AO3: Biopsychology (Year 13)

Question 1

Localisation of Function: Sur’s research provides a challenge to the theory of localisation of function

Answer 1

• E: In 2000, Sur did an experiment where he rewired the brains of ferrets so visual info was processed by the auditory cortex instead of the visual cortex and found that the ferrets were still able to see through their eyes
• E: The ferrets’ auditory cortex was able to process visual info which challenges the theory of localisation as if different functions were truly localised to specific areas of the brain then the ferrets wouldn’t have been able to see out of their eyes but because they could we know this isn’t the case. But even though the ferrets could see, their vision wasn’t as good as if the information was processed in the visual cortex which rather supports the theory of localisation of function as the newly recruited auditory cortex was not effective at assuming a function (visual processing) it lacked specialisation for. Moreover the auditory and visual cortexes have similar functions as the both process sensory info so further research would need to be done to see if an area with a completely different function (e.g. Broca’s area) could process visual info
• L: Sur’s research does challenge localisation of function but weakly due to the effectiveness of localisation

Question 2

Localisation of Function: Broca’s Research on Louis Leborgne provides support for localisation of function

Answer 2

• E: Leborgne had a speech impediment where he could understand language but could only respond with the word ‘tan’. After he died, Broca did research and found that this was the case because he had a lesion in what is now known as the Broca’s area
• E: Supports localisation of function by showing how specific functions are localised in the brain. Leborgne ‘s function of language production was localised to his Broca’s area which suggests that this is where speech production is localised. As well as this,
  Leborgne was still able to understand language which suggest that the function of speech comprehension is localised to a different area of Leborgne’s brain that wasn’t damaged. However, the evidence is from a single case study so the findings can’t be generalised to people without lesions in the brain

Question 3

Localisation of Function:

Question 4

Circadian Rhythms: Research by Siffre supports the idea the sleep/wake cycle is a circadian rhythm

Answer 4

• E: In 1962, Siffre lived in the Alps underground for 2 months with only a lamp and found his sleep/wake cycle increased to 25 hours
• E: Siffre’s research showed the sleep/wake cycle is free running as it stayed to roughly 24 hours when he was underground without the external cue of sunlight. The fact his sleep/wake cycle extended to 25 hours suggests that the free-running state of the sleep/wake cycle is more than 24 hours and the external cue of light is what keeps the cycle to 24 hours. Conclusions are undermined by the presence of the lamp as it acts as an extraneous variable which undermines the internal validity and the experiment also lacks population validity as Siffre only did the experiment on himself (can’t generalise findings)
• L: Research supports sleep/wake cycle as a circadian rhythm but support is limited due to lack of internal and population validity

Question 5

Circadian Rhythms: Research into Circadian Rhythms has important health implications

Answer 5

• E: Research on the effects of working night shifts (aka shift work) has found that those who work night shifts are 3x more likely to develop heart disease than those who don’t do shift work
• E: Shows that damaging our natural circadian rhythm can be dangerous to our health as night workers would have to stay awake when their free-running circadian rhythm would be telling them to sleep. This has economical impacts as it means more money would have to be spent on healthcare in the long run and more importantly those who would have been working are now economically inactive
• L: Demonstrates how research into circadian rhythms is very important

Question 6

Circadian Rhythms: Research has found individual differences in the timings of circadian rhythms

Answer 6

• E: In 2001, Duffy et al. did research and found ‘morning people’ wake up and go to bed earlier (roughly 6am and 10pm) whereas ‘evening people’ wake up and go to bed later (roughly 10am and 1am)
• E: By understanding how circadian rhythms vary for individuals it can benefit society as it would mean employers should tailor the working hours of employees to their circadian rhythm to maximise productivity and this in turn has economic implications
• L: This shows that taking the individual differences in the timings of circadian rhythms into account ultimately has beneficial social and economical implications for society

Question 7

Exogenous Zeitgebers/Endogenous Pacemakers: Research into the role of exogenous zeitgebers and endogenous pacemakers on the sleep/wake cycle has real-life implications

Answer 7

• E: Sleep deprivation has become a huge issue in the modern world as it is linked with every mental health issue and many physical health conditions
• E: Research into the role of exogenous zeitgebers and endogenous pacemakers on the sleep/wake cycle has showed an increase in blue light emitting devices (e.g.) are factors that impact sleep deprivation. This has allowed for information and guidance that will impact the physical and mental health of humans, as well as prescribing melatonin and other interventions, decreasing the impact of sleep deprivation in society
• L: There are social benefits that come from understanding the role of exogenous zeitgebers and endogenous pacemakers on the sleep/wake cycle

Question 8

Exogenous Zeitgebers/Endogenous Pacemakers: Research into the role of exogenous zeitgebers and endogenous pacemakers on the sleep/wake cycle illustrates the importance of an interactionist approach

Answer 8

• E: An interactionist approach challenges both sides of the nature vs nurture debate as it looks to see how biological and environmental factors interact
• E: It is impossible to explain the sleep/wake cycle using only biological or environmental factors as it uses both. The environmental stimuli (exogenous zeitgebers) interact with the biological structures (endogenous pacemakers, pineal gland) to regulate the sleep/wake cycle
• L: Therefore the role of exogenous zeitgebers and endogenous pacemakers on the sleep/wake cycle can only be understood using an interactionist approach

Question 9

Exogenous Zeitgebers/Endogenous Pacemakers: The importance of the SCN on the sleep/wake cycle been demonstrated in research

Answer 9

• E: In 2000, Decoursey did research where he cut the SCN connections of 30 chipmunks, observed them in their natural habitat for 80 days and found that the sleep/wake cycles of the chipmunks had been severely disrupted. Moreover, many of the chipmunks were killed by predators in the 80 days
• E: This shows the importance of the SCN (the body’s main pacemaker) as if the SCN wasn’t important, the chipmunks’ sleep/wake cycle wouldn’t have been impacted. Moreover, the deaths of the chipmunks implies that they were now awake at times when predators were also around which shows the sleep wake cycle of the chipmunks is naturally selected to increase survival advantage so the trait can be passed to offspring. However, this study was done on chipmunks, who are biologically different and have different environments to humans so the findings on the role of endogenous pacemakers in the biological processes of humans can’t be concluded from this study
• L: This study shows the role of the SCN in the sleep/wake cycle but it can’t be generalised to humans

Question 10

Ways of Studying the Brain (Post-Mortem): Limitation is the issue of Causation

Answer 10

• E: In post-mortem examinations, the brains of people with unusual behaviour is studied with hope that an abnormality in the brain will also be found that can be used to explain their behaviour
• E: However, correlation ≠ causation so it can’t be said for certain that the cause of that person’s unusual behaviour
• For example a third variable such as lesions or illness that impacted other areas of the brain could have caused the unusual behaviour
• Since post-mortem exams don’t study live brains compared to brains scanning methods (fMRI, EEG, ERG) it can be problematic to assume that the causation of behaviour is brain abnormality

Question 11

Ways of Studying the Brain (Post-Mortem): Strength is that it provides a detailed examination of the barin

Answer 11

• E: Post-mortem examinations can reach areas of the brain like the hippocampus and the hypothalamus compared to brain scanning techniques that can’t view those areas of the brain without losing spatial resolution
• E: This is a major advantage as it allows for researchers to form a more detailed picture of all areas within the brain
• Because of this more research into the brain can be done more easily and provides a major advantage of post-mortem examinations compared to other brain scanning techniques

Question 12

Ways of Studying the Brain (fMRI, EEG and ERG): Strength of fMRI/ Limitation of EEG/ERG is spatial resolution

Answer 12

• E: Spatial resolution is the smallest measurement that a scanner can detect
• fMRI scans have a spatial resolution of roughly 1-2mm compared to EEGs and ERGs that have a spatial resolution of roughly 30cm
• E: The spatial resolution of fMRIs is significantly greater than that of EEGs and ERGs
• This means psychologists can determine the activity of different regions in the brain more accurately using fMRIs compared to using EEGs or ERGs and as a result, they can determine the areas of the brain that are active when different behaviours are carried out

Question 13

Ways of Studying the Brain (fMRI, EEG and ERG): Strength of EEGs/ERGs/ Limitation of fMRIs is temporal validity

Answer 13

• E: Temporal resolution is how quickly the scanner can detect changes is brain activity
• EEGs and ERGs have a temporal resolution of 1-2 milliseconds compared to fMRIs which have a temporal resolution of 1-4 seconds
• E: This means psychologists can detect changes in brain activity much faster using EEGs and ERGs than using fMRIs and as a result gives a more accurate reading of the timings of change in brain activity