Psychopathology Flashcards

Question

Characteristics of OCD

Answer 1

Behavioural: Compulsion - Behaviours are performed repeatedly in order to reduce anxiety Avoidance - resist actions to avoid being in a particular situation Social impairment - Not participating in enjoyable social activities Emotional: Anxiety depression Cognitive: Obsessions Hypervigilance

Answer 2

Genetic explanations suggest OCD is transmitted through specific genes and there is a biological basis for the disorder Grootheest et al suggested that concordance rates for Mz twins were around 65-70% Lewis et al observed that of his patients, 37% had parents and 21% had siblings with OCD

Answer 3

-COMT - Regulates and causes higher dopamine production, may contribute to OCD as it has been more commonly found in sufferers of OCD than non-sufferers -SERT - Affects transportation of serotonin and causes lower levels of serotonin -OCD is polygenic - there are over 230 potential genes affecting it

Answer 4

-Imbalance of neurotransmitters -Low serotonin is thought to cause obsessive thoughts. The low level of serotonin is likely due to it being removed to quickly from the synapse before it has transmitted a signal to the post synaptic neuron -Abnormal functioning of the frontal lobes of the brain may be linked with impaired decision making which leads to symptoms such as compulsions. -There is also evidence which suggests that the left Para hippocampal gyrus is associated with unpleasant emotion, functions abnormally in patients with OCD -Worry circuit is faulty: worry signals are not supressed

Answer 5

Research from Piggott et al (1990) found that anti depressant drugs which increase serotonin activity have been found to reduce obsessive tendencies and symptoms in patients. Other types of antidepressants which do not increase serotonin activity have been found to be ineffective which suggests low levels of serotonin is linked to the disorder

Answer 6

One biological explanation for OCD is the neural explanation. This explanation suggests that OCD is due to an imbalance of neurotransmitters like serotonin. For example, Piggott et al found that antidepressant drugs which increase serotonin levels have been found to reduce obsessive tendencies and symptoms. This suggests that OCD is due to low levels of serotonin to begin with. Therefore this strengthens our acceptance of the neural biological explanation of OCD as there is supporting research

Answer 7

One weakness of the use of drug therapies for OCD is that they don't actually cure OCD, rather they mask the symptoms of a biological disorder rather than cure it. CBT has been shown to be effective in treating OCD, unlike the drug therapy which just masks the symptoms. This weakens our acceptance of the use of drug therapy to treat OCD

Answer 8

Research evidence shows drug therapy are effective compared to placebos in the treatment of OCD. Soomro et al reviewed 17 studies of the use of SSRI's with OCD patients were compared against placebos. They found that all 17 studies found significantly better outcomes for those who took SSRIs than for the placebo condition. Typically symptoms reduced for around 70% of people taking SSRIs. For the remaining 30%, most can be helped by either alternative drugs or combinations of drugs and psychological therapies. This indicates OCD must be biological in origin as SSRI's work by targeting serotonin in the brain by increasing its levels Therefore strengthening our acceptance of the biological approach to treating OCD. HOWEVER, there is some evidence to suggest that even if drug treatments are helpful for most people with OCD they may not be the most effective treatments available. Skapinakis et al found that that both cognitive and behavioural exposure therapies were more effective than SSRIs in the treatment of OCD. This means the drugs may not be the optimum treatment for OCD

Answer 9

One strength of OCD drug therapy is that drugs are cost effective. Drugs are cheap compared to psychological therapies because many thousands of tablets or liquid doses can be manufactured in the time it takes to conduct one session of a psychological therapy. Hence this indicates it is good for value and public health systems like the NHS and represents a good use of limited funds. As compared to psychological therapies, SSRI's are also non disruptive to peoples lives. You can simply take drugs until your symptoms decline. This is quite different from psychological therapy which involves time spent involving therapy sessions. This means that drugs are popular with many people with OCD and their doctors as they are highly cost effective and non-disruptive to the patients life.

Answer 10

One limitation of drug treatment for OCD is that drugs can have potentially serious side effects. Although drugs such as SSRIs help most people, a small minority will get no benefit. In some serious cases, side effects can be quite distressing for people and for a minority they are long-lasting. For those taking the tricyclic clomipramine, people experience weight gain, erection issues and 1 in 100 become aggressive and experience heart related problems. This means that some people have a reduced quality of life as a result of taking drugs and may stop taking them altogether, meaning the drugs cease to be effective. Therefore this weakens acceptance of the use of drugs to treat OCD, suggesting that other psychological therapies may be more appropriate when treating OCD

Answer 11

Traumatic event-----------------> Depression (genes) -According to the diathesis stress model, certain genes leave some people more likely to suffer a mental disorder but it is not certain -Certain environmental stressors are necessary to trigger the condition -The model proposes that behaviour is a result of both genetic and environmental factors, meaning it takes the view of biology + environment-----> interactionist approach

Answer 12

-One strength of the biological explanations of OCD is that there is support for genetic explanations of OCD. Researchers found that those with a first degree relative with OCD are 5x more likely to develop OCD themselves. This supports the notion that OCD is due to genetics as there is supporting research. Therefore this strengthens our acceptance of the biological explanation of OCD However, concordance rates between Mz twins are only 70-80% meaning 20-30% is due to other factors such as the environment

Answer 13

One strength of the neural explanations of OCD is the existence of supporting evidence. Antidepressants that work purely on serotonin are effective in reducing OCD symptoms which suggests that serotonin may be involved in OCD. Also, OCD symptoms form part of conditions that are known to be biological in origin, such as the degenerative brain disorder Parkinson's disease. This suggests that biological factors e.g. serotonin and the processes underlying certain disorders may also be responsible for OCD, thus coinciding with the biological explanations thus strengthening acceptance of the explanation

Answer 14

One weakness of the neural model is that the serotonin OCD link may not be unique to OCD. Many people with OCD also experience clinical depression. Having two disorders togethers is called co-morbidity. This depression probably involves disruption to the action of serotonin. It could simply be that serotonin activity is disrupted in many people with OCD because they are depressed as well. This suggests serotonin may not be relevant to OCD symptoms, thus indicating there may not be a causal relationship between serotonin and OCD, thus weakening acceptance of the biological explanations of OCD

Answer 15

One weakness of the biological explanation to OCD is that it doesn't take into account environmental factors. For example, research has found that over half the OCD patients in a sample had traumatic events in their past, and that OCD was more severe in those with more than one trauma. This suggests that OCD cannot be entirely biological in origin, suggesting we should focus on the environmental factors This weakens our acceptance of the theory

Answer 16

Persistent fear of a specific stimulus

Answer 17

Anxiety and fear Fears are excessive and unreasonable The feeling of anxiety/worry Fear is out of proportion to the actual danger posed

Answer 18

Panic, crying, running away, screaming, fainting Avoidance behaviours

Answer 19

The unconditioned stimulus causes an unconditioned response (fear) This unconditioned stimulus is paired with a neutral stimulus to produce a conditioned fear response. Now whenever the individual sees the NS they become scared. NS has become the conditioned stimulus

Answer 20

-Watson & Rayner researched to support one stage of the two-process model of phobias -Little Albert initially had no strong response to the rat, making it a neutral stimulus. -Watson and Rayner repeatedly presented Little Albert with a white rat, followed by a loud scary noise -Found that Albert would get scared just from seeing the rat after the loud noise had been paired with the white rat. (Acquired phobia through classical conditioning. Associated NS with UCS)

Answer 21

One strength is that there is research support for the Two-process model from Barlow and Durand He found that when he asked people who had a fear of driving, 50% of them remembered a traumatic event which caused this far, furthermore, they reinforced this avoidance behaviour by not driving since their traumatic event This coincides with what the theory states. People acquire the phobia through classical conditioning (pairing NS with UCS) and then it is maintained via operant conditioning (avoidance behaviour is negatively reinforced). Therefore this strengthens acceptance of the model as there is supporting research

Answer 22

One limitation of the behaviourist explanation of phobias is that it does not account for the cognitive aspects of phobias. In the case of phobias, a key behaviour is avoidance of the phobic stimuli. However we know what phobias are not just behavioural responses, they have significant cognitive components. For example, people holding irrational negative beliefs about the stimuli. The two process model explains avoidance behaviour but does not offer an adequate explanation for phobic cognitions. This means that the two process model doesn't not completely explain the symptoms of phobias, thus indicating the explanation is simplistic, thus weakening acceptance of the theory.

Answer 23

One strength of the behavioural explanations of phobias is its real world application in exposure therapies such as systematic desensitisation. The distinctive element of the two process model is that phobias are maintained by avoidance behaviour of the phobic stimulus. Once the avoidance behaviour is prevented it ceases to be reinforced by the experience of anxiety reduction and avoidance therefore declines. In behavioural terms the phobias is the avoidance behaviour so when this avoidance is prevented, the phobia is cured. This highlights the value of the two process model as it identifies a means of treating phobias, which can be used in real life scenarios to help sufferers of phobias and improve their quality of life, thus strengthening acceptance of the explanation

Answer 24

One limitation of the behaviourist explanation of phobias is that some phobias are not caused by traumatic events. This suggests there are other factors involved in the acquisition of phobias. Instead, we may have evolved to have phobias of certain stimuli that were threatening to us in the past, suggesting phobias may be genetically determined This weakens acceptance of the behaviourist explanation as it doesn't account for how all phobias are acquired, there may be other ways in which people can acquire phobias

Answer 25

The patients is exposed to their worst fear all in one go and is forced to remain until the anxiety has gone

Answer 26

-Relaxation - Muscle relaxation, deep breathing. This helps them become more relaxed. Reciprocal inhibition - cant be relaxed and anxious at the same time -Hierarchy of anxiety-provoking situations - Patient and therapist build a list of increasingly anxiety-provoking situations with the feared object. Starting from least to most -Exposure - Patient Is exposed to feared stimuli in a relaxed state. When the patient can stay relaxed in the lower levels of phobic stimulus they move up the hierarchy. Treatment is successful when the patient can stay relaxed in situations high in the anxiety hierarchy

Answer 27

-Behavioural therapy designed to gradually reduce phobic anxiety through the principles of classical conditioning -A newly learned response to the phobic stimulus is acquired. Phobic stimuli is paired with relaxation, instead of anxiety -Learning of a different response is called counter-conditioning -It is impossible to be relaxed and anxious simultaneously, so one emotion prevents the other. This is called reciprocal inhibition -Patient has to work with a therapist

Answer 28

One strength of SD is that there is supporting research from Gilroy et al. The research followed 42 patients who were treated for arachnophobia in three 45-minute SD sessions and a control group was treated via relaxation, but without exposure. Gilroy found that at both 3 and 33 months, patients in the SD experimental group were less fearful of spiders than the control group. This research illustrates that exposure is a key element in treating phobias, which supports the explanation of SD as a treatment for phobias in the short run and long run

Answer 29

One weakness of SD is that it may not be effective at treating all phobias. Ohman et al suggested SD may not be effective for innate/biological phobias which have an evolutionary survival component e.g. fear of heights. This suggests SD is effective in tackling some phobias and not all thus weakening our acceptance of SD as a treatment of phobias

Answer 30

One strength of SD is that it can be used to help people with learning disabilities. Some people requiring treatment for phobias also have a learning disability. However, the main alternatives to SD are not suitable. People with learning difficulties often struggle with cognitive therapies that require complex rational thought. They may also feel confused and depressed by the traumatic experience of flooding. This means that SD is often the most appropriate treatment for people with learning disabilities who have phobias.

Answer 31

-Immediate exposure to the stimulus -No gradual build-up -No option of avoidance behaviour -Fear becomes 'extinct' -Conditioned phobic stimulus no longer produces a fear response -Important for patients to give consent -Patients should be given the choice to withdraw at any point

Answer 32

One strength of flooding is that it is highly cost effective. Clinical effectiveness refers to how effective a therapy is at tackling symptoms. However, when we provide therapies in the NHS we also need to think about how much they cost. A therapy is cost effective if it is clinically effective and not expensive. Flooding can work in as little as one sessions opposed to say, ten sessions for SD to achieve the same result. Even allowing for a longer session, flooding is more effective. This means that more people can be treated at the same cost with flooding than with SD or other therapies.

Answer 33

One weakness of flooding is that it can be traumatic for the patient. For example, Schumacher et al found that ppts and therapists rated flooding as significantly more stressful than SD. This raises the ethical issue for psychologists of knowingly causing stress to their clients, although this is not a serious issue provided they obtain informed consent. More seriously, the traumatic nature of flooding means that attrition rates are higher than for Sd. This suggests that, overall, therapists may avoid using this treatment as it may be unpleasant for the patients, thus limiting use of flooding as a treatment for phobias

Answer 34

Panic - Can lead to: crying, screaming or running away Avoidance Endurance - Choose to remain in presence of the phobic stimulus

Answer 35

Anxiety Fear

Answer 36

Selective attention to the phobic stimulus Irrational beliefs Cognitive distortions

Answer 37

Activity levels - Low levels of energy Disruption to sleep and eating behaviour Aggression or self harm

Answer 38

Psychological research findings into psychopathology may lead to improvements in psychological health/treatment programmes which may mean that people manage their health better and take less time off work. This would reduce costs to the economy

Answer 39

Lowered mood Anger Lowered self esteem

Answer 40

Poor concentration Absolutist thinking Attending to and dwelling on the negative

Answer 41

-Immediate/direct/full exposure -Prevention of avoidance -Until they are calm/anxiety has receded/fear is extinguished

Answer 42

(a) Phobias are learnt through classical conditioning; fear is acquired when a neutral stimulus becomes associated with a frightening event, reference to avoidance learning, reference to stimulus generalisation (b) Not all phobias are triggered by a traumatic experience where the initial association (between the phobic object / situation and fear) is form which suggests that alternative explanations are needed

Answer 43

Antidepressants – SSRIs – prevent the reuptake of serotonin and prolong its activity in the synapse in order to reduce anxiety / normalise the ‘worry circuit’ Attempt to increase levels of neurotransmitters or the activity of neurotransmitters in the brain Purpose is to decrease anxiety, lower arousal, lower blood pressure or heart rate

Answer 44

Obsessions are internal components because they are thoughts, and compulsions are external components because they are behaviours.

Answer 45

One limitation of the deviation of social norms definition is that norms can vary over time. This means that behaviour that would have been defined as abnormal in one era is no longer defined as abnormal in another, thus indicating this definition has low temporal validity

Answer 46

-Behavioural characteristic – this is the compulsion element of the disorder, where a behaviour is performed repeatedly in order to alleviate anxiety -Cognitive characteristic – this is the obsessive element of the disorder, where the sufferer experiences unwanted/intrusive thoughts or images that cause distress

Answer 47

-Compulsions (repetitive) -Avoidance

Answer 48

-Depressive symptoms -Anxiety and distress -Guilt and disgust

Answer 49

-Obsessive thoughts -Cognitive coping strategies

Answer 50

One strength of the cognitive treatments of depression is that it has led to highly effective therapies being developed. March et al compared CBT to antidepressant drugs and also to a combination of bot treatments when treating 327 depressed adolescents. They found that CBT was effective at reducing depressive symptoms by 81% after 36 weeks of treatment and CBT + antidepressants improved 86% of patients. This is a strength as it indicates that CBT is an effective method of reducing depressive symptoms, thus indicating CBT should be the first choice of treatment in public healthcare systems such as the NHS.

Answer 51

A further limitation of CBT for the treatment of depression is the high relapse rates. Although CBT is quite effective in tackling the symptoms of depression, there are some concerns over how long the benefits last. Recent studies suggest that long term outcomes are not as good as had been assumed. For example, in one study by Ali et al 42% of the clients relapsed into depression within 6 months of ending treatment and 53% relapsed within a year. This means that CBT may needed to be repeatedly periodically

Answer 52

One limitation of CBT for depression is the lack of effectiveness of severe cases and for clients with learning difficulties. The complex rational thinking involved in CBT makes it unsuitable for treating depression in patients with learning difficulties. Researchers suggest that in general any form of psychotherapy s not suitable for people with learning difficulties and this includes CBT. This suggests that CBT may only be appropriate for a specific range of people with depression. HOWEVER, a review by Lewis et al concluded that CBT was as effective as antidepressants for severe depression. Another review by Taylor et al concluded that, when used appropriately, CBT is effective for people with learning disabilities. This means that CBT may be suitable for a wider range of people than was once thought

Answer 53

-Extends the ABC model to and ABCDE model where D stands for dispute and E stands for effect. The central technique of REBT is to challenge irrational thoughts. -Empirical argument involves disputing whether there is actual evidence to support the negative belief -Logical argument involves disputing whether the negative thought logically follows from the facts

Psychopathology Flashcards

(78 cards)