OCD Flashcards
(23 cards)
What is obsessive compulsive disorder
An anxiety disorder that normally onsets in one early adult life and has 2 components
What are the 2 components of OCD
1)obsessions -persistent thoughts
2)compulsions - repepetive behaviour
Sufferers realise their thoughts and behaviour are irrational
What are the emotional characteristics of OCD
Feelings of embarrassment and shame
Anxiety and distress
What are the behavioural characteristics of OCD
Repetition and unconcealed e.g hand washing
Feels like they must perform these actions and if not someone bad will happen e.g creating anxiety
What are the cognitive characteristics of OCD
Obsessions are recurrent,intrusive thoughts or impulses seen as inappropriate or forbidden
Obsession themes : germs,doubts ,impulses or images
Seen as uncontrollable which creates anxious and as a product of their own mind rather than thoughts of others
Neural explanations associated with OCD
What are the neurotransmitters and their levels
Low level of serotonin
High level of dopamine
Neural explanations : dopamine related to dogs
Animal studies show that high dopamine levels seen an increase of compulsive type behaviour in dogs . A bit like OCD . However we can’t compare dog behaviour to compulsive OCD behaviour in adults due to human beings having a conscience and free will therefore it lacks representation as it can’t be generalised to the wider population
Neural explanations:serotonin and drugs
SSRIs(antidepressants) that raise levels of serotonin,alleviate OCD symptoms however they treat the symptom rather than the cause as when the person stops taking the drugs the symptoms return as the root cause is not being dealt with
Neuro-functioning associated with OCD:orbitofrontal cortex (OFC)
Located at the front of the brain
Responsible for judging and deliberation ,assessing potential harm and threats
The OFC seems to be overactive in OCD patients
Then the neurotransmitter serotonin is released
Neuro-functioning associated with OCD:caudate nucleus in the basal ganglia
Relay station interpreting these signals
Decides what signals to pass on as important .Danger /threats
If the caudate nucleus is damaged (through tissue damage ) , it fails to stop minor worries activating the thalamus
The neurotransmitter serotonin and dopamine are released
Neuro-functioning associated with OCD:Thalamus
Activated into acting on potential threats e.g germs and washing hands
Action has to occur to terminate the ‘wrong loop’ from the OFC
What is the evidence for the Neuro-functioning associated with OCD
MRI scans of OCD patients do show greater activity in the OFC when their OCD is active which provides validity
Genetic explanations for OCD:MZ twins
There was a meta analysis of 14 twin studies which found that one twin with OCD means the other is twice more likely than DZ twins to develop the disorder
Genetic explanations for OCD:concordance rate
Carey and gottersman found an 87% concordance rate in mz twins (compared to 46% concordance rate for schizophrenia) therefore it has reliability as the results are high at 87%
Genetic explanations for OCD:family studies
Having a first degree relative (parents,siblings) with OCD means you are X5 times more likely to develop OCD than the rest of the population.(Nestadt et al 2000)
This suggests that the genetic explanation has reliability
What do we inherit
COMT gene
SERT gene
Diathesis stress
What is the COMT gene
The COMT gene regulates dopamine production. Therefore patients have a less active form of this gene, produces too dopamine (nts) ,leads to OCD
What is the SERT gene
reduces the levels of serotonin. it was found that a mutation in 2 unrelated families where 6/7 of their family members had OCD
What is diathesis stress
This suggests that each individual gene only creates a vulnerability (diathesis) for OCD development. Other factors e.g childhood could could the trigger(stress) for the condition to develop. some people could posses the gene but remain perfectly healthy throughout their life as its not predisposed
why does the explanation lacking clarity a weakness
P: The neural explanation lacks causal clarity.
E: While abnormal activity in brain areas like the OFC is associated with OCD, it is unclear whether these neural abnormalities are a cause of OCD or a result of the disorder.
E: This weakens the neural explanation, as the cause-and-effect relationship between brain activity and OCD is not firmly established, affecting validity.
why is research support from twin studies seen as a strength
P: Evidence of OCD from twin Studies
E: researchers conducted a meta analysis and found that MZ twins where twice as likely to develop OCD If their twin had the disorder than DZ twins
E: This supports the genetic basis of OCD as It shows that twins who share 100% of their genes would therefore show a higher concordance rate than DZ twins,reliability
why is research support from the genes and ofc seen as a strength
p: research support for the OFC and genes
E: Researchers used brain scans and found that OCD patients and their close families had reduced grey matter in key regious of the brain including the OFC
E: This supports the view that Inherited anatomical differences may lead to OCD In certain Individuals, validity
why is alternative psychological explanation seen as a weakness
P:Alternative Psychological explanation
E: The 2 process model which shows that a (NS) Such as dirt is associated with anxiety which shows classical conditions and compulsive behaviour such as handwashing maintains the association through negative reinforcement via operant conditioning
E: This demonstrates that OCD may have psychological explanations as well as biological as it removes the anxiety that OCD causes through ERP to prevent compulsive behaviour being performed, lack representation
