Exam (elaborations)
dopamine hypothesis for schizophrenia (20) essay
- Course
- Institution
5 PEEL paragraphs on evaluation question on biological explanation of schizophrenia, and a balanced conclusion
[Show more]
Seller
Follow
erikakumar
Reviews received
Content preview
Dopamine hypothesisEvaluate 1 bio explanation of schizophrenia (20)
One strength of the dopamine hypothesis is that it has supporting evidence.
Excess dopamine is produced by overactive dopaminergic neurons, which leads to
symptoms seen in schizophrenia. This is because patients overreact to the presence of
dopamine in their brains, which leads to hallucinations as the brain is too active.
Lieberman et al. (1987) found that 75% of patients with schizophrenia have an increase
in psychosis after taking amphetamine which is known to increase dopamine activity
and lead to “cocaine psychosis”. This means that dopamine may be the chemical
responsible for the psychotic symptoms seen in schizophrenia. This is a strength as it
provides objective evidence for the dopamine hypothesis as a scientifically credible
explanation for schizophrenia. However, in Lieberman’s study, only a small proportion of
regular users of amphetamine continued to have psychotic symptoms. This suggests
that there must be a different factor as to how brains react to the presence of dopamine
and how this leads to symptoms of schizophrenia since the dopamine hypothesis
would predict the regular users to keep having psychotic symptoms as amphetamine
increases dopamine activity, but they did not.
One weakness of the dopamine hypothesis is that it may be reductionist. This
explanation explains schizophrenia, a disorder that has many complex features, by the
imbalance of a single neurotransmitter (dopamine). For example, it would suggest that
schizophrenia may result from high levels of dopamine in the brain or a greater number
of D2 receptors in the brain which have a higher affinity to dopamine and are more likely
to bind to it. This leads to hypersensitivity of D2 dopamine receptors. As a result though,
this explanation ignores other environmental factors that may contribute to the onset of
schizophrenia. For example, Brown and Birley (1968) found that 50% of patients with
schizophrenia reported a major life event 3 weeks prior to relapse. This implies that
social conditions may be involved in triggering relapse in schizophrenic patients. This is
a weakness as the complex interrelationship between neurotransmitter levels and other
biological, physiological and social factors is ignored, but this may be a more valid
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller erikakumar. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $3.87. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
49160 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now