Chapter 12.2

Question 1

Depression

Answer 1

A psychiatric condition characterized by such symptoms as an unhappy mood; loss of interests, energy, and appetite; and difficulty concentrating

Question 2

Electroconvulsive shock therapy (ECT)

Answer 2

A last-resort treatment for unmanageable depression, in which a strong electrical current is passed through the brain, causing a seizure

Question 3

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS)

Answer 3

A noninvasive treatment in which repeated pulses of focused magnetic energy are used to stimulate the cortex through the scalp

Question 4

Monoamine oxidase (MOA)

Answer 4

An enzyme that breaks down monoamine neurotransmitters, thereby inactivating them

Question 5

Affective disorder

Answer 5

Disorders characterized by alterations of emotion or mood

Question 6

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI)

Answer 6

An antidepressant drug that blocks the reuptake of transmitter at serotonergic synapses

Question 7

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT)

Answer 7

Psychotherapy aimed at correcting negative thinking and consciously changing behaviors as a way of changing feelings

Question 8

Brain changes associated with depression

Answer 8

Increased activation in the frontal lobes during cognitive tasks and amygdala during emotional processing
Decreased blood flow to brain areas implicated in attention
Reduced hippocampal volume, and reduced activation during memory tasks

Question 9

Learned helplessness

Answer 9

A learning paradigm in which individuals are subject to inescapable, unpleasant conditions

Question 10

Evidence in support of the monoamine hypothesis

Answer 10

MOA drugs are successful in reducing depressive symptoms
Lower levels of serotonin metabolites have been found in CSF in individuals with depression compared to control individuals
Lower concentrations of serotonin and its metabolites in postmortem brain tissue in individuals with depression compared to control individuals
Depletion of serotonin worsens depressive state

Question 11

Evidence against the monoamine hypothesis

Answer 11

Increase serotonin levels immediately, but people don’t experience a reduction in symptoms until weeks later
Many people don’t respond to MOA drugs
Serotonin depletion doesn’t induce depression in healthy people
Antidepressants don’t elevate mood in healthy people
Increased risk of suicide in adolescents and children using SSRI

Question 12

Animal behavioral tests used to study depression

Answer 12

Learned helplessness
Forced swim test
Sucrose preference test