Psychological science has been subjected to an unparalleled growth and advancement in recent years and several disciplines in the domain have expanded and flourished. There is mounting evidence for the fact that the neuroanatomical construction of the brain plays an important role in explaining the interaction of the parts of the brain with the entire nervous system, and its potential impact on emotions, functional expressions, and behavior. (Carare, Hawkes & Weller, 2014). This assignment will present a literature review that will unravel the association between biological influences and behavior.
According to Südhof (2014) initial stages of brain development are dynamic in the usual maturation, as genetic mutations bring about defects and distortion of neurotransmitters are responsible for the onset of learning disabilities and impairment and learning disabilities. The central and peripheral nervous systems work together for controlling the control bodily actions, such as, voice control and laughing (Ludlow, 2015). Evidences have also suggested that the hippocampus plays an important role in memory formation, specifically long-term memory (Jutras, Fries & Buffalo, 2013). It has also been mentioned by Spiers and Barry (2015) that damage to hippocampus produces strict and maladaptive behavior related to, decision-making, memory navigation, exploration, imagination, social discourse and empathy. It has also been suggested that amygdala, the part of the limbic system is greatly involved in emotional responses, of which fear is a primary response (Lozier, Cardinale, VanMeter & Marsh, 2014). In other words, the amygdala is responsible for decoding emotions, specifically those that are related to threatening stimuli.
Dieter et al. (2015) also suggested that addicts have been found to demonstrate meaningfully low scores on self-concept subscale related to ‘social resonance,’ which is concomitant with an increased brain activation in the left angular gyrus. These were further supported by Goldstein (2015) who stated that the nervous system is under the control of physical substances like nicotine and circumstances such as, peer influence that makes humans manifest a behavior of fitting in the crowd. Sullivan et al. (2016) also stated that greater accomplishment with older stage and pubertal period in abstraction, emotion, attention, general ability, and balance proposes continual functional progress through youth, conceivably reinforced by concomitantly growing limbic, frontal, and cerebellar system.
Technological advancements have proved beneficial in driving major changes in behavioral science. In the field of biopsychology, the expansion of technologies have facilitate better monitoring of behavior, thus helping in better understanding of human interactions (BOSIO & RIVAa-d, 2013). Several new disciplines, like neuroeconomics have proved beneficial in revealing the underlying mechanisms that control the reward-seeking behavior of the brain by integrating contextual information, and matching it with anticipated individual expectations (Van Duijvenvoorde & Crone, 2013). Over the past decades, in the words of Kosinski, Stillwell and Graepel (2013) several centers located across the world have amalgamated huge databases labeling the comprehensive behavior of humans. One of the most interesting aspects of technology use in biopsychology can be attributed to the role of Psycograph in analyzing the shape of the human skull and providing a detailed analysis of the personality of the individual (Carver & McCarty, 2013). Internet based diagnostic tools and treatment strategies have also proved their efficacy in screening millions of people for mental health behavioral problems (Crump, McDonnell & Gureckis, 2013). Furthermore, practitioners and researchers now have innovative ways at their disposal, for collecting and evaluating psychological data about the physical, mental, and emotional behavior of people (Andersson & Titov, 2014).
The initial study of biopsychology dates back to 980-1037 C.E. when Avicenna, a physician recognized the discipline for the treatment of diseases that involved emotions and also developed a system for connecting alterations in pulse rate with feelings (Jung, 2013). It emerged in the form of a scientific discipline much later during the 19th century and encompassed dualism, which is defined as a collection of views about the association between physical matter and mind. Descartes had proposed physical model for explaining human and animal behavior and suggested that pineal gland acted as the point of association between the body and the mind (Murphy, 2013). In other words, biopsychology has functioned as a domain for the exchange of information and concepts related to behavioral science. The unique characteristic of biopsychology is that either independent variables used in the research are biological, or the dependent variables are biological. Thus, biopsychology emphasizes on studding the permanently or temporarily altered nervous system, in relation to some kind of behavioral variable. Therefore, it can be stated that human behavior is a complex phenomenon and is influenced by the brain and the social relationships that exist in real time settings. Biological influences are particularly controlled by different regions of the brain (Pourtois, Schettino & Vuilleumier, 2013). The brain is responsible for providing conscious awareness and is also involved in the different psychological process that occur in a human. Hence, the human brain the common feature that allows researchers to explore similarities between individuals, across cultural boundaries, thus facilitating the assessment of human behavior.
According to Meyers, Gamst and Guarino (2016) research designs refer to the systematic approaches that are adopted by researchers for conduction of a scientific study and encompass the overall organization of identified constituents and consequential data, in a credible outcome. An analysis of the existing scholarly evidences suggested that Südhof (2014) presented their findings in the form of a review where they collected evidences from available scientific literature and elaborated on the fact that there occurs changes in some cortical activity during vocal behavior. Owing to the fact that this review a secondary piece of research, there were no ethical issues, concerning human subjects. However, the study by Jutras, Fries and Buffalo (2013) involved a primary research where hippocampal activity measurement in rhesus monkeys formed the foundation of the research design. The researchers investigated the role of hippocampus in memory formation and visual activity by exposing the research subjects to 200 novel complex stimuli. Despite the need of adhering to ethical considerations for preventing undue suffering of animals, none were reviewed by the researchers. Nonetheless, demonstration of the relationship between aggression by amygdala and callous emotional traits was done by a cross-sectional case-control study. The research design comprised of neuroimaging and behavioral testing with the use of 3-T Siemens magnetic resonance imaging scanner, among community recruited juveniles. Prior approval was taken from the institutional review board for the research design (Lozier, Cardinale, VanMeter & Marsh, 2014). In contrast, Carver and McCarty (2013) adopted a cohort research design, based on results of Experian Marketing Services’ Simmonsw National Consumer Study (NCS). A plethora of psychographic and personality variables were detected in the three kinds of gamblers, which made them conclude that online gamblers report greater levels of risk taking, wish for control, sensation seeking, and self-centeredness. This study also did not take into consideration any ethical issues of research. In contrast Sullivan et al. (2016) also adopted a cross-sectional research design and obtained informed consent from the adults and parents of minor respondents, besides approval from the board, prior to collection of neuropsychological data, in relation to alcohol use disorder.
Certain ethical issues that should be taken into consideration while conducting biopsychological research encompass informed consent, debriefing, participant protection, confidentiality, deception, and withdrawal from research (Fromm, 2013). Outlining the participants on the research and obtaining consent has been considered imperative since several decades. Providing the participants a general idea of the investigation, their reason for participation, and clarification is also considered vital in research. Over the years, it has been stated time and gain that the researchers must ensure preventing distress to research participants, by protecting them from mental and physical harm. Misleading or wrongly informing participants about the objectives and purpose of the research is another major aspect (Salman, Ngueng Feze & Joly, 2016). Owing to the fact that recent biopsychology studies have also focused on animal subjects, reasonable efforts must be taken for avoiding and minimizing animal infection, discomfort, illness, and pain.
The major research gap that was noticed is associated with the fact that not many studies had been conducted in order to determine the drug abuse preference related behavior among adolescents, as is commonly manifested by them in recent years. Although several researchers have attempted to explore the neurobiology behind adolescent substance abuse, they have placed little attention in unraveling the factors that make this target population display a preference for drug abuse (Koob & Volkow, 2016). The acceptance of drug abuse is continuously increasing in the present society. According to Patterson, DeBaryshe and Ramsey (2017) prolonged use of drugs wreaks havoc on the mind and the body, regardless of the socioeconomic status of the users. Owing to the fact that this aspect of human behavior has been relatively unexplored, this research gap needs to be addressed. The research question for the identified topic is as follows:
How do the adolescents interpret drug abuse preferences and their impact on behavioral responses?
The research will be a qualitative design that will help in determining the human characters, attributes and behavior related to the use of drugs, which will be explained thematically. Owing to the fact that qualitative research designs are based on the perspective of social constructivism, the research will try to unravel the underlying factors that govern the socially situated human behavior, through interaction with others (Neuman, 2013). Adoption of a qualitative approach can also be accredited to the fact that it will delve deeper into the feelings, behaviors and attitudes of the target population, and will also provide a detailed picture of why the adolescents behave and act in certain ways, in relation to drug abuse. This qualitative research will be grounded on the concept of phenomenology that has its roots in the 20th century (Lewis, 2015). This approach has been widely accepted for providing a description of human experiences and will also attempt to avert preconceived bias and assumptions about the understandings and behavior of the adolescents (Bns & Hv, 2013). Thus, the research design will aim to directly investigate and describe the phenomenon of drug abuse related behavior among adolescents, as consciously felt by the target population. The study will be conducted over a time period of six months, across three districts. Recruitment of participants will be done from the local adolescent clinics and recreational centers with the help of convenience sampling technique.
In the words of Etikan, Musa and Alkassim (2016) one major advantage of this sampling technique is that it will encompass relatively lower costs and time for recruiting the study participants. Furthermore, the subjects will also be easily accessible and within close proximity. An estimated 50 participants are to be selected for the research. All ethical considerations shall be maintained by providing detailed written information to the adolescents and their parents, in sealed envelope. They will be informed about the potential benefits and purpose of the research, following which their informed consent shall be obtained. The participants shall also be ensured on maintenance of confidentiality, no deception, and ability to withdraw from the research at any point of time. The participants shall be provided a nominal gift card as a form of remuneration for their participation.
Focus groups will be selected as the mode of data collection. This phase would encompass gathering valuable information and measuring the variables of importance, in a systematic manner that will allow answering the proposed research question. Focus groups have been found to share a range of common features with interviews that are less structured, but there remains more to this data collection tool. Focus groups although popular in marketing and health research, have begun to be used in psychology until recently. According to Cleary, Horsfall and Hayter (2014) one major advantage of this data collection method is the fact that focus groups will create the provision for interactive research, as opposed to individual survey responses. Furthermore, their implementation requires little or no costs and can get completed within few hours. The participants will be divided into five focus groups, each comprising of ten adolescent respondents, one qualified moderator and one counsellor. The focus groups will last between 45-90 minutes and all the responses shall be audio recorded, followed by their verbatim transcription.
A semi-structured format will be followed during the collection of responses since the focus groups questions can be prepared in advance for allowing the opportunity to internalize all entails of the discussion. These will also offer the adolescents the freedom of providing their insights and views in a convenient manner. Following the transcription of the responses, the discussion will be manually analyzed and coded into themes, obtained from the collected data (Braun & Clarke, 2014). The themes will be based on certain essential attributes namely, (i) references to drug abuse for looking and appearing ‘cool’, (ii) references to perceived changes in behavior due to drug abuse, and (iii) references to drug abuse on social networking sites and the risks related to them. Hence, the thematic analysis will help in presenting information that would link drug abuse among adolescents peer influence and behavioral changes.
Ethical considerations have been recognized to be critical in research studies. Ethics are considered as the basic standards or norms of conduct that discriminate between correct and incorrect. Ethical considerations also prove beneficial in determining the dissimilarity between satisfactory and improper behavior, on the part of the investigator (Flick, 2014). The truthfulness, reliability and legitimacy of the research conclusions depend profoundly on obedience of ethical principles. It has been found that several studies that focus on investigating varied aspects of biopsychology often fail to assure the readers and the common public that appropriate guidelines related to issues such as, animal welfare, human rights, conflicts of interest, compliance with the law, health standards and safety were followed (LaRossa & Bennett, 2018). Therefore, it can be stated that the consideration of major ethical issues create a chief impact on the veracity of the research project and affects the provision of future funding for the project. There are a plethora of effective strategies for protecting personal information such as, elimination of identifier components, protected data storage methods, biographical minutiae amendments and aliases. Efforts must also be taken to play the role of mediators between the respondents and target community. Creating provisions for an overt data collection method and reducing the probability of exposing the participants to any kind of vicarious trauma will also be taken into consideration. Furthermore, owing to the fact that the research will investigate the human behavior, in response to drug abuse among adolescents, the adolescent respondents shall also be provided with considerable amount of recovery time during the focus groups.
Conclusion:
To conclude, researchers working in the field of biopsychology play an important role in unravelling the association between the physiological and developmental mechanisms of behavior, as manifested by humans and animals. Although this discipline of science gained momentum during the 18th and 19th centuries, recent attention has been given in drawing an explanation of the mind-body problem, from a scientific point of view. Owing to the fact that not much research has been done on investigating drug abuse related behavior, displayed by adolescents, future research would address this gap and conduct a qualitative study based on phenomenology for drawing relevant conclusions.
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