3. Biological Explanation For Schizophrenia AO1 Flashcards
What are there strong relationships between
Genetic similarity of family members and the likelihood of developing schizophrenia
What did Gottesman’s study find
His family study found:
- MZ twins have a 48% shared risk of schizophrenia
- DZ twins have a 17% shared risk
- Siblings had about 9% shared risk
What is schizophrenia classed as being
Polygenic and aetiologically heterogeneous
What does the existence of candidate genes indicate
- each individual gene confers a small increased risk of schizophrenia (it is polygenetic)
- different combinations can lead to schizophrenia (it is aetiologically heterogeneous)
What is the role of dopamine
Dopamine is widely believed to be involved in schizophrenia because it is featured in the functioning of brain systems related to the symptoms of schizophrenia
What is high dopamine activity in the subcortex related to
Associated with hallucinations and poverty of speech
What have more recent versions of the hypothesis focused on
Low levels of dopamine in the prefrontal cortex
What is the prefrontal cortex responsible for
Decision-making
What are neural correlates
Measurements of the structure or function or the brain that correlate with the positive or negative symptoms of schizophrenia
What is the ventral striatum involved in
The anticipation of reward (motivation)
What might loss of motivation in schizophrenia be related to
Low activity levels in central striatum
How many variations of Sz have been found
Researcher found over 108
What can lead to auditory hallucinations
Low activation levels in superior temporal gyrus
