Neural Explanations of OCD

Question 1

Which 2 neurological areas have been implicated in OCD?

Answer 1

• Specific brain regions
• Neurochemicals

Question 2

Which 2 neurochemicals have been implicated in OCD?

Answer 2

• Serotonin
• Dopamine

Question 3

How has serotonin been implicated in OCD (2 Examples)?

Answer 3

• Low levels of serotonin are associated with obsessive thoughts due to serotonin having an inhibitory effect, meaning if there are low levels of serotonin thoughts cannot be regulated as the firing of neurons can’t be prevented
• Low levels of serotonin are also associated with low mood and depression due to it being involved with mood regulation

Question 4

How has dopamine been implicated in OCD?

Answer 4

High levels of dopamine are associated with the emotional reward of performing the compulsion (e.g. a sense of relief and temporary reduction in anxiety)

Question 5

What are three 3 brain regions that atypical functioning in has been implicated in OCD?

Answer 5

• Parahippocampal Gyrus
• Basal Ganglia
• Lateral Frontal Lobes

Question 6

How has the Parahippocampal Gyrus been implicated in OCD?

Answer 6

The left parahippocampul gyrus is associated with the processing of unpleasant emotions, such as anxiety

Question 7

How has the Basal Ganglia been implicated in OCD?

Answer 7

It has been associated with repetitive actions

Question 8

How has the Lateral Frontal Lobes been implicated in OCD?

Answer 8

It has been associated with repetitive thinking

Question 9

The effectiveness of which drug supports neural explanations of OCD?

Answer 9

SSRI’s, which increases serotonin levels

Question 10

Which review supports the implication of serotonin in relation to OCD?

Answer 10

Soomro et al’s, who found that symptoms reduce for 70% who take SSRI’s

Question 11

Which study supports the basal ganglia’s involvement in OCD, and what is this based on?

Answer 11

• Patients who suffer head injuries to the basal ganglia tend to develop OCD-like symptoms
• Max et al found that when the basal ganglia was surgically disconnected from the frontal lobe
  OCD-like symptoms are reduced

Question 12

Are neural explanations of OCD likely to be the distal or proximal cause?

Answer 12

Proximal- genes are likely to be the distal cause

Question 13

What kind of reductionism do biological explanations of OCD exhibit?

Answer 13

Biological, as they reduce behaviour to a small constituent part (e.g. genes and neurotransmitters)

Question 14

Can cause-and-effect be established in terms of brain regions and OCD?

Answer 14

No- research is purely correlational