psychology
Elizabeth has been a drug user for a long time. Her friend believe that addiction has not a biological explanation as none of her friends are addicts and they do not encourage her to take drugs.
Describe and evaluate one biological explanation of drug addiction that could be used to understand Elizabeth’s drug explanation.
Drug misuse causes significant changes to our neurotransmitter levels in the brain, and specifically levels of dopamine and serotonin. As these chemicals are both involved in the brain reward ‘circuits’ (e.g. the mesolimbic pathway) drugs produce feeling of ‘euphoria’. Drugs can affect Elizabeth’s brain in two ways, as a depressant or a stimulant to normal activity and as a result Elizabeth’s mood and behaviour is affected.
Elizabeth’s drug addiction can be explained by a significant change to the neurotransmitter action in the brain. Some drugs slow down activity in the brain by making transmission of neurotransmitter message between neurone less effective. Therefore, this needs to be substituted with drugs to function normally. For example, alcohol is one of these types’ drugs that seem to boost the power of an inhibitory neurotransmitter called GABA. This neurotransmitter usually slows down brain activity, but when alcohol is drunk it excessively slows down brain communication.
When drugs affect Elizabeth’s neurotransmitter, feedback loop in the brain attempts to prevent the underproduction of neurotransmitter levels. Elizabeth’s brain may try to compromise this by reducing the number of receptors sites and the sensitivity of key neurotransmitter in the brains ‘reward circuits’. As a consequence of this action, more of the drug is needed to reach the same level of stimulation as fewer receptor sites are available.
Elizabeth drug taking may be down to the fact that she needs the drug in order to feel normal and thus develops physiological dependency. Therefore, in order for Elizabeth to avoid the withdrawal symptoms, for example
Describe and evaluate one biological explanation of drug addiction that could be used to understand Elizabeth’s drug explanation.
Drug misuse causes significant changes to our neurotransmitter levels in the brain, and specifically levels of dopamine and serotonin. As these chemicals are both involved in the brain reward ‘circuits’ (e.g. the mesolimbic pathway) drugs produce feeling of ‘euphoria’. Drugs can affect Elizabeth’s brain in two ways, as a depressant or a stimulant to normal activity and as a result Elizabeth’s mood and behaviour is affected.
Elizabeth’s drug addiction can be explained by a significant change to the neurotransmitter action in the brain. Some drugs slow down activity in the brain by making transmission of neurotransmitter message between neurone less effective. Therefore, this needs to be substituted with drugs to function normally. For example, alcohol is one of these types’ drugs that seem to boost the power of an inhibitory neurotransmitter called GABA. This neurotransmitter usually slows down brain activity, but when alcohol is drunk it excessively slows down brain communication.
When drugs affect Elizabeth’s neurotransmitter, feedback loop in the brain attempts to prevent the underproduction of neurotransmitter levels. Elizabeth’s brain may try to compromise this by reducing the number of receptors sites and the sensitivity of key neurotransmitter in the brains ‘reward circuits’. As a consequence of this action, more of the drug is needed to reach the same level of stimulation as fewer receptor sites are available.
Elizabeth drug taking may be down to the fact that she needs the drug in order to feel normal and thus develops physiological dependency. Therefore, in order for Elizabeth to avoid the withdrawal symptoms, for example