Describe and Evaluate one Physiological and Psychological way to manage stress.
Describe and Evaluate one Physiological and Psychological way to manage stress. Many different methods of stress management have been proposed and research conducted into their effectiveness. In this essay we will look at one Physiological method and one Psychological method. A physiological approach to managing stress is that of drug therapy, whereby the person experiencing stress will be given drugs which could reduce the symptoms of the stress, by reducing nervous system activity or ANS activity. The drugs referred to as ‘anxiolytics’ main aim is to reduce heightened physiological activity or simply the body’s response to stress. Originally ‘barbiturates’ were used to manage stress as they depress the central nervous system. However due to them inducing tiredness or even self-induced comas as the correct dosage was often difficult to predict they were replaced by what is more readily used today ‘benzodiazepines’. Sold under various trade names Librium, Valium, Xanax and Halcion, benzodiazepines slow down the activity of the central nervous system by enhancing the action of a biochemical element called GABA (gamma amino butyric acid) which is the body’s natural form of anxiety relief. The benzodiazepines influence the levels of GABA in the brain by stopping other chemicals from exciting neurons in the brain and as a result of the drop in excitation levels
Discuss Research That Has Suggested A Link Between Stress And Ill Health.
Research that has suggested a link between stress and ill health. Looking at the link between stress and illness, there have been many studies done to show the direct effect stress has in relation to illness, the main three pathways looked at are the direct effect, stress interacting with pre-existing vulnerabilities and how stress leads to behavioural changes that are not beneficial to one’s health. However it is hard for researchers to establish a definite cause and effect relationship between stress and specific physical symptoms or illnesses. Not only do people's minds and bodies react differently to stress, but there also are other factors at work when someone falls ill. Most researchers have found the more a person suffers from stress the weaker his or hers immune system becomes. In trying to understand why stress can be bad for the body is to look at it from an evolutionary perspective, where in the past our ancestors were often confronted with life threatening situations and as a result the ‘fight or flight’ response evolved. Whilst being confronted by dangerous situations such as confrontation with a predator it was necessary to send blood to the muscles and be in a heightened state of arousal, however today it might not be relevant to most everyday stressors. So we can say most stressors do not pose a physical danger to us yet the way our nervous and
Outline and Evaluate Psychological Stress Management Methods.
Psychological Stress Management Stress Inoculation Training . Meichenbaum’s cognitive therapy, called stress-inoculation training, was developed especially to deal with stress. 2. Meichenbaum proposed three main stages to this process: . Assessment – The therapist and client establish a relationship, and the client is educated about the nature and impact of stress. For example, the client is taught to view perceived threats as problems to be solved and to break down stressors into components that can be dealt with. This enables the client to reconceptualise the problem. 2. Stress Reduction Techniques – Coping skills are taught and practiced primarily in the clinic and then gradually rehearsed in real life. A variety of skills are taught and are tailored to the individuals’ own problems. These include positive thinking, relaxation, social skills and time management. The skills taught are both cognitive and behavioural because they encourage the client to think in a different way, and because they involved learning new behaviours through rewards (conditioning). 3. Application (and follow-through) – Clients are given opportunities to apply the newly learned coping skills in different situations, which become increasingly stressful. Various techniques may be used such as imagery, modelling and role-playing. Booster sessions are offered later on. Increasing
Describe biological therapies for schizophrenia
The biological therapies for schizophrenia such antipsychotics are split into two. Typical which were the first generation and atypical which are the second generation. Typical antipsychotic drugs such as chlorpromazine are believed to work by being dopamine antagonists, which means the drugs, bind to the dopamine receptors long term. Although they do not stimulate them therefore it blocks their action. By reducing stimulation of the dopamine system in the brain, conventional antipsychotic can eliminate the positive symptoms of schizophrenia such as hallucinations and delusions. There have been a lot of research studies into the effectiveness of typical antipsychotic medication. One of these studies compared relapse rates with those patients on a placebo. Davis et al discovered a significant difference in terms of relapse rates between actual drug treatment and placebo in every study that was reviewed, therefore demonstrating the therapeutic effectiveness of the typical drugs. It is not clear whether the difference in relapse rates is a result of withdrawal from the drug experienced by those given the placebo. However, a more recent analysis of drug typical drugs and placebo’s by Ross and Read has suggested that the previous results were misleading, as all those patients who were studied, including those who took placebos, were on antipsychotics before this study began. So
Discuss two or more evolutionary explanations of food preferences (8+16 marks)
ESSAY: Discuss two or more evolutionary explanations of food preferences (8+16 marks) Evolutionary explanations suggest that we crave the food that we do because it provides some use for our survival. It suggests that the decisions we made in the environment of evolutionary adaptation (EEA – when we last majorly involved) shape the decisions we make now about food. This suggests that taste is predetermined and universal. A preference for meat in modern diets is thought to have developed because humans in the EEA, according to fossil records, primarily consumed animal-based foods eg. Liver, kidney etc. Plants were eaten as well when they were available, but forests were in decline. Meat based diets had advantages, as it provided a lot of energy and proteins, which help the brain to grow. There has been research to support this, Stanford’s research showed that Chimpanzees were found to go for the fattiest parts of the kill when struggling to find food. This shows that animals were designed to eat fat for survival. However it’s difficult when we extrapolate results from animals that it will apply to humans as well, therefore animal studies may not be the most useful pieces of research to base human eating behavior on. Despite this research, it has been suggested that humans may have been vegetarian in the EEA, as it’s believed humans tried to be as healthy as
A2 Psychology Unit 3 Eating Behaviour: Biological Explanations And Evolutionary Explanations Of Obesity Notes
A2 Psychology Unit 3 Eating Behaviour: Biological Explanations And Evolutionary Explanations Of Obesity Notes What You Need To Know: Biological explanations for one eating disorder: obesity Genetics: People react to food in different ways (e.g. store more energy as fat) and this may be due to genetic variations. Twin studies Evidence suggests that obesity often runs in families. Bouchard et al (1990) overfed 12 pairs of male MZ twins and found three times more similarity of weight gain within pairs than between pairs, strongly indicating genetic factors. Stunkard et al (1990) estimated from studies of 25,000 pairs of twins that male identical twins reared apart had a BMI estimated at 70% heritable for males and 66% for females. Price and Gottesman (1991) found that body fat of identical twins reared apart correlated at 0.61 whilst that of identical twins reared together was 0.75. Being reared apart had little impact on heritability, emphasising the role of genes. Adoption studies Adoptive parents and children do not share genetic material but share a common environment. If obesity is genetic then there should be more similarity with biological than adoptive parents. Stunkard et al (1986) - Adoption studies and obesity Method: The weight of 540 adult adoptees from Denmark was compared with that of both their biological and adoptive parents. The adoptees were split
Discuss the effects of the disruption of biological rhythms
People may suffer disruption to their biological rhythms for a number of different reasons. For example people may suffer sleep disruption due to things such as shift work and jet lag. Many industries require shift work to keep going 24 hours a day. Examples of such industries include airline crew, doctors and paramedics. People who work the night shift are required to be alert and night and so much therefor sleep through the day. This is a reverse of their natural body rhythms and goes against most available zeitgeber cues. Boivin et al (1996) found that night workers often experience a circadian trough of decreased alertness during their shifts� This is between the hours of midnight, when cortisol levels are at their lowest, and 4am, when core body temperature is at its lowest. This leads to the assumption that this is the period of time, during a night shift, in which most accidents may occur. A real world example that supports this assumption is the Chernobyl disaster. The Chernobyl disaster was a nuclear accident, purely down to human error, that occurred on 26 April 1986 at 3am, and therefor was during the circadian trough. Studies of sleep, such as the one by Boivin, may result in industries re-evaluating the shifts and shift patterns that their employees work. Research has also found that shift work may also have effects of health, there was found to be
Discuss the role of endogenous pacemakers in at least one biological rhythm
Discuss the role of endogenous pacemakers in at least one biological rhythm Endogenous pacemakers and exogenous zeitgebers can manipulate the various bodily rhythms, and have particular effects on the sleep-wake cycle in the circadian rhythm. Endogenous pacemakers are separate and distinct internal rhythms that affect the bodily rhythms; similarly, exogenous zeitgebers are outside influences, and sometimes outside rhythms that also affect how the bodily rhythms work. There are copious amounts of research into these variables, however, some are contradictory towards each other and pose many questions about not only the nature of these variables but also of the bodily rhythms themselves. Endogenous pacemakers are rhythms generated internally by the organism in the absence of exogenous zeitgebers. This definition does however, cause problems in measuring EPs alone, as even when you methodology remove the affects of EZs, you can never fully be aware of all external events that may affect the rhythm. The main EP is the suprachiasmatic nucleus, which generates circadian rhythms from sensitivity to light. This shows that while both EPs and EZs are important, it seems that the SCN is the overriding factor even though it is affected by the EZ of light. Evidence supporting this claim was found in the removal of the SCN in hamsters, where it was found their circadian rhythm disappeared
Outline and evaluate the evolutionary explanation of gender roles, including parental investment and sexual selection
Outline and evaluate the evolutionary explanation of gender roles, including parental investment and sexual selection (24) In relation to gender, Evolutionary Psychology assumes that the goal of most human behaviour is to maximise the survival chances of the individuals genetic line, and therefore gendered behaviours developed through the process of sexual and natural selection as an advantageous mutation to each sex to aid survival. It argues that gender differences arose to enhance our chances of reproductive success and producing healthy offspring. Evolutionary psychologists therefore explain many differences between males and females in terms of the ‘Parental Investment Theory’. Males can produce millions of sperm, and can potentially father vast numbers of offspring, and as a result an effective reproductive strategy for the male is simply to impregnate as many females as possible to ensure his genes flourish in the next generation. Various male strategies have arisen to find suitable partners, such as hip to waist ratio and youth, which both signify a woman’s fertility. They also seek to control their partners sexual activity due to fear of cuckoldry, as they can never be sure of paternity. Females produce only a relatively small number of eggs by comparison. Females have a much higher parental investment than males. They can only produce a limited amount of
Notes for A2 Psychology Unit 3 Eating Behaviour The Role of Neural Mechanisms
A2 Psychology Unit 3 Eating Behaviour: The Role Of Neural Mechanisms Involved In Controlling Eating And Satiation Notes What You Need To Know: * The role of neural mechanisms involved in controlling eating and satiation. The Role Of Neural Mechanisms Involved In Controlling Eating And Satiation: We eat in order to function and survive. When and how much we eat is largely determined by our metabolism (the rate at which the body uses energy). Several physiological mechanisms try to maintain this energy homeostasis (balance). Set point theory of homeostasis: * Our body weight is regulated to a biologically determined `target`. * If we eat too little or too much, homeostatic mechanisms alter our metabolism and appetite accordingly, in order to return us to our original weight. * It becomes difficult for homeostatic mechanisms to do this if we persistently over-eat or under-eat and so we may settle on a new weight. Neural mechanisms controlling eating: The main area of the brain involved in the regulation of appetite is the hypothalamus. The role of the hypothalamus: * The Lateral hypothalamus (LH) also known as Lateral Nucleus (LN) produces the experience of hunger which leads to eating. The damage to the LH results in dramatic reductions in food intake (aphagia). * The Ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH) also known as Ventromedial Nucleus (VMN) produces feelings of being
