Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders

Question 1

Obsessions

Answer 1

intrusive thoughts that are hard to control or forget

Question 2

Thought-Action Fusion

Answer 2

people with OCD feel as though thinking an obsession is equivalent to doing the obsession

Question 3

Compulsions

Answer 3

repetitive, ritualistic behaviour thought to alleviate the obsessions
- often have little to do with the obsession
- can be related
- performed to an extremely, excessive degree

Question 4

Categories of OCD

Answer 4

symmetry or exactness, forbidden acts, physical or mental contamination, hoarding

Question 5

Symmetry or Exactness

Answer 5

• most common form of the disorder
• usually alleviating obsessions relating to organising, actions done to the perfect degree

Question 6

Forbidden Acts

Answer 6

• obsessions: build up of trauma of unrelenting sexualised thoughts, thoughts of self harm, harm to others or thoughts about offending God
• compulsion may be related or unrelated to obsessions

Question 7

Physical or Mental Contamination

Answer 7

• performs rituals to remove the perceived/imagined contamination
• avoid contact of “contaminated” objects, engage elaborate cleaning rituals

Question 8

Hoarding

Answer 8

strong desire to collect and an inability to get rid of meaningless and sometimes unsanitary items

Question 9

OCD with comorbid tic disorder

Answer 9

subtype
- form of compulsion where the person feels compelled to perform sudden, repetitive body movements

Question 10

Early-onset OCD

Answer 10

subtype
- disorders develops in childhood, more common in males, strong family history, tends to have a poorer response to treatment than other types

Question 11

Characteristics of OCD

Answer 11

• often know that their actions are irrational
• cognitively understand that their behaviour may not be related to the obsession but they perform it anyway
• compelled to do their behaviour

Question 12

Causes of OCD

Answer 12

• more likely to have first-degree relative with disorder
• genetic factors may account for 45-65% of variance on OCD
• stronger biological influence than specific phobia or social anxiety
• (research) abnormalities in neurochemical and neurotransmitter systems
• (research) people with OCD tend to have hypersensitive serotonin receptor
• attitudes of excessive responsibility and resulting guilt developed during childhood

Question 13

Social Factors of OCD

Answer 13

• children often reporting not knowing why they do what they do, rather they do because they need to, often create reason for questioning adults
• nearly half of children have obsession developed after repeated interrogation

Question 14

Hoarding Disorder

Answer 14

clutter interferes with their ability to use the space in the way that that room of their house was intended

Question 15

Differences of Hoarding Disorder to OCD

Answer 15

• long-term course
• much more common
• starts in childhood or adolescence, 20s to 30s are significantly impacted
• progressively more isolated as they age and their symptoms worsen
• no goal or discretion in the collected items, no order to their actions
• cognitive driver - to minimise waste rather than maximise acquisition
• person doesn’t have intrusive thoughts

Question 16

Evolutionary Perspective to OCD Behaviour

Answer 16

• it would be beneficial for ancestors to stockpile certain resources so that they can be used in leaner times, hoarding possibly represents a disruption to the tendency as they are unable to distinguish between valuable and non-valuable items

Question 17

Habits

Answer 17

long chains of reinforced behaviour until the behavioural sequence becomes second nature

• they sometimes oppose conscious goals, these goals require the prefrontal cortex to take control of behaviour and undertake less practiced and effortful but correct behaviour

Question 18

cut-off point or end-signal

Answer 18

where the brain recognises that the environmental stimuli match they way they’re supposed to look when the behavioural chain has finished

Question 19

striatium

Answer 19

brain region that plays a crucial role in signalling cut-off points

Question 20

Orbitofrontal cortex (OFC)

Answer 20

plays a role in recognising that the environmental stimuli look the way they should when the task is correctly completed

Question 21

Error-related Negativity

Answer 21

anterior cingulate cortex dip in brainwaves slightly, bigger in OCD rituals that don’t feel right

Question 22

Exposure and Ritual Prevention (ERP)

Answer 22

• talking therapy
• similar to other exposure therapy, the safety behaviours (compulsions) are prevented and then the client is gradually exposed to the feared situation
• superior to SSRI’s

Question 23

Deep-Brain Stimulation

Answer 23

• radical
• insert a fine microelectrode into the striatum
• 25% reduction and full remission of symptoms
• remains strictly experimental, only available to patients that failed to respond to conventional treatment
• risks: brain haemorrhage and infection

Question 24

Hoarding CBT

Answer 24

• low compliance
• goals: teach person decision-making on valuable items
• done in persons house for contextual learning
• effective