Genetics can help explain addiction, the genetic explanation of addiction focuses on the fact that an individual may have gene which makes them more susceptible to pursue addictive behaviours e.g. drug taking. The A1 variant of the DRD2 gene has been linked with the initiation addiction. People with the A1 variant are said to have few dopamine receptors as a result Noble refers to the gene as the "reward gene", this is because dopamine is a neurotransmitter which we associate with reward and pleasure. Alcohol/drugs can increase the level of dopamine (this compensates for the lack of dopamine receptors in individuals with A1 variant of the DRD2 gene).
The results were that the chance of developing a cold correlated with stress index scores. The life event lowered the immune function and increased vulnerability to the virus. However there were several problems with this research, one of which was that it was an indirect study- there was no direct measure of the immune system for example no blood test or medical test was taken as evidence. Consequently we cannot determine how far the participant’s immune system was affected in relation to the stress. Another key problem was that there were was no direct manipulation of the independent variable so the study doesn’t tell us which element of the stress index is most important and related to the decrease in immune function.
The two main neurotransmitters found to be linked to aggressive behaviour are serotonin and dopamine. High levels of serotonin are said to reduce aggression by inhibiting responses to emotional stimuli that might otherwise lead to aggressive behaviour. Low levels are associated with an increase in impulsive behaviour, aggression and even violent suicide. Evidence supporting the importance of serotonin in aggressive behaviour was found in research using vervet monkeys. Raleigh et al (1991) found that if serotonin levels were reduced by altering their diet, there was an increase in aggressive behaviour whereas an increase in serotonin levels resulted in a decrease in aggressive behaviour suggesting the difference in aggression was due to the serotonin levels.
Each store encodes information in different ways, with the short-term store visually and acoustically encoding information, and the long-term store using semantic processing (giving information meaning). The multi-store model does not take into account people with brain damage or amnesia. For example, a man called KF was studied, who had brain damage. When he was asked to repeat after the researcher, he was unable to do it, (acoustic) but when he was asked to say what he could see in the picture, he was able to do it (visual). This suggests that the short-term store does not use acoustic processing, but visual.
In general, a brain affected by Dementia produces less of some neurotransmitter. which sets off an imbalance in the brain. For Example, In Alzheimer's, Too little Dopamine effects the acetylcholine levels in the body and starts to block receptors , disabling the brain to reach the right signal to the intended brain cell. Amino Acids, Monoamines, Trace amines, Peptides and Gasotransmitters are some of the endogenous chemicals who’s function it is to allow the transmission of signals from one neuron to the next neuron across the synaptic Cleft. Only 100 chemical messengers have been found to date.
While it is treatable in many cases, there is as yet no cure for schizophrenia (World Fellowship for Schizophrenia and Allied Disorders, 1997-09). Symptoms for schizophrenia include disordered thinking, delusions, and hallucinations. Since there is no known cure schizophrenia, people should not be screened for schizophrenia due to the fact that it
This is already a fault with the theory because this suggests that there must need to be an environmental trigger to set the condition off (therefore not wholly biological). The diathesis-stress model suggests that mental disorders occur when there is a genetic vulnerability, which is triggered by environmental conditions. However, Rabkin (1980) found that schizophrenics didn’t report any significant stressful event before the onset of the condition. However, these self-reports aren’t particularly reliable as the patient may not actually remember (possibly due to repression), want to say or be able to communicate an event which may have triggered it. Gottesman (1991) investigated twin studies of monozygotic and dizygotic twins.
No therapy will be provided to alleviate their condition. Even if the pharmaceutical company decides that treatment will be supplied, it will probably be just another form of testing “under the name of science”, and no-one really knows if the pains will be aggravated instead. Although the inmates have infringed on others’ rights or even lives, their actions do not take away their identities as human beings. Recently, EU has banned the sale of animal-tested cosmetics. Therefore, testing on prisoners does not only deprive them of their rights but also indicate that their value is lesser than that of cats and mice.
The truth that he does not obviously reference the detail of public policy as a direct consequence of mental illness may confuse some readers. In article, Gratzer repeatedly mention the mental illness patients did not receive the help they actually need, yet it is more about the system of psychology medical sysyem than the public policy. It is also interesting to note that Gratzer provides the accurate data of analysis for the Mental Health in an attempt to state the essence of mental illness to a country’s economic. Nevertheless, he does not declare the primary factor that triggers the occurrence of mental illness, and the lack of specific example to explain the relationship between economic lost and mental health problem is evident. However, Gratzer has stated three ideas in the article which should be done by public, improving education, using the technology and promoting the quality care, by very concrete cause and effect.
This shows support as a high optimum level of nicotine is needed in order to avoid severe withdrawal symptoms. However one weakness surrounding this area is the issue of reductionism; the model is largely focused on the biological basis of addiction, ignoring social and environmental factors. Another weakness may be deterministic as individuals may have little or no control over their addictive behavior due to biology because some people may be genetically predisposed to their addictive behavior and therefore unable to regulate their behavior. There is also a research on biochemistry of the maintenance of smoking. Research has found that as nicotine increases dopamine release, it tends to provide a pleasurable and rewarding feeling that leads to maintenance.