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36 - Levels of Analysis in Alzheimer’s Disease Research

from Section 12

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 April 2020

By
Stephan Heckers
Edited by
Kenneth S. Kendler ,
Josef Parnas  and
Peter Zachar
Kenneth S. Kendler
Affiliation:
Virginia Commonwealth University
Josef Parnas
Affiliation:
University of Copenhagen
Peter Zachar
Affiliation:
Auburn University, Montgomery
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Summary

Psychiatric disorders can be explained at various levels of analysis. Some models start out with first-person experience, some focus on psychological and sociological factors and some look for answers by studying the brain. These levels of analysis are often defined by subject matter (e.g., life events or brain changes), scientific methods (e.g., interview or brain scan), and claims of causality (e.g., weak environmental effects of life stressors or strong genetic effects in Mendelian disorders). Here I am reviewing progress in the scientific exploration of Alzheimer’s Disease at four levels: clinical phenotype, cognitive neuroscience of memory, pathological and biochemical analysis of post-mortem brain tissue, and genetic analysis of patients as well as genetic mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease. This review allows me to reflect on some important ideas in James Woodward’s essay "Levels: What Are They and What Are They Good for?"

Keywords

Dementiamemoryneuropathologyneurodegenerative disordermodels of psychiatric disorderlevels of analysis
Type
Chapter
Information
Levels of Analysis in Psychopathology
Cross-Disciplinary Perspectives
 , pp. 450 - 456
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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References

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