Each of the following essays is full marks for A01. You need to write the A02
points, you should aim to do at least one during class and then finish the other at
home as your homework task for this week.
1. ‘Describe and evaluate the biological explanation of Obsessive Compulsive
Disorder (10 marks)
The genetic explanation of OCD states that some individuals may be more likely to
have this disorder according to whether or not anxiety disorders run in their families.
Researchers found that patients with OCD are more likely to have a first degree
relative with an anxiety disorder suggesting a genetic link. Furthermore, Pauls et al
(1995) found a much higher percentage of OCD sufferers (10.3%) in relatives of
patients with OCD than in a control group without OCD (1.9%)
The biochemical explanation states that OCD only responds in the treatment sense to
those drugs which affect the levels of serotonin, suggesting that OCD is related to low
levels of serotonin in the brain. Furthermore, drugs which increase the amount of
serotonin known as SSRIs reduce OCD symptoms, providing support for the theory
that low levels of serotonin may be responsible for OCD.
The neurophysiological explanation states that a part of the brain known as the basal
ganglia may have a part to play in OCD. Rapoport and Wise (1988) suggested that
hypersensitivity of the basal ganglia gives rise to repetitive motor behaviours such as
those found in OCD patients, e.g. repetitive handwashing.
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2. ‘Describe and evaluate the cognitive explanation for Obsessive Compulsive
Disorder (10 marks)
People who suffer from OCD have obsessive thoughts, implying that there must be a
cognitive link. Williams et al (1997) found that OCD sufferers may have a cognitive
vulnerability to anxiety. A person might show hypervigilance when entering a new
environment through using rapid eye movements to scan the environment and
selectively attending to threat related, rather than neutral stimuli. Rachman describes a
case study of a woman with OCD who had obsessive thoughts about diseases,
particularly blood. When she went to a public place she rapidly scanned the
environment and people she encountered on the lookout for evidence of blood, cuts,
bandages meaning that she could still remember these ‘threats’ many years later
providing some evidence for hypervigilance.
There is also some evidence that some OCD sufferers’ memories might be impaired,
meaning that they really couldn’t remember if they had turned the light off. Sher et al
(1989) found that people with OCD had poor memories for their actions, for example,
they really could not remember if they had turned the light off. In addition, Trivedi
(1996) found people suffering from OCD had low confidence in their memory ability
and also their non verbal memory was impaired.
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