Behavioral Sciences Chapter 1: Biology and Behavior Flashcards
Define neuropsychology
neuropsychology is the study of the connection between the nervous system and behavior. It most often focuses on the functions of various brain regions.
What are the three types of neurons in the nervous system?
sensory (afferent), motor (efferent), and interneurons
Define reflex arcs
Use the ability of the interneurons in the spinal cord to relay information to the source of stimuli while simultaneously routing it to the brain.
What are the two parts of the nervous system?
Central nervous system (brain and spinal cord)
& peripheral nervous system (cranial and spinal nerves)
What are the branches of the peripheral nervous system?
Somatic (voluntary)
Autonomic (automatic)
What are the branches of the autonomic system?
Parasympathetic (rest-and-digest)
Sympathetic (fight-or-flight)
What are the three subdivisions of the brain?
Hindbrain (cerebellum, medulla oblongata, reticular formation)
Midbrain (inferior and superior colliculi)
Forebrain (thalamus, hypothalamus, basal ganglia, limbic system and cerebral cortex)
What does the thalamus do?
relay station for sensory information
What does the hypothalamus do?
The hypothalamus maintains homeostasis and integrates with the endocrine system through the hypophyseal portal system that connects it to the anterior pituitary.
What does the basal ganglia do?
It smoothens movements and helps maintain postural stability.
What does the limbic system contain? control?
It contains the septal nuclei, amygdala, and hippocampus. It controls emotion and memory.
What do the septal nuclei do?
They are involved with feelings of pleasure, pleasure-seeking behavior and addiction
What does the amygdala control?
fear and aggression
What does the hippocampus do?
consolidates memories and communicates with other parts of the limbic system through an extension called the fornix
What are the 4 lobes that the cerebral cortex is divided into?
frontal lobe, parietal lobe, occipital and temporal
What does the frontal lobe control?
executive function, impulse control, long-term planning, motor function and speech production
What does the parietal lobe control?
sensations of touch, pressure, temperature, and pain, spacial processing, orientation & manipulation.
What does the occipital lobe control?
Visual processing
What does the temporal lobe control?
sound processing, speech perception, memory and emotion
What are neurotransmitters?
They are released by neurons to carry a signal to another neuron or effector.
What is acetylcholine?
NEUROTRANSMITTER - used by the somatic nervous system (to move muscles), the parasympathetic nervous system, and the central nervous system (for alertness)
What is dopamine?
NEUROTRANSMITTERS - maintains smooth movements and steady posture
What are endorphins and enkephalins?
NEUROTRANSMITTERS - They act as natural painkillers.
What are epinephrine and norepinephrine?
NEUROTRANSMITTERS - maintain wakefulness and alertness and mediate fight-or-flight responses. Epinephrine tends to act as a hormone and norepinephrine tends to act as a neurotransmitter.
What is Y-aminobutyric acid?
NEUROTRANSMITTERS - Acts as a brain stabilizer
What is serotonin?
NEUROTRANSMITTERS - Modulates mood, sleep patters, eating patterns, and dreaming
What is cortisol?
HORMONE - stress hormone released by the adrenal cortex
What are testosterone and estrogen?
HORMONE - mediate libido, testosterone also increases aggressive behavior. Both are released by the adrenal cortex. In males the testes also produce testosterone and the ovaries also produce estrogen.
What are epinephrine and norepinephrine?
HORMONES - released by the adrenal medulla and cause physiological changes associated with the sympathetic nervous system
What is neurulation?
Notochord stimulates overlying ectoderm to fold over creating a neural tube topped with neural crest cells
What does the neural tube develop into?
The central nervous system
What does the neural crest develop into?
Spread throughout the body, differentiating into many different tissues
What are all the primitive reflexes?
rooting reflex, moro reflex, babinski reflex, grasping reflex
What is the rooting reflex?
the infant turns his or her head toward anything that brushes the cheek
What is the Moro reflex?
the infant extends the arms, then slowly retracts them and cries in response to a sensation of falling
What is the Babinski reflex?
the big toe is extended and the other toes fan in response to the brushing of the sole of the foot.
What is the grasping reflex?
The infant grabs anything put into his or her hand
How do gross and fine motor skills progress?
head to toe and core to periphery
How do social skills progress?
From parent-oriented to self-oriented to other-oriented
How do language skills progress?
become increasingly complex
Motor neurons transmit information
From the brain to the body
Sensory neurons transmit information
From the receptors to the brain
