Li et al

Question 1

Aim

Answer 1

Does heroin change addicts brains?

Question 2

PPs

Answer 2

14 males from Xi’an drug rehab center in China, clean for an average of 89 months. 15 healthy controls

Question 3

How does heroin work?

Answer 3

Stimulates Da at synapses to create a high

Question 4

What part of the brain were they studying?

Answer 4

Posterior Cingulate Cortex (PCC) and the areas it connects with. Associated with cravings

Question 5

Method

Answer 5

Resting state fMRI then exposed to drug paraphernalia (images of syringes, heroin etc) Drug-cue stimulation task. They make associations between these triggers and the drugs. Another fMRI taken

Question 6

Findings

Answer 6

Positive correlation between PCC connectivity and how long heroin has been used therefore heroin changes the addicts brain over time

Question 7

-ve generalizability

Answer 7

No females and a low sample size of 14. Only focused on heroin no other drugs like cocaine (also effects Da neurotransmitters)

Question 8

+ve reliability

Answer 8

Highly standardized procedures of same images, task, scanning and matched pairs/controls as comparisons.

Question 9

-ve ethics

Answer 9

Ethically this could’ve induced cravings and a relapse. Psychological distress and harm

Question 10

+ve objectivity and reliability

Answer 10

fMRI scans are objective and reliable, less open to interpretation, new advanced 2013 technology. They work by detecting blood oxygenation and flow changes in the brain as a result of neural activity and a more active area consumes more oxygen. Therefore showing an accurate and reliable image of the brain.