The biological approach to schizophrenia Flashcards
what does the biological approach suggest the three main causes of schizophrenia are
Genetics
Dopamine hypothesis
Neural correlates
TRUE or FALSE schizophrenia is a monogenic illness
FALSE
it is a polygenic disorder
How many genes are involved in increasing the chances of a person getting Sz
108
who researched the amount of genes that increases a persons risk of developing Sz
Ripke et al
what does the phrase ‘Sz appears to be polygenic and aetiologically heterogenous’ mean?
It means that schizophrenia requires multiples genes to be shown as a behaviour and that different factors work together to cause Sz
Who researched the effects of genetics on the heritability of Sz
Gottesman (1991)
Tienari et el (200)
both separate pieces of research that both research Sz and genetics
What was Gottesmans procedure when researching sz and genetics
He reviewed over 40 studies in Germany, Switzerland, Scandinavia and UK by looking through medical records for Sz.
it was a meta-analysis
what did gottesman find when researching Sz and genetics
those that share 100% of their genetics (monozygotic twins) have a 48% of both having sz meaning 52% of the risk comes from the environment
share 50%: 6-17% risk
share 25%: 2-6% risk
share 12.5%: 2%
He went on to state that if both your parents have Sz there was a 46% chance of you developing Sz
what did Tienari et al investigate relating to Sz and genetics
the combination of genetic vulnerability and parenting style as a trigger using adopted children
what was Tienari’s procedure when investigating Sz and genetics
investigated 164 adoptees whose biological mothers had been diagnosed with Sz and then 197 control adoptees.
all from Finland
what did Tienari find when investigating Sz and genetics
adopted children w/ Sz mums that also had Sz themselves: 11 (6.7%)
control adoptees who had Sz: 4 (2%)
this shows it is not due to being raised in an environment with a Sz mum but the genetics
what does the dopamine hypothesis claim theres too much of in certain regions of the brain
it says there excess dopamine within the prefrontal cortex which is associated with positive symptoms of Sz
DP HYPOT: what causes hyperdopaminergia in Sz
the neurons fire too easily and too often leading to hallucinations and delusions (pos symptoms)
they also are thought to have a higher amount of D2 receptors on receiving neurons which means that more dp binds with receptors which leads to more neurons firing again producing pos symptoms
what does the dp hypothesis suggest the reason is for neg symptoms
neg symptoms are thought to arise from a deficit in DP in areas of the prefrontal cortex
who investigated the dopamine hypothesis
Leutch et al
what was the procedure of leutch et als research into dopamine hypothesis
a meta-analysis of 212 studies analysing the effectiveness of different anti-psychotic drugs in comparison to a placebo was completed.
what did leutch et al find from his research into dopamine hypothesis
he found that all drugs tested were sig more effective than placebo in treat ment of pos + neg symptoms
which achieved the normalisation of dopamine levels
what does neural correlates mean
areas of the brain that are associated with Schizophrenia
TRUE or FALSE: there is only neural correlates for negative symptoms
FALSE
There are neural correlates for both the positive and the negative symptoms of schizophrenia
what is the function of the neural mechanism, prefrontal coretex
Helps people think logically + organise their thoughts
what is the function of the neural mechanism, visual and auditory cortexes
processes information recieved form the eyes and ears
what is the function of the neural mechanism, basal ganglia
located deep inside the brain and affects movement and thinking skills
what is the function of the neural mechanism, amygdala
responsible for basic feelings such as fear, lust and hunger
