biological

Question 1

Assumptions?

Answer 1

-Everything psychological is at first biological
-Genes affect behaviour and influence individual psychological differences between people
-Much of human behaviour has psychological cause which may be genetically or environmentally altered
-Much of our thought and behaviour relies on chemical transmission in the brain which occurs using neurotransmitters
-some behaviours are evolved

Question 2

What is the genotype?

Answer 2

Genotype refers to an individual’s genetic make-up.

Question 3

What is the phenotype?

Answer 3

Phenotype- the observable characteristics of an individual

Question 4

What is the phenotype influenced by?

Answer 4

Genotype + Environment= Phenotype

Question 5

What are twin studies?

Answer 5

Twin Studies are used to show how likely it is that these characteristics are inherited by comparing concordance rates between the twin pairs. If MZ twins are found to have higher concordance rates than DZ twins, it would suggest a genetic basis.

Question 6

What is an MZ twin?

Answer 6

Monozygotic twins- identical genotypes
have the same predisposition to develop a characteristic unless environmental factors intervene

Question 7

What is a DZ twin?

Answer 7

Dizygotic Twin- non-identical genotype

Question 8

What did Gottesman (1972) find from his twin studies on schizophrenia?

Answer 8

-a 58% concordance rate in MZ twins compared to 12% in DZ twins.

Question 9

Examples of evolved behaviours?

Answer 9

-Social Releasers- babies are born with a set of innate ‘cute’ features and behaviours that encourage attention from adults who will then become attached to and care for them. This enhances the chance of survival for the infant
-Aggression- men are at risk of cuckoldry and so displaying aggression acts as a deterrent so that a partner is less likely to cheat. It may also make them more attractive to females, so will enhance the men’s reproductive success so the behaviour becomes more widespread in the population.

Question 10

Define evolution?

Answer 10

• the genetic make-up of a particular population changes over successive generations. Individuals within a species vary in terms of their physical characteristics and behaviour. Some of the behaviour is intertied, making this therefore biological

Question 11

Strengths of the approach?

Answer 11

-Real-world applications
-Uses scientific methods

Question 12

Limitations of the approach?

Answer 12

-Biological determinism
-Reductionist