Biological explanations of schizophrenia

Created by: Holliehunt
Created on: 25-02-20 14:47

View mindmap

The genetic basis
- schizophrenia runs in families
  - family members tend to share the same environment as well as genes
  - share 100% of genes with an identical twin
  - strong relationship between the degree of genetic similarity and risk of schiz
  - Gottesman's family study
- biological explanations of schizophrenia
  - Neural correlates
    - measurement of the function of the brain that correlate with schizophrenia
    - negative symptoms
      - ventral striatum: lower levels of activity in schizophrenic
        Juckel (2006) negative correlation
- candidate genes
  - polygenetic: requires a number of factors to work in combination
  - aetiologically heterogenous= different factors can activate condition
  - Ripke et al: found genes with increased risk had relationships with dopamine levels
The dopamine hypothesis
- Hyperdopami-nergia in the subcortex: high dopamine levels
  - speech poverty
    - auditory hallucinations
- biological explanations of schizophrenia
  - Neural correlates
    - measurement of the function of the brain that correlate with schizophrenia
    - negative symptoms
      - ventral striatum: lower levels of activity in schizophrenic
        Juckel (2006) negative correlation
- shows both high and low levels of dopamine are associated with schiz
Hypodopami-nergia in the cortex: low dopamine levels
- negative symptoms
- The dopamine hypothesis
  - Hyperdopami-nergia in the subcortex: high dopamine levels
    - speech poverty
      - auditory hallucinations
  - shows both high and low levels of dopamine are associated with schiz
positive symptoms
- reduced activity in the anterior cingulate gyrus is a neural correlate of auditory hallucinations

Get Revising

Biological explanations of schizophrenia

Comments

Similar Psychology resources: