biological

• Genotype- the genetic makeup of an individual which comes from inherited genetic material from both parents.
• Phenotype- the observable characteristics of an individual
• hormone- chemicals produced by endocrine glands which cause a physiological reaction in cells
• gene- part of the chromosome of an organism which carries inheritable information
• natural selection- the process by which characteristics which enhance reproductive success or survival are passed down to future generations
• neurotransmitter- chemical messengers which can stimulate or calm our brain
• the biological approach assumes that genes, the nervous system, endocrine system and evolution are the causes of behaviour
• biological psychologists use scientific methods to investigate behaviours to gather objective and quantitative data such as scanning techniques including fMRI.
• During research the psychologists will use animals/mammals that are genetically similar or behave similar to humans.
• They believe that a person doesn't have free will over how they behave due to their genes determining behaviour.
• One strength of the biological approach is that it can be applied to treatments of OCD and the use of drug therapies which have been found to be effective. This improves their quality of life and has valuable impact but also on the economy as healthy people can work and stay out health services reducing the strain on the NHS.
• Another strength of the biological approach is that it most commonly uses scientific methods of investigation such as fMRI’s and EEG’s for scans but also studies using families and twins. These techniques are precise and objective without being open to bias and therefore the biological approach is based on reliable data.
• A weakness of the biological approach is that it may be reductionist. It simplifies and underestimates the complexity of human behaviour by just considering biological processes. This means it ignores the role of, for example, cognition or the environment on a persons behaviour, therefore it may only be a partial explanation. However, it may not be as reductionist as we think because the biological approach covers evolution which directly links to our biology changing due to the environment so there may be more reliability in the approach than initially thought.