Biological causes of violence

According to psychological and scientific studies, violence is the physical force applied to an individual in order to cause pain and several damages.  Violence has been part of human life since living organisms appeared on earth; this is why for creatures violence is just another action. It has been proved that violence has been part of people’s evolution though its genes have a great influence in human’s behaviour; this is why Biological factors are quite important.

             In animals there is a gene called the amygdala, stimulation of the amygdala causes increased aggression. Due to the fact that humans have the ability to reason, this situation is not so common. Personality disorders are also a biological factor that can cause violence and aggression. Also brain damage caused by toxic materials found in the environment, shocking head injury, dietary deficiencies, alcohol and drug ingestion by the mother during critical fetal developmental stages, and birth trauma can cause violent behavior in many persons.

            Violence is a voluntary act for causing pain and several damages to your self, or another individual or group of individuals. Biological factors are one of the main causes of violence. Genes such as the amygdale, personality disorders and brain damage create an aggressive attitude in people’s behavior.   

http://www.sodahead.com/united-states/the-causes-of-violence/blog-263921 
http://law.jrank.org/pages/787/Crime-Causation-Biological-Theories-there-genetic-liability-violence.html

ARTICLES ON DEPRESSION

“Pathological Internet Use Among Teens May Lead to Depression” study was conducted by Lawrence T. Lam, Ph.D., of the School of Medicine, Sydney, and the University of Notre Dame, Fremantle, Australia, and Zi-Wen Peng, M.Sc., of the Ministry of Education and SunYat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China, in August 2010. 1,041 teens in China were evaluatd for depression and anxiety using previously validated scales. At the beginning of the study, 62 participants  were classified as having moderately pathological use of the Internet, and 2% were severely at risk. Nine months later, the adolescents were re-assessed for anxiety and depression; 2%  had significant anxiety symptoms and 84% had developed depression. The risk of depression for those who used the Internet pathologically was about two and a half times that of those who did not. No relationship was observed between pathological Internet use and anxiety.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/100802165402.htm

“Depression as Deadly as Smoking, Study Finds” was conducted by researchers at the University of Bergen, Norway, and the Institute of Psychiatry (IoP) at King's College led by Dr Robert Stewar. The study was a survey taken by over 60,000 persons. It was complemented with already existent records. Researchers found that over the following 4 years using the survey, the mortality risk was increased to a similar extent in people who were depressed as in people who were smokers. 

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/11/091117094933.htm

 

“High-School Seniors With Excessive Daytime Sleepiness Have an Increased Risk of Depression”study  was conducted by Dr. Mahmood I. Siddique, clinical associate professor of medicine at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick, N.J. It was presented June 9, 2010, in San Antonio, Texas, at SLEEP 2010, the 24th annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies LLC. 262 high school seniors with an average age of 17.7 years who were attending a public high school in Mercer County, N.J. Participant show socio-demographic characteristics using a cross-sectional survey. Excessive daytime sleepiness was indicated by a score of 10 or higher on the Epworth Sleepiness Scale, and mood was evaluated with a validated depression scale. The results demonstrated that high school seniors were three times more likely to have strong depression symptoms if they had excessive daytime sleepiness.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/06/100609083221.htm

Depression

Explain the biological causes of depresion.

Biological causes are due to changes in the chemistry of the brain, such as fluctuations in the levels of important hormones. Genetic causes are the result of what you inherit from your parents. If one or both of your parents have a vulnerability to depression, then it can be transmitted to you.

Explain the environment causes of depresion.

Abuse. Past physical, sexual, or emotional abuse can cause depression later in life.
Certain medications. For example, some drugs used to treat high blood pressure, such as beta-blockers or reserpine, can increase your risk of depression.
Conflict. Depression may result from personal conflicts or disputes with family members or friends.
Death or a loss. Sadness or grief from the death or loss of a loved one, though natural, can also increase the risk of depression.
Genetics. A family history of depression may increase the risk. It's thought that depression is passed genetically from one generation to the next. The exact way this happens, though, is not known.
Major events. Even good events such as starting a new job, graduating, or getting married can lead to depression. So can moving, losing a job or income, getting divorced, or retiring.
Other personal problems. Problems such as social isolation due to other mental illnesses or being cast out of a family or social group can lead to depression.
Serious illnesses. Sometimes depression co-exists with a major illness or is a reaction to the illness.
Substance abuse. Nearly 30% of people with substance abuse problems also have major or clinical depression.

Explain the cognitive causes of depresion.

Cognitive behavioral theorists suggest that depression results from maladaptive, faulty, or irrational cognitions taking the form of distorted thoughts and judgments. Depressive cognitions can be learned socially as is the case when children in a dysfunctional family watch their parents fail to successfully cope with stressful experiences or traumatic events. Or, depressive cognitions can result from a lack of experiences that would facilitate the development of adaptive coping skills.

Explain the cognitive triad as it relates to depresion.

Negative thinking that often accompanies depression. The three components of the triad include one’s view of the world, oneself, and the future. People who are depressed tend to view the things around them negatively, evaluate themselves as unworthy and flawed, and view the future with caution and pessimism.

Articles on Depresion

Schizophernia

.1 Explain the general symptoms of paranoid-type schizophrenia.

Signs and symptoms of paranoid schizophrenia may include:

•                Auditory hallucinations, such as hearing voices

•                Delusions, such as believing a co-worker wants to poison you

•                Anxiety

•                Anger

•                Aloofness

•                Violence

•                Verbal confrontations

•                Patronizing manner

•                Suicidal thoughts and behavior


2. Explain the general symptoms of disorganized-type schizophrenia.

         Active, but in an aimless and not constructive way

         Bizarre and inappropriate emotional responses

         False, fixed beliefs (delusions)

         Inability to feel pleasure

         Inappropriate grinning and grimacing

         Lack of emotion and motivation

         Seeing or hearing things that aren't there (hallucinations)

         Silly behavior


3. Explain the general symptoms of catatonic-type schizophrenia.




•                delusions

•                hallucinations

•                disorganized speech (e.g., frequent derailment or incoherence)

•                grossly disorganized or catatonic behavior

•                negative symptoms, i.e., affective flattening, alogia, or avolition

4. Identify three positive symptoms of schizophrenia.


 exaggeration or distortions of normal thoughts, emotions, and behavior. Includes delusions, hallucinations, or thought disorders.

5. Identify three negative symptoms of schizophrenia.

 reduction or absence of  normal thoughts, emotions, and behavior. Includes fatten affect, alogia, or avolition.


6. What is the difference between an hallucination and a delusion?


 Delusions are false or erroneous beliefs that usually involve a misinterpretation of perceptions or experiences. Their content may include a variety of themes.

Hallucinations are false actions that the victim experiences with all of his or her senses and thinks they are real because they experienced something that never happened.

7. Identify three cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia.




difficult maintaining attention

memory problems

difficulty planning and structuring activities

lack of insgiht

8. Describe the symptom of avolition.




will not start or complete important tasks

lack in desire

lack in motivation

lack in persistence

9. Describe the symptom of catatonia.



Rigid body

Motionless body

Repetitive behavior

Repetitive movements

Negativism

Catalepsy

Unusual posture




10. Define and give an example of a delusion of grandeur.

delusional conviction of one's own importance, power, or knowledge or that one is, or has a special relationship with, a deity or a famous person.




11.Define and give an example of a delusion of reference.




a delusional conviction that ordinary events, objects, or behaviors of others have particular and unusual meanings specifically for oneself.

12. Define and give an example of a somatic delusion.

A delusion whose content pertains to bodily functioning, bodily sensations, or physical appearance. Usually the false belief is that the body is somehow diseased, abnormal, or changed. An example of a somatic delusion would be a person who believes that his or her body is infested with parasites.

The Basics of Schizophrenia

Blue/Brown eye experiment

This experiment was made by a elementary school teacher, the purpose of this experiment was because the teacher didnt know how to explain the kids what was happening with the martin luther king situation, so she decided that she would show them what racism meant, so she started to flatter the blue eyed people and to put down the brown eye people so they will feel really bad, and then she flipped the process so the brown eyed people will feel flattered and the blue people would feel put down, this way she devided the class, and then the kids started to fight because they thought they were superior to the opposite eye color, this was exactly the same as what was happening in the united states in that time. Prejudice is "An adverse judgment or opinion formed beforehand or without knowledge or examination of the facts". and Discrimination is "Treatment or consideration based on class or category rather than individual merit; partiality or prejudice" both of this words have a similar meaning, but both of them have a bad connotation. In conclusion the part that i enjoyed the most of the experiment was the fact that the kids fighted just because of the eye color, not the fact that they fighted but the fact that how the teacher changed all of the way of thinking just by saying a few compliments.

Personality test

Guardians are the cornerstone of society, for they are the temperament given to serving and preserving our most important social institutions. Guardians have natural talent in managing goods and services--from supervision to maintenance and supply -- and they use all their skills to keep things running smoothly in their families, communities, schools, churches, hospitals, and businesses.


Guardians can have a lot of fun with their friends, but they are quite serious about their duties and responsibilities. Guardians take pride in being dependable and trustworthy; if there's a job to be done, they can be counted on to put their shoulder to the wheel. Guardians also believe in law and order, and sometimes worry that respect for authority, even a fundamental sense of right and wrong, is being lost. Perhaps this is why Guardians honor customs and traditions so strongly -- they are familiar patterns that help bring stability to our modern, fast-paced world.


Practical and down-to-earth, Guardians believe in following the rules and cooperating with others. They are not very comfortable winging it or blazing new trails; working steadily within the system is the Guardian way, for in the long run loyalty, discipline, and teamwork get the job done right. Guardians are meticulous about schedules and have a sharp eye for proper procedures. They are cautious about change, even though they know that change can be healthy for an institution. Better to go slowly, they say, and look before you leap.

Guardians make up as much as 40 to 45 percent of the population, and a good thing, because they usually end up doing all the indispensable but thankless jobs everyone else takes for granted.

Guardians at Work


As a Guardian, you enjoy working as a valued member of a team, whether you are leading it or following a credible leader. You like to work with people who carry their weight. You appreciate having clear-cut responsibilities and being recognized for your dedication and achievements. Your natural traits are those that employers have traditionally valued - and that successful companies still respect. You are responsible and loyal to an organization once you've signed on.

 
In any environment, including your work place, you are usually focused on making people happy and facilitating harmonious relationships. You often lend "aid and comfort" by drawing on a combination of tradition, past experience, and the direction of established authority. In your ideal job, people would give of themselves and work toward the good of the group.

Why are people racist

People are exactly like animals, when they get hurt or harmed by a human they get a fear that makes response in there brains that makes them never get close to another dangerous person that can harm them. Well like us if we are harmed by someone or we see people getting harmed by a certain race or kind of people, we get a fear of getting hurt by that same race, we create like a respone in our brains that when we are close to a race that can hurt us we dont get that close so we can defend ourselves. We think that maintaining distance will help us, but the only thing that we do when we stay away from someone just because of there skin color, race, or traits, is that we lose one of the things that human beings need to survive, this is friendship. Everyone has some kind of racist beliefs, but some people develop it more than others or have a higher racist thought. Some people use racism as a weapon to defend themselves, they keep close to the people of the same kind because they are in their comfort zone. People are also racist because they are afraid of things they dont understand and are afraid to confront the way they feel.. So in conclusion we think that we never will understand the other races so we stay with a fear of getting hurt by other races, and when everyone in the world will stop thinking this way, the world will be a better place.

What Causes Racism

Racism is a way of thinking of other people, you think people are inferior, and that they shouldnt be close to you. This is caused by several things but the most important one is stereotypes. This is the biggest problem because the most popular thing in the world are the electronic stuff, so when you see on the television a movie that a black guy is stealing something of someone, you will fear a black guy when you are in the streets, this is because you get an internal fear because of all the things youve watched, heard, and experienced you think that they might hurt you just because youve seen a black guy doing something wrong once. But in conclusion Racisim is caused by fear of seeing things that dont are similar to you, and by stereotypes. Thinking in a stereotypical way is bad because youo will never get to know a person well without thinking bad of him. In my opinion people shoudnt be racist just beacause of what they see on television or might hear on the radio.

Personality Disorders

Borderline: is a personality disorder described as a prolonged disturbance of personality function in a person (generally over the age of eighteen years, although it is also found in adolescents), characterized by depth and variability of moods. The disorder typically involves unusual levels of instability in mood; black and white thinking, or splitting; the disorder often manifests itself in idealization and devaluation episodes, as well as chaotic and unstable interpersonal relationships, self-image, identity, and behavior; as well as a disturbance in the individual's sense of self. In extreme cases, this disturbance in the sense of self can lead to periods of dissociation.

Schizotypal: is a personality disorder that is characterized by a need for social isolation, odd behavior and thinking, and often unconventional beliefs.

Paranoid: is a psychiatric diagnosis characterized by paranoia and a pervasive, long-standing suspiciousness and generalized mistrust of others.

Narcissistic: is a personality disorder defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the diagnostic classification system used in the United States, as a pervasive pattern of grandiosity, need for admiration, and a lack of empathy.

Histrionic: is defined by the American Psychiatric Association as a personality disorder characterized by a pattern of excessive emotionality and attention-seeking, including an excessive need for approval and inappropriate seductiveness, usually beginning in early adulthood. These individuals are lively, dramatic, enthusiastic, and flirtatious.

Antisocial: is defined by the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual as "...a pervasive pattern of disregard for, and violation of, the rights of others that begins in childhood or early adolescence and continues into adulthood.

Obsessive-compulsive: is a personality disorder which involves an obsession with perfection, rules, and organization. People with OCPD may feel anxious when they perceive that things are not right. This can lead to routines and rules for ways of doing things, whether for themselves or their families.

what i like about psychology

what i like about psychology is that i can understand what i think, and why i think those things. Psychology help us to understand human mind, and helps you find ways to  do what you want and like.

Mr. Brian Dougherty