biopsychology Flashcards
division of the nervous system?
- nervous system and endocrine system
- nervous system: CNS (brain and spinal chord) and PNS (peripheral system / neurones): CONCERNED WITH ALL LIFE FUNCTIONS AND PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESSES
- PNS: autonomic and somatic system: SSSSENSE AND INSTRUCTIONS TO MUSCLES
- Autonomic system: sympathetic and parasympathetic system: BODILY ORGANS (HORMONAL) MOST ARE NOT UNDER CONSCIENCE CONTROL EG HEART AND STOMACH
division of the nervous system?
- nervous system and endocrine system
- nervous system: CNS (brain and spinal chord) and PNS (peripheral system / neurones): CONCERNED WITH ALL LIFE FUNCTIONS AND PSYCHOLOGICAL PROCESSES
- PNS: autonomic and somatic system: SSSSENSE AND INSTRUCTIONS TO MUSCLES
- Autonomic system: sympathetic and parasympathetic system: BODILY ORGANS (HORMONAL) MOST ARE NOT UNDER CONSCIENCE CONTROL EG HEART AND STOMACH
what are motor neurons
carry messages from the spinal chord and brain to the effector (muscles)
structure of motor neuron
large surface area to conecto other neurons
synaptic nerves and dentrites do not touch - gap s called synapse
short dentrites
long axons
what are sensory neurons
receptors to brain and spinal cord
long dentrites
short axons
what are relay neurons
interconnecting neurons: visual, brain, spinal chords
between sensory neuron to motor neuron
short dentrites
short/long axons
what is the reflex arc
receptor cells (PNS) --> stimuli impulse sent down sensory neuron CNS relay neuron motor neuron effector muscle --> response
what is synaptic transmission
nerve travels down axon
neurotransmitters are released which are taken up or reabsorbed
message reaches dentrites
chemicals inhibit or excite fire of acell?
dopamine acetylcholine and serotonin
what is localisation
certain areas of the brain hold specific fuctions
what is lateralisation
particular hemisphere controls certain functions
case study on phineas gage
suffered horrific brain accent where brain was partially removed
personality change from nice to mean
shows that brain controls personality
cannot generalise as one rare case and could be other outside factors
what are the 3 layers of the brain
central core - ancient brain: pirimitive and involuntary
limbic system: hormones and emotional
cerebrum: higher intellectual processes
what is the central core?
brain stem primitive actions (breathing) involuntary actions (sneezing) hypothalamus (endocrine system/glands)
what is the limbic system?
contains hippocampus: removal causes antereograde amnesia (cannot form new memories)
what is the cerebrum?
composed of right and left hemispheres which are connected by the corpus callosum fibres
frontal lobe: conscious thoughts
occipital lobe: sight
temporal lobe: auditory and memory
parietal: sensory and motor
what is in the parietal lobe?
motor area: control of voluntary movements
opposite hemispheres control each side
samade to area causes impaired movements
somatosensory area: heat, cold touch pain body movement
hands and face occupy most of it
what is in the temporal lobe?
auditory area: hearing/language/speech analysis
wernicke area: left temp lobe damage
difficulties in language comprehension
what is in the occipital lobe?
visual: innter retina: optic chiasm: crossed controls
outer retina: damage to left optic nerve damages left eye
what did split brain surgery show about the hemispheres of the brain?
patients that had undergone a corpus callosotomy’s brain showed that the two hemispheres could function quite independently
what are the two main methods of studying cortical specialisation?
invasive techniques (surgery)
neurosurgery
electrical chemical stimulation and post mortem examinations
non invasive techniques (scans)
PET
CAT
MRI
Discuss PET scans
radioactive glucose is injected into the blood stream - the radioactive emission from different parts of the brain is measured in a scanning machine whilst the individual is engaged in a range of tasks
evaluate PET scans
produces 3D images of brain activity in action!
involves injection - ethical/distress
brain is always active so it is hard to separate activities and no two brains process in the same way
discuss and evaluate CAT scans
narrow X ray beam and measures the about of radiation absorbed by the brain - 3D image is formed
useful in evaluating the about of swelling due to disuse damage in brain
discuss and evaluate CAT scans
narrow X ray beam and measures the about of radiation absorbed by the brain - 3D image is formed
useful in evaluating the about of swelling due to disuse damage in brain
discuss and evaluate MRI scans
scanners use strong magnetic fields and radio waves to produce images of an individuals brain
able to produce precise images of the brain and offer more detail than PET or CAT scans
powerful enough to detect signs of disease
discuss and evaluate EGGs
electrodes are attached to various points on then sad
record brainwaves which can wither be rhythmic(healthy) or arrhythmic(unhealthy)
safe and painless
useful for studying sleeping patterns
distinguishes between different types of epileptic procedures and categorises them based on the patterns views
lacks accuracy of pet cat and MRI scans that produces 3D images of a specific area of functioning
discuss post mortem examinations
brain of patient (usually subject of longitudinal study) is examined after death
by examining the damage post mortem and relating to their behaviour when alive - brain localisation can be established
Paul Broca - function of speech = left frontal lobe called Broca’s area - damage to area causes Broca’s aphasia
evaluate post mortem studies
no control over the area to be studied
and often not possible to know how the patient behaved before the damage occurred
obtaining a person’s brain is hard
no ethical issues - greater understanding of many rare afflictions
discuss neurosurgery
manipulation of structures within brain using ABLATIONS 9removal of tissue) and LESIONS(cutting neural connections)
Hubel and Weisel inserted electrodes in the visual cortex of a cat - different neurones responded to different patterns of light
evaluate neurosurgery
disifucult to establish whether behaviour results from damaged area of are connected to damage
ethical restrictions - animals not humans
discuss and evaluate electrical and chemical stimulation
specific area of the brain are stimulated to see how this affects behaviour
Olds and Milner found that this in area of the limbic system resulted in pleasure for rats
Wada test - anaesthetic is used prior surgery to shut down language and memory functions in each of the hemispheres
damage to these areas can be prevented during surgery
ethical constraints - animals not humans
less harmful than surgery
what are the two main divisions of the autonomic nervous system?
sympathetic (fight or flight) and parasympathetic system (afterwards)
discuss the sympathetic nervous system
stimulates the fight or flight response to threatening situations dilation of pupils, bronchi inhibits saliva, digestion and urination stimulates glucose production speeds up heart rate
discuss the parasympathetic nervous system
restores the body to its normal state
constricts pupils, bronchi
stimulates saliva, digestion and unrination and bile production
slows down heart rate
this takes a while as the hormones take longer to disperse
what is the endocrine system
composed of a number of glands in the body that relase hormones directly into the bloodstream
major gland - pituitary gland - releases ACTH which stimulates the adrenal glands to released adrelenin aiding the sympathetic nervous system
effects of the stress response?
prolonged exposure is harmful
disruption to sex life, digestion and heart disease
effects of the stress response?
prolonged exposure is harmful
disruption to sex life, digestion and heart disease
what is the difference between a genotype and a phenotype?
genotype - genetic make up
phenotype - observable charactaristics
genotype + environment = phenotype
difference between monozygotic and dizygotic twins and why psychology likes them
monozygotic - one zygote forms two separate embryos
genetically identical
same genotype
dizygotic - two zygotes
like ordinary brother and sisters
different genotype
can investigate genetic basis of behaviour by studying monozygotic twins
difference between monozygotic and dizygotic twins and why psychology likes them
monozygotic - one zygote forms two separate embryos
genetically identical
same genotype
dizygotic - two zygotes
like ordinary brother and sisters
different genotype
can investigate genetic basis of behaviour by studying monozygotic twins
why are twin studies cool? (part of the intelligence and sexual orientation cards)
unsure about inheritance or environment? LOOK AT TWINS
monozygotic twins - 100% concordance
dizyygotic twins - LOWER concordance
if it’s the environment - monozygotic twins reared apart would show lower concordance with each other
how do we use twins to study intelligence?
wilson - identical twins had a more similar intellectual performance than non identical couched and Mcgue meta analysis - MZ together: 0.86 MZ apart: 0.72 DZ together; 0.6 DZ apart: 0.24
how do we use tins to study sexual orientation
bailey and pillard -
52% chance of MZ twins were concordant for being gay compared to 22% of Dz twins
criticised as recruitment through targets of gay audience
barman and bruckner - gay is a result of multiple genetic and cultural factors
family studies and stuff - addiction and family size/birth order
krishnan:
sons of alcoholic dads - biological predisposition towards alcohol
Zajonc: intelligence is related to birth order: the bigger the family and younger you are the lower the IQ
more of an environmental thing really
adoption stuiides are important because?
genetic basis of behaviour! traits would be like biological if so
Age: plomin: children became more like their biological parents than adopted - genetic influence?
intelligence: scare and weinburg: black kids were adopted into white families and were more similar to biological parents
interracial siblings showed intellectual similarities: environment
adoption: small and richer: stimulating environment!
selective breeding
plomin:
if selective breeding does not alter the trait or characteristic then it is dependent on the environment
genetic basis for behaviour can be proven with this:
Tryon: maze bright rats
bright rats x bright rats = learned maze faster
dull rats x dull rats = slower
learning is a heritable characteristic
Cooper and Zubeck:
dull rats in boring environment
dull rats in stimulating environment = same errors as maze bright rats
== environment is an important factor
