PSYC3102 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Biopsychosocial Model, Proband, Cognitive Therapy
Lecture 2 – Models of Psychopathology
Overview
●Models
○Biological
○Psychodynamic
○Humanistic
○Behavioural
○Cognitive
●Therapy
○Acceptance and Commitment
○Compassion-focused
●There is no single explanation for behaviour
○Biopsychosocial model – combines elements from all factors
The Scientist-Practitioner Approach
●Using research findings to guide assessment, diagnosis and treatment
○It can be considered unethical not to follow research findings to guide decisions
○E.g. assessment tools, treatment strategies
●Models explain the origins of abnormal behaviour, and strategies for treatment and
prevention
●Models provide representations of the real world, so the extent of their accuracy is the
extent to which the approach will be effective
●Research tests hypotheses derived from models
Biological models
●Aetiological models
○Genetics
○Biochemistry
○Neuroanatomy
○Endocrine system
●Genetics – common studies of gene-environment interactions
○The pedigree method
■Proband (the person who is diagnosed with the disorder) identified
■Prevalence of the disorder within the family
■Nature versus nurture – families share environments, genetic
contribution is not certain
○Classical twin design
■Concordance rates (chance of both twins having the same disorder) for
monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twins
■If concordance rate of MZ > DZ: genetic contributions
■If concordance rate of MZ = DZ and both show high concordance: shared
environmental contributions
■If concordance rate of MZ = DZ, and both show low concordance:
non-shared environment contributions
○Adoption studies
■Concordance rates of a disorder in adopted children with their biological
relatives and adoptive relatives
○Molecular genetics
■Genetic association studies
●Candidate gene studies – is one allele more frequently seen in
people with the disorder than in those without it?
●ApoE-e4: 37% with Alzheimer’s disorder have it vs 14% of the
general population
■Genome wide association studies
●Assess common variation across the entire genome
■There is no instance where a single gene has been found to be
completely responsible for a disorder; disorders are more likely
polygenic (influenced by multiple genes) and influenced by
environmental factors
Biochemistry
●Anatomic structure of neuron
●Synaptic transmission
Document Summary
There is no single explanation for behaviour. Biopsychosocial model combines elements from all factors. Using research findings to guide assessment, diagnosis and treatment. It can be considered unethical not to follow research findings to guide decisions. Models explain the origins of abnormal behaviour, and strategies for treatment and prevention. Models provide representations of the real world, so the extent of their accuracy is the extent to which the approach will be effective. Genetics common studies of gene-environment interactions. Proband (the person who is diagnosed with the disorder) identified. Prevalence of the disorder within the family. Nature versus nurture families share environments, genetic contribution is not certain. Concordance rates (chance of both twins having the same disorder) for monozygotic (mz) and dizygotic (dz) twins. If concordance rate of mz > dz: genetic contributions. If concordance rate of mz = dz and both show high concordance: shared environmental contributions.
