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Psychology: Schizophrenia > Biological explanation > Flashcards

Biological explanation Flashcards

1
Q

What are genetics?

A

Inherited factors which make certain individuals more likely to develop a behaviour or mental disorder

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2
Q

What genetic factor has schizophrenia been linked to?

A

Polygenetic sets of candidate genes

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3
Q

What have family studies established?

A

That schizophrenia is more common among biological relatives of a person with schizophrenia

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4
Q

With regards to family studies, what increases the risk of schizophrenia?

A

The degree of genetic relatedness

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5
Q

What type of study did Gottesman conduct?

A

Family study

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6
Q

What concordance rate did Gottesman find when both parents had schizophrenia?

A

46%

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7
Q

What concordance rate did Gottesman find when one parent had schizophrenia?

A

13%

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8
Q

What concordance rate did Gottesman find when one sibling had schizophrenia?

A

9%

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9
Q

What do twin studies show?

A

A genetic link - but only when the concordance rate of MZ twins is higher than DZ twins

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10
Q

What type of study did Joseph conduct?

A

A twin study

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11
Q

What concordance rate did Joseph find for MZ twins?

A

40.4%

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12
Q

What concordance rate did Joseph find for DZ twins?

A

7.4%

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13
Q

What do adoption studies allow us to do?

A

Disentangle genes from environmental factors

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14
Q

What type of study did Tienari conduct?

A

An adoption study

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15
Q

How many Finnish adoptees took part in Tienari’s study?

A

164

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16
Q

What percentage of the adoptees in Tienari’s study developed schizophrenia?

A

6.7%

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17
Q

What percentage of the control group in Tienari’s study developed schizophrenia?

A

2%

18
Q

What does the dopamine hypothesis claim?

A

That an excess of dopamine in certain brain regions is associated with positive symptoms

19
Q

What are amphetamines?

A

Dopamine agonists

20
Q

What happens when ‘normal’ individiduals are exposed to amphetamines?

A

They start displaying schizophrenia-like positive symptoms

21
Q

What do antipsychotics do?

A

They block the activity of dopamine in the brain

22
Q

What effect do antipsychotics have on individuals with schizophrenia?

A

It reduces their positive symptoms

23
Q

What is hyperdopaminergia?

A

Too much dopamine

24
Q

What is hypodopaminergia?

A

Too little dopamine

25
Q

What can hyperdopaminergia in the subcortex cause?

A

Positive symptoms

26
Q

What can hypodopaminergia in the prefrontal cortex?

A

Negative symptom

27
Q

What hypothesis has been drawn about the cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia?

A

It’s the result of a deficit in the prefrontal cortex, and its connections with other brain regions like the hippocampus

28
Q

What happens to the hippocampus in schizophrenic patients?

A

It undergoes anatomical changes

29
Q

What happens to grey matter in schizophrenic patients?

A

The volume decreases

30
Q

Where does the volume of grey matter decrease in schizophrenic patients?

A

Frontal + temporal lobes

31
Q

What happens to white matter in schizophrenic patients?

A

They experience a decrease in the myelination of white matter pathways

32
Q

What are the 4 AO3 points for the biological explanation of schizophrenia?

A

1) MZ twins encounter more similar environments
2) Treatment support for dopamine hypothesis
3) Adoptees may be selectively placed
4) Challenges to the dopamine hypothesis

33
Q

What is the key assumption of twin studies?

A

MZ and DZ have an equal degree of shared environment

34
Q

Which type of twins experience more similar shared environment?

A

MZ

35
Q

What are MZ twins more likely to experience?

A

Identity confusion

36
Q

Where does evidence for the dopamine hypothesis come from?

A

Successful treatments which aim to reduce dopamine levels in the brain

37
Q

In the meta-analysis of studies into the use of antipsychotics, how many studies were included?

A

212

38
Q

In the meta-analysis of studies into the use of antipsychotics, what was found?

A

Antipsychotics are more effective than placebos at reducing schizophrenia symptoms

39
Q

What is a key assumption of adoption studies?

A

That adoptees are not selectively placed into families with particular backgrounds

40
Q

What belief was there about children of schizophrenic mothers?

A

There was a belief that any child of a mother admitted to a psychiatric hospital would be feeble-minded, insane and degenerate

41
Q

What did one study find about the adoptive placement of children of schizophrenic mothers?

A

It was highly unlikely they would be placed into families who had no history with schizophrenia

42
Q

Why have psychologists claimed that both the original and revised dopamine hypothesis have limited explanatory power?

A

Because antipsychotics do not alleviate hallucinations + delusions in around ⅓ of people who suffer from them

Psychology: Schizophrenia (9 decks)

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