Abnormal Psychology 6 marks questions answered

1. Kleptomania and other impulse control disorders can be treated successfully with cognitive behaviour therapy. Describe the underlying theory on which this therapy is based. [6]

The underlying theory on which this therapy is based is that impulse control disorder follows the idea of rewards, thus when an activity is followed by a pleasurable outcome, like feeling fulfilled in having a stole or bought a certain thing, the person is more likely to engage with it.

CBT applies this theory backwards as it would make sense that if the activity is associated with a negative consequence, the person is less likely to repeat it. Thus, the therapy focuses on making the patient associate their impulsive behaviours with a negative image or thought in order to decrease the activity. Relaxation techniques are also used based on the theory that the two behaviours cannot happen at the same time and therefore patients need to learn to substitute the impulsion with relax.

2. Mrs Oliveira developed schizophrenia three years ago and is currently being treated. As a psychologist you want to find out about her symptoms, behaviour and treatment. Describe the underlying explanation on which one treatment of schizophrenia is based. [6]

Drug treatment for schizophrenia is based on the biochemical hypothesis that an excess of dopamine has been found to be linked with the mental disorder. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter which has bee found to be chemically similar to hallucinogenic drugs, which are used to treat Parkinson’s disease and produce similar symptoms to schizophrenia. Therefore, it is believed that schizophrenic brains are more sensitive to dopamine and the re-uptake is much faster than in people without the disorder.

Linstroem et al (1999) tested the explanation using a PEST scan to see how long it would take for control participants and schizophrenics to re uptake a radioactively labelled chemical called L-DOPA, which is linked to the production of dopamine. It was found that the chemical was taken up quicker in the schizophrenic brains as more dopamine is produced.

3. Aversion therapy can be used to treat alcoholism. Describe the underlying theory on which the therapy is based. [6]

Aversion therapy is based on the classical conditioning theory that alcohol needs to be associated with something that brings negative consequences, like emetic drugs, which make people develop a feeling of nausea and this will be paired with the smell or taste of alcohol.

The overall idea is that the behaviour needs to associated with an aversive stimuli or image in order to be changed as it may currently be positively reinforced by the pleasure or satisfaction of having done the activity – for example, alcohol is usually believed to be beneficial because it can help to forget certain things for a limited period of time or makes people feel powerful.