Biological Approach

• All thoughts, feelings and behaviours ultimately have a physical basis – so to understand behaviour we must look to biological structures and processes in the body (especially the brain).
• Much of our behaviour relies on transmission of chemicals in the brain – neurotransmitters (e.g. overproduction of dopamine is involved in schizophrenia).
• Some psychological characteristics are inherited – studied using twin studies and analysing concordance rates (identical twins share 100% of their genes, non-identical share 50%). Concordance rate is how likely 2 people are to share a trait
• Your genotype is your actual genetic make-up. Your phenotype is the way your genes are expressed in physical, behavioural and psychological characteristics (interaction of nature and nurture).
• Darwin’s theory of natural selection – a genetically-determined behaviour that enhances survival (and reproduction) will continue in future generations.
• One theory of evolution is Seligmans 1971 theory of prepardness- which states all phobias are adapted and based on the evolutionary phase where people were more likely to be killed by predators.
• One strength of the approach is it uses highly scientific methods to investigate. these include lab studies, twin studies and brain scans. this increases the credibility of the study as it is based on scientific evidence. However the problem with scientific studies is it is difficult to recognise cause and effect, as most research is just based on correlation.
• One strength of the approach is it has real life applications such as drug therapy for those with mental health conditions. This matters because it means that those who need treatment won't have to stay in hospital. However not everyone reacts to antidepressants the same so it can be questioned for credibility.
• One limitation is that the biological approach is hard determinist, which means everything is predetermined by genes, brain structure, evolution and neurochemistry. However it does not take into account the environment such as childhood experiences or cultural differences.