PSYCH 1XX3 Study Guide - Final Guide: Twin, Twin Study, Etiology
10 Jul 2018
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Document Summary
Twin studies provide an insight into genetic etiology. If 2 twins share a trait, they have concordance. The heritability of a specific disorder can be estimated by comparing the concordance rates of identical and fraternal twins, as they vary in the percentage of the genotypes they share. If identical twins are more likely to share a specific disorder than fraternal twins, we can conclude that genetics play a larger role in that disorder"s etiology. Abnormal levels of neurotransmitter activity in the brain is linked with disorders. Example: depressed patients often have low levels of dopamine and norepinephrine activity. Other research takes a holistic perspective: they analyze abnormalities in the brain. Example: patients with anxiety disorders were found to have hyperactive structures of patients with psychological disorders amygdalae. (but correlation doesn"t always equal causation) Amygdale are involved in fear and emotional processing. The dsm only describes a pattern of symptoms, and doesn"t offer explanations for disorders, or suggest treatment methods.
