the brain is hard to capture. Current tools cannot measure transmission.
is drugs research ethical
As drugs have been identified as harming physical and mental functioning using them on either animals or humans should be undertaken with extreme caution.
what are the three biological explanations of aggression
hormone
brain
evolution
psycodynamic
what is the main idea of the brain causing aggression
brain is split into 4 different lobes, in particular the pre frontal lobe being damaged has been linked to aggression
how has the midbrain been associated with aggression
electric or overstimulation of this area of the brain has been linked with aggression
how was the amygdala been linked with aggression
area has been linked with controlling emotions and has been linked to recognising emotions
swante et al those with higher aggression had 18% smaller amygdalas.
how has the hypothalamus been linked with aggression
responsible for emotion linked to survival such as fear and aggression.
people with emotional disorders are likely to have damage in this area (limbic system)
how is the pre frontal cortex linked with aggression
beleived that a damaged PFC has been linked with someone not recognising their own actions
what are the strengths of the brain explanation of aggression
applicable- explains aggression from those with brain damage
Pet scans- scientific
Raine’s study
testable
what are the weaknesses of the brain explanation of aggression
Reductionist- does not consider evolution or psychodynamic
mainly animal testing- generalisability
does not explain why men are more aggressive then women
what is evolution
related to charles darwin. changes over time. useful characteristics survuve and are passsed on to future generations
what are genes
unit of herediatory information passed from parents to their offspring
what is natural selection
survival of the fittest
what is a mutation
a random characteristic which occurs
what is sexual selection
those better at attracting mates reproduce and their genes are passed on
main idea of evolution linking to aggression
emotions over time have eveolved to benefit us, eg love we have for children so we care for them
why does the evolutionary state we have aggression
territory and resources- Falklands war
Defending agaisnt attacks
inflicting cost on same sex rivals- sexual jealousy
negotiating status and power- male on male aggression
Deterring rivals from furture aggression
Detterring people from infidelity- domestic abuse
evaluate the Evolutionary theory of aggression
S- Adoption/ twin studies show we inherit characteristics biologically
C- Reductionist and deterministic
O- Brain and Hormones
U- Produced great deal of data to support biological causes for mental health issues
T- only testable on twin and adoption studies
what is the hormone theory to aggression
hormones effect aggression levels, in particular levels of testosterone]
males are more aggressive because they have higher levels of testosterone
increase in prenatal exposure to testosterone csuases bigger amygdala
can also affect functioning of amygdala lowering its firing threshold meaning more aggresive signals are sent
evaluate the hormone theory of aggression
S- Dabbs et al- higher T in rapists
Beeman- castrated rats less aggressive
C- doesn’t explain why people with low testosterone can be violent
O- EVOL/brain
U-Can help us evaluate whether increased testosterone means more aggression however it is deterministic
T- testable and objective
what are the main ides of the psychodynamic explanation
focuses on the idea of the unconcious and suggests that aggression may come from wishes and desires for violence stored in the unconcious
ID- pleasure principle, when acting on that you will more likely be aggressive
Ego- Logical, more ego less aggression
Superego- moral aspect of the personality
evaluation of the psychodynamic
S- studies from Anna O - defence mechanisms
C- Biological explanations of aggression
not testable
explains momentary aggression
conflicting evidence as some people who practice cathartic behvaiour actually more aggressive
what are the classical and contemporary studies in Biological psychology
Classical- Raine
Contemporary/ twin- Brendegen
Adoption- Kety et al
what is the aim of Raine et al
to investigate whether murderers who pleaded NGBRT had different brains to those of non murderers
who were the participants of Raine et al
41 murderers and 41 control 39 male and 2 women
control group formed by matched pairs through same age and sex
what scan was involved in Raine’s study
PET scans
what were the results of Raine
Prefrontal lobe = lower glucose metabolism
Corpus Callum= same as prefrontal lobe
Amygdala=lower activity in left but higher activity in the right
Occipatal lobe= high glucose activity
murderers have different brains
evaluate Raine
g- small sample size with small amount of female ppts
r-standardized procedure impirical
a- can be applied to real life, shows juries when people are insane
v-high iv low ev
e- injection of radioactive dye, mri scan is more ethical
what was the aim of brendgen et al
to examine the correlation between 2 types of aggression- social and physical between genes and environment
what was brendgens procedure
234 6 year olds, MZ: 44m 5Of DZ: 41m 32f.
longitudinal study after 5,18,30 and 48 months
peer and teacher ratings given on social and physical aggression. observed through teachers
peers asked to circle students with certain characteristics
what were the results of Brendgens study
62% received at least one nomination for most aggressive in class
teacher: boys more physically aggressive whereas girls socially
pupils:boys more physically and socially aggressive
genetics and environment both cause aggression
evaluate brendgen
G-small sample size only generalisable to one location- canada
R- independent groups but standardized procedure
A-can be used to suggest link between genes and environment in aggression
V- iV can’t fully control ev
eV- high as in classroom
E- only not protected from physical harm
what was the aim of kety
to test whether there is a genetic basis for schizophrenia
what was ketys procedure
used adoptive records to look for adopted children
used mental health reigister
checked by psychologists in blind test
once checked put in groups based on relationship to child
uncertain diagnosis removed from study
what were Kety’s results
more signs of Sz in biological then adoptive parents
8.7 biological
1.7 adoptive
shows genetic component to SZ
evaluate kety
g- only people from Denmark, included men and women, small age range 20-43, 34 sz patients
r- test re test reliability, reduced experimenter - bias by blind test
a-help detect SZ sooner
v- naturally occurring high EV
No control factors so low IV
E- Protected from harm, consent etc
what is the key question
how effective is the drug therapy for addcitions
why is drug therapy an issue
293,000 opiate users in UK from 13/14
29,150 successfully treated
NI for drug addiction says it has multiple causes.
drug therapies successful- chemical imbalance
how does bupenorprhine work
binds to opiod receptor without perefect fit, all opiod effects apart from euphoria dosage reduced until stopped completely.
strengths-west et al and less addictive
weaknesses- less used then methadone, severe withdrawl, headaches and sickness
what are the alternative treatments to drug abuse
alcoholics anonymous focus on counselling
group therapy- helps users feel less isolated
beneficial to find out why drugs taken in first place
what was the aim/hypothesis of out practical
to test whether there was a relationship between 2D 4D ratio and aggression.
ppts with smaller 2d 4d ratio will have more aggression
what was the procedure of our practical
aggression questionare with questions 1-5
measure index and ring finger right hand cm
compared with aggresion
mann whitney U
what were the results of our practical
Spearmans rho value of 0.28 which was below critical value of 0.4 meaning we reject our hypothesis.
2D 4D ratio does not effect aggression scores
