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Psychology Edexcel Alevel > Biological Psychology > Flashcards

Biological Psychology Flashcards

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1
Q

Which 2 parts make up the central nervous system?

A

Spinal cord and Brain

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2
Q

What are the 2 halves of the brain called?

A

hemispheres

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3
Q

What does the brain do?

A

coordination centre of sensation and intellectual and nervous activity

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4
Q

What does the spinal cord do?

A

reflex actions -links the brain to the rest of the body (peripheral NS)

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5
Q

Define ‘contralateral’

A

Left side of the brain controls right side of the body and vice versa

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6
Q

What is the cerebral cortex?

A

outer layer of the brain

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7
Q

What are convolutions?

A

folds on the cerebral surface (wrinkly)

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8
Q

What are gyri and sulci?

A

ridges and valleys in the cerebral cortex

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9
Q

What is lateralisation?

A

different functions for each hemisphere of the brain

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10
Q

What is localisation?

A

within a hemisphere, certain behaviors are localized to one specific area

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11
Q

What is the function of the frontal lobe?

A

-controls high level thinking, planning and problem solving -contains motor cortex -contains Broca’s area -one in each hemisphere

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12
Q

What is the motor cortex?

A

strip along the top of the brain

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13
Q

What does Broca’s area do?

A

left frontal lobe responsible for speech production

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14
Q

What does the parietal lobe contain?

A

somatosensory cortex

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15
Q

What does the somatosensory cortex do?

A

processes sensory information from the skin -touch, temperature and pressure -contralateral

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16
Q

What does the temporal lobe do?

A

contains auditory cortex (which is contralateral) -processes location, volume and pitch of sounds -role in language

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17
Q

What does Wernicke’s area do and where is it located?

A

left temporal lobe -understanding of languages

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18
Q

What is the occipital lobe responsible for?

A

contains primary visual cortex -contralateral

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19
Q

What does the visual cortex do?

A

interprets messages from our eyes into images we can understand

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20
Q

What is the corpus callosum?

A

link of fine fibres which connect the hemispheres together -shares info between hemispheres

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21
Q

What does the Thalamus do?

A

brain relay station -receives info from senses -role in sleep and OCD

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22
Q

What does the Hypothalamus do?

A

controls motivational behaviors (hunger, thirst, sex drive) -stress response -maintains balance in functions (body temp, hormones)

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23
Q

What is the limbic system responsible for?

A

contains several structures -regulates emotional response

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24
Q

What does the cerebellum do?

A

coordinates posture, balance and movement -receives and integrates info from spinal cord + other areas

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25
Q

Explain the parts of the Nervous system.

A

nervous system - peripheral or central NS -peripheral - autonomic or somatic NS -CNS - brain and spinal cord -autonomic NS - sympathetic and parasympathetic NS

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26
Q

What is the sympathetic NS responsible for?

A

preparing the body for fight or flight

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27
Q

What does the autonomic NS do?

A

-controls body’s involuntary movements -controls the organs of the body

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28
Q

What is the peripheral NS?

A

all of the NS outside CNS

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29
Q

What does the somatic NS do?

A

-controls body’s voluntary movement -transmits signals to and from senses and muscles

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30
Q

What is the nervous system?

A

The network of nerve cells and fibres which transmits nerve impulses between parts of the body

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31
Q

What does the parasympathetic NS do?

A

restores body to resting levels after fight or flight

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32
Q

What are the 3 types of neuron?

A

Sensory, relay and motor

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33
Q

What does the sensory neuron do?

A

receives messages from receptors -travels along nerves in the peripheral NS to the CNS -has long dendrites and short axons

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34
Q

What does the motor neuron do?

A

carries messages from the CNS to effectors -along nerves in the peripheral NS -short dendrites and long axons

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35
Q

What does the relay neuron do?

A

connects sensory and motor neurons -only found in CNS -short dendrites and short axons

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36
Q

What are neurotransmitters?

A

chemical messages between neurons in the brain -allows brain to process thoughts and memories -each NT has particular function (excitatory or inhibitory)

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37
Q

Explain the 7 stages of Synaptic Transmission.

A

1: nerve impulse travels down an axon 2: nerve impulse reaches synaptic terminal 3: triggers the release of neurotransmitters 4: neurotransmitters fired into synaptic gap 5: neurotransmitters bind to receptors on the dendrite of adjacent neuron 6: if successfully transmitted, NT taken up by post-synaptic neuron 7: message will continue to be passed on via electrical impulses

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38
Q

What is an agonist drug?

A

-imitates natural neurotransmitters -fools the brain into activating pleasure centres -much more powerful than natural occurring NT’s

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39
Q

What is an antagonist drug?

A

boosts amount of normal neurotransmitters -triggers brain pleasure centre

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40
Q

Which 2 recreational drugs does the course focus on?

A

cocaine and heroin

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41
Q

What does cocaine do?

A

-stimulant effect on CNS -alters synaptic transmission involving several NT’s -most profounding effect on activity of dopamine

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42
Q

How does cocaine impact the role of dopamine?

A

blocks reuptake of dopamine by binding with dopamine transporter molecules on terminal buttons of presynaptic neuron -synapse flooded with surplus of dopamine

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43
Q

What are long term effects of dopamine?

A

dopamine receptors become downregulated -fewer receptors active, some damaged and shut down -quantity of dopamine produced decreases -tolerance increases, withdrawal, cravings

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44
Q

What does heroin do?

A

depressant effect on CNS -processed into morphine, which binds with specific receptor

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45
Q

What are long term effects of heroin?

A

neural transmission = down regulation -receptors desensitized, tolerance increases

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46
Q

Evaluate a strength of recreation drug research.

A

research supporting the role of dopamine -non-human animal studies (mice) -show that dopamine is released from a specific part of the brain

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47
Q

Evaluate the opposing argument of recreation drug research.

A

-poor validity of non-human animal studies -human brain ore complex -complexity of recreational drug effects can’t be explained by just one mode of action of a drug BUT -studies of humans as well (similar results)

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48
Q

Evaluate an application of recreation drug research.

A

other drugs developed with reverse mode of action -Naloxone blocks the effect of heroin, can help with withdrawal process and reduce symptoms

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49
Q

What does the amygdala do?

A

controls emotion responses (particularly fear)

50
Q

What does the hippocampus do?

A

encodes long term memories

51
Q

What would happen if the prefrontal cortex was damaged? (Raine et al)

A

person would seek immediate gratification -more negative emotions

52
Q

What are the 3 types of brain scan?

A

CAT, PET and fMRI

53
Q

Outline how CAT scans work

A

xrays -detailed cross-section images of inside of body

54
Q

Outline 2 advantages of CAT scans.

A

useful for revealing abnormal structures -high resolution, good quality images

55
Q

outline 2 disadvantages of CAT scans

A

high levels of radiation -only provide structural info (still images)

56
Q

Outline how PET scans work

A

measure metabolic activity in brain -radioactive substance injected (radiotracer) -active areas = yellow

57
Q

outline 2 advantages of PET scans

A

shows brain in action -provide evidence of localisation of functions

58
Q

outline 2 disadvantages of PET scans

A

results sometimes not easy to interpret -ethical issues, radioactive substances can damage tissues

59
Q

outline how fMRI scans work.

A

-uses radiowaves to measure blood oxygen levels in brain -blood directed to active areas -picked up through radio signals which produce 3D images

60
Q

outline 2 advantages of fMRI scans

A

-doesn’t use radiation (safe) -extremely clear images

61
Q

outline 2 disadvantages of fMRI scans

A

expensive to use -only effective if person stays perfectly still

62
Q

what does serotonin do?

A

inhibitory effect on transmission between neurons -self control -regulates sleep patterns -low levels = aggression

63
Q

who studied the role of serotonin on aggression and how?

A

Virkkunen et al -compared levels of serotonin for violent impulsive and violent non-impulsive offenders

64
Q

What is the link between serotonin and dopamine?

A

serotonin underactivity stimulates dopamine overactivity, which causes a link to aggression and impulsivity

65
Q

Evaluate a strength for the role of serotonin in aggression

A

-Pardini et al: 56 males who had been involved in aggression study 20 years earlier, some now criminally violent -fMRI scans found strong negative correlations between amygdala volumes and aggression levels -supports influence of amygdala

66
Q

Evaluate an opposing argument for the role of serotonin in aggression

A

-often just correlational results (not cause-and-effect) -may be 3rd variable involved

67
Q

Evaluate a differing theory for the role of serotonin in aggression

A

some researchers have tried to overcome issue with correlation -using drugs known to increase serotonin activity -evidence for link between serotonin and aggression that goes beyond using correlational findings

68
Q

Evaluate an application for the role of serotonin in aggression

A

serotonin agonist drugs called serenics = anti aggressive effects in animals and humans

69
Q

What are the 6 ways of studying the brain?

A

MRI scans -EEG (Electroencephalography) -Post-mortem -Lesioning (animals) -Measuring hormones -Identifying genes

70
Q

What was the aim of Raine et al.’s study?

A

use brain scanning technology to identify brain impairments in people charged with murder who had pleaded not guilt by reason of insanity

71
Q

What was the procedure of Raine et al.’s study?

A

-41 murderers & 41 non-murderers -matched pairs design (matched by sex, age, ethnicity) -control ppts = no meds, physical examination, psychiatric interview -PET scan, then continuous performance task, then 2nd PET scan immediately after

72
Q

What was the findings of Raine et al.’s study?

A

CORTICAL REGIONS -murders = lower glucose metabolism in: prefrontal areas, parietal areas -higher in: occipital lobe (not previously linked) SUBCORTICAL REGIONS -murderers = lower metablism in: corpus callosum, left amygdala, left temperal lobe and hippocampus -higher in: right amygdala, right temporal lobe and right thalamus (not previously linked)

73
Q

What was the conclusions of Raine et al.’s study?

A

-murderers NGRI = impaired functioning in areas linked to violence - dysfunctions of single brain area can’t explain violence -behavior only expressed when social, environmental and psychological conditions are ‘right’

74
Q

Evaluate a strength of Raine et al.’s study.

A

experimental controls

75
Q

Evaluate an opposing argument of Raine et al.’s study.

A

key element not controlled -ppts not randomly allocated to experimental or control group -failure to match on some variables

76
Q

Evaluate a differing theory of Raine et al.’s study.

A

inappropriate PET scanning technique (may give misleading results) -reduced internal validity

77
Q

Evaluate an application of Raine et al.’s study.

A

understanding biological evidence -brain structures only offer partial explanation

78
Q

Outline evolution by natural selection

A

genetic differences & spontaneous mutations cause variation -advantageous characteristic passed on (reproduction) = retained in population and become more frequent -leads to adaption

79
Q

When does natural selection occur?

A

survival of the fittest -competition for scarce resources

80
Q

explain sexual selection

A

choosing mates based on specific traits and then those traits will increase in the population

81
Q

State how evolution may cause aggression

A

guarding your offspring -guarding your partner

82
Q

Evaluate a strength for evolution, natural selection and aggression

A

explains gender differences -men more aggressive (better hunters) -cooperative females = more likely to be naturally selected, therefore = reduced aggression

83
Q

Evaluate an opposing argument for evolution, natural selection and aggression

A

any evolutionary explanation is uncertain -just correlational -may be other influencing factors

84
Q

Evaluate a differing theory for evolution, natural selection and aggression

A

-can’t explain cultural differences -differences not universal -cultural norms can change aggression levels

85
Q

Evaluate an application for evolution, natural selection and aggression

A

understanding relationships -partners who will enhance reproductive success -males prefer younger women = more likely to be fertile -women prefer older and wealthier men = children well supported

86
Q

What are hormones?

A

biochemical messengers that are transported around the body in the bloodstream

87
Q

What is the role of hormones?

A

crucial in fight or flight response -helping to fuel aggressive response (e.g. increasing HR)

88
Q

What is the role of testosterone?

A

-aggression -Dolan et al. = positive correlation between testosterone levels and aggressive behavior in sample of 60 male UK offenders

89
Q

Explain the dual-hormone hypothesis

A

-cortisol: protect body against stress -high levels of testosterone = aggression only when cortisol levels are low -cortisol high = testosterone’s influence on aggression blocked

90
Q

Explain female aggression

A

lower testosterone levels -non-biological factors related to gender roles may be influencial

91
Q

Evaluate a strength for hormones and aggression.

A

-research support -Dabbs + Hargrove: testosterone levels of 87 female prison inmates -degree of criminal violence positively correlated testosterone levels -link found in male prisoners = same results: higher validity of association

92
Q

Evaluate an opposing argument for hormones and aggression.

A

correlational only -changing testosterone level and aggression may be result of changes of another hormone

93
Q

Evaluate a differing theory for hormones and aggression.

A

difficult to determine testosterone levels -may not provide valid indicator of testosterone level in relation to aggression

94
Q

Evaluate an application for hormones and aggression.

A

controlling aggression -e.g. testosterone lowering drug reduced levels of sexually aggressive behavior in some offenders

95
Q

Outline the 3 parts of our mind according to Freud’s theory.

A

1: conscious = thinking which the individual is aware of 2: preconscious = readily available for access if you try 3: unconscious = main part, info we can’t access, forgotten

96
Q

Explain Freud’s psychodynamic explanation of aggression

A

-born with 2 major instincts: life and death -life = Eros (survival + reproduction) -death = Thanatos

97
Q

What age are the Id, Ego and Superego developed

A

Id = 0-2 -Ego = 2 -Superego = 3-6

98
Q

Explain the Id and the pleasure principle

A

entirely unconscious mind -instincts and impulses that satisfy immediate pleasure and gratification -makes aggression unavoidable

99
Q

Explain the ego and the reality principle

A

-logical and rational thinking -mostly conscious mind -between unrealistic desires and social reality -doesn’t directly fulfill id’s aggressive urges -no moral sense

100
Q

Explain the superego

A

-conscience and moral sense of right and wrong -aggression is destructive -opposes id’s aggressive drive through guilt & shame

101
Q

What is catharsis?

A

releasing aggression or aggressive thoughts -“letting of steam”

102
Q

Give evidence for and against catharsis

A

FOR -Verona + Sullivan: people who reacted aggressively when frustrated = reduced HR AGAINST -Hokanson: only releases tension in short run, increased likelihood of aggression later

103
Q

What is the contemporary study?

A

Brengden 2005

104
Q

What were the aims of Brengden’s study?

A

investigated aggression in MZ and DZ twins to see: -extent that social + physical aggression is explained by genetic & environmental influences -whether social + physical aggression overlap has a direct affect

105
Q

What procedure did Brengden’s study follow?

A

-twin study deign -rated for social + physical aggression -234 pairs, 6 years old -teacher ratings: rated students on 3 point scale in response to given statements -peer ratings: photos, nominate 3 who best matched behavior descriptions

106
Q

What findings did Brengden’s study give?

A

-20% (teacher) and 23% (peer) of social aggression explained by genetic factors -physical aggression mostly explained by genetics -moderate but significant correlation between social + physical aggression (overlapping genetic influences) -high physical ag

107
Q

What conclusions did Brengden’s study give?

A

genetic characteristics cause some children to be aggressive -HOWEVER further analysis indicated that specific form of aggression = more influences by environmental factors -directional relationship

108
Q

Evaluate a strength of Brengden’s study.

A

-multiple data sources (peers and teachers) -2 sets of similar ratings = provides some reassurance that they are valid + reliable measures of aggression

109
Q

Evaluate an opposing argument of Brengden’s study.

A

based on equal environments assumption -assumption may be violated = undermining validity of twin study method

110
Q

Evaluate a differing theory of Brengden’s study.

A

-Derks (2006): study of aggression in adolescent twins, used statistical methods to show assumptions not violated so reasonably valid results

111
Q

Evaluate an application of Brengden’s study.

A

effective interventions to reduce aggression -focus on preventing or reducing physical aggression in early years -interventions could stop physical aggression from turning into social aggression

112
Q

What is the key question?

A

What are the implications for society if aggression is found to be caused by nature not nurture?

113
Q

What are the main points of paragraph 1 of the key question answer?

A

aggression

114
Q

What are the main points of paragraph 2 of the key question answer?

A

-no element of choice -can’t help our biology, shouldn’t be punished -genes and brain structure -born with certain abnormalities

115
Q

What are the main points of paragraph 3 of the key question answer?

A

-aggression provoked in animals if certain brain regions (limbic system) are stimulated -Whitman: serial killer, brain tumor on limbic system, not his fault -aggression centre of brain in limbic system -high testosterone + low cortisol (Hank + Dabbs et al

116
Q

What are the main points of paragraph 4 of the key question answer?

A

environment, nurture, choice -avoid environments that likely trigger aggressive behavior, retraining to react differently

117
Q

What are the main points of paragraph 5 of the key question answer?

A

-cortisol = stress hormone, triggered by stress in environment -animals’ brains stimulated in limbic system showing aggression: coming from environment -environmental factors which perhaps gives individual some control over behavior (avoid stressful situa

118
Q

What are the main points of paragraph 6 of the key question answer?

A

biological: should we punish? ethical? treatment instead of prisons? people offered help, not their fault?

119
Q

What was the biological practical hypothesis?

A

tall people will be less aggressive than small people

120
Q

What scale was used for our practical?

A

Buss-Perry scale

Psychology Edexcel Alevel (9 decks)

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