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Psychology - Paper 2 > Biopsychology > Flashcards

Biopsychology Flashcards

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1
Q

What does the nervous system consist of?

A

CNS =

brain and spinal cord.

PNS =

autonomic and somatic nervous system (rest of the body).

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2
Q

What is the CNS?

A
  • The cerebral cortex is highly developed in humans and distinguishes us from animals.
  • The spinal cord is an extension of the brain and is responsible for reflex actions.
  • The spinal cord connects nerves to the PNS.
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3
Q

What is the functions of the somatic nervous system (SNS)?

A
  • Carries info from sensory organs to the CNS.
  • Controls muscle movement via motor neurons.
  • Controls voluntary movements.
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4
Q

The SNS is the body’s link to the…

A

Outside world.

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5
Q

What is the autonomic nervous system (ANS)

A

1). Governs vital involuntary bodily functions.

  • Heartbeat.
  • Respiration, digestion.
  • Breathing.
  • Sexual arousal.
  • Stress response.

2). Operates automatically.

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6
Q

What is the ANS divided into?

A
  • Sympathetic nervous system =

prepares body for action/stress - “flight or fight”.

  • Parasympathetic nervous system =

calms the body - “rest and digest”.

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7
Q

What does the CNS do?

A
  • Monitors and coordinates internal organ function.
  • Responds to changes in the external environment.
  • Receives and sends info to the PNS.
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8
Q

What is a sensory neuron?

A
  • Carries electrical impulses from receptors to the CNS.
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9
Q

Where are sensory receptors found?

A

In various locations in the body;

  • Eyes
  • Tongue
  • Skin
  • Ears
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10
Q

What is a motor neuron?

A
  • Carries electrical impulses from the CNS to the effector.

- They release neurotransmitters that bind to receptors on the muscle that trigger muscle movement.

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11
Q

What is a relay neuron?

A
  • Carries info between sensory and motor neurons, allowing them to communicate.
  • Located mainly in the CNS, not PNS.
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12
Q

What is a neurotransmitter?

A

A packet of chemicals stored within the axon of a neuron;

  • They enable nerve impulses to pass across the synaptic cleft.

They are the chemicals that communicate info throughout our body and brain.

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13
Q

What is ‘action potential’?

A

1) . The dendrite receives info from a neuron (axon terminal).
2) . Info is passed down the cell body to the axon.
3) . Travels down the axon to the axon terminal, in the form of an electrical impulse.
4) . Neurotransmitters are released form their synaptic vesicle, and diffused across the synaptic cleft.
5) . Once on the receptor, the chemical (neurotransmitter) is turned back into an electrical message.

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14
Q

What are inhibitory and excitatory neurotransmitters?

A

1) . Inhibitory = calms the brain.
e. g. serotonin, GABA.
2) . Excitatory = stimulates the brain.
e. g. adrenaline, noradrenaline.

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15
Q

How do inhibitory neurotransmitters work?

A

Inhibits activity of the postsynaptic nerve;

  • Decreases activation in the CNS.
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16
Q

How do excitatory neurotransmitters work?

A

Activates the postsynaptic nerve.

  • Increases neural activation in the CNS.
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17
Q

How does the endocrine system work?

A

Network of glands secrete chemical messages known as hormones.

  • CNS instructs glands to release hormones in the bloodstream.
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18
Q

What are the endocrine glands?

A

1) . Pituitary.
2) . Adrenal.
3) . Testes/ovaries.
4) . Thyroid/parathyroid.
5) . Pineal.

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19
Q

What are the 2 different parts of the pituitary gland?

A

1). Anterior (front) =

produces ACTH as a response to stress.

2). Posterior (back) =

releases different hormones that target different parts of the body.

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20
Q

What does the adrenal medulla do/secrete?

A
  • Acts as an acute stress response (sympathetic arousal in ANS).
  • It secretes adrenaline and noradrenaline.
  • Adrenaline provides a flight or fight response.
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21
Q

What does the adrenal cortex do/secrete?

A
  • ACTH causes adrenal cortex to secrete corticosteroids (cortisol).
  • This is a chronic stress response.
  • Cortisol causes liver to release stored glucose and inhibits inflammation.
22
Q

What is the SAM system?

A

Arouses flight or fight;

  • body notices stress through sensory signals.
  • amygdala sends distress signal to hypothalamus.
  • hypothalamus tells pituitary to activate the sympathetic response.
  • adrenal medulla releases adrenaline and noradrenaline.
  • glycogen stored in liver is converted to glucose.
  • after stressor seizes, parasympathetic arousal occurs.
23
Q

What is the HPAA?

A

Chronic stress response;

  • hypothalamus releases CRF to stimulate pituitary.
  • pituitary releases ACTH, which travels in the blood to the adrenal cortex.
  • adrenal cortex releases cortisol.
  • cortisol increases the release of glucose in the liver so that the body can maintain blood sugar levels when stressed.
24
Q

Name the 4 lobes in the brain?

A

1). Frontal = motor cortex

damage may result in loss of control over fine movements.

2). Parietal = somatosensory cortex

amount of somatosensory devoted to a body part determines it’s sensitivity.

3). Temporal = auditory cortex

damage may result in hearing loss.

4). Occipital = visual cortex.

each eye sends info from right visual field to left cortex, vice versa.

25
Q

Name the 2 areas of the brain responsible for language?

A

1). Broca’s area =

  • frontal lobe.
  • left hemisphere.
  • responsible for SPEECH PRODUCTION.
    2) . Wernicke area =
  • temporal lobe.
  • left hemisphere.
  • responsible for LANGUAGE COMPREHENSION.
26
Q

What is meant by localisation of function?

A
  • Theory argued by Broca and Wernicke.
  • That different parts of the brain are responsible for different functions.

Opposite of holistic theory.

27
Q

What is the outer layer of the brain called, and what is it’s characteristics?

A

Cerebral cortex =

  • grey due to the location of cell bodies.
  • about 3mm thick.
28
Q

What is also outlined in localisation of function?

A

The different areas and cortex’s of the cerebral cortex.

29
Q

Describe 1 study in which localisation of function was involved?

A

Tulving et al. (1944) =

study on LTM revealing that semantic and episodic memory are in different parts of the pre-frontal cortex.

30
Q

What are the evaluations of localisation of function in the brain?

A

1). Brain scan evidence =

showed areas of the brain.

2). Neurosurgical evidence =

still used or extreme cases of OCD and depression.

3). Case study evidence =

Phineas Gage.

4). Lashley’s research.

31
Q

What brain scan evidence is there for localisation of function?

A

1). Peterson et al.

used brain scans to show Wernicke area was active during a listening task, and Broca during a reading task.

2). Tulving et al. research.

32
Q

What neurosurgical evidence is there for localisation of function?

A

Destroying areas of the brain to control behaviour was shown by;

Dougherty et al =

  • 44 OCD patients with cingulotomy (lesioning the cingulate gyrus)
  • after 32 weeks, 1/3 met full criteria, and 14% partially met it.
33
Q

What is Phineas Gage’s case?

A
  • Suffered brain damage from a pole going trhough his frontal lobe.
  • His temperament changed to being rude - suggesting the frontal lobe is responsible for regulating mood.
34
Q

What is Lashley’s research?

A

Removed 10-50% of rat’s cortex.

  • no area was more important in learning a maze.
  • contradicts localisation = learning is holistic.
35
Q

What is meant by plasticity in the brain?

A

AKA neuroplasticity =

  • describes the brains tendency to change and adapt (functionally and physically) as a result of experience and new learning.
36
Q

What did Gopnick et al. find about synaptic pruning?

A
  • 15,000 synaptic connections at age 2-3.
  • as we age, some die and frequently used ones strengthen (pruning).
  • this is a result of changes and learning.
37
Q

What does Maguire et al. find in relation to neuroplasticity?

A
  • Increased grey matter in posterior hippocampus - related to development of spatial and navigational skills.
  • Learning London helped prune their synapses.
38
Q

What did Draganski et al. find in relation to neuroplasticity?

A
  • Imaged student’s brains 3 months before and after exams.

- Found changes in parietal cortex and posterior hippocampus.

39
Q

Who else supports plasticity?

A

1). Mechelli et al. =

larger parts of parietal lobe in bilingual people.

40
Q

What is functional recovery of the brain after trauma?

A

A form of plasticity, usually after trauma.

  • Unaffected areas of the brain are often able to adapt and compensate for those areas that are damaged.
41
Q

How does functional recovery work?

A

Brain ‘rewires’ itself =

  • new synapses form close to the damaged area.
  • unused secondary neural pathways activate and enable functioning to continue.
42
Q

What are the other structural changes of functional recovery?

A

1). Axon sprouting =

growth of new nerve endings, creating new neural pathways.

2) . Reformation of blood vessels.
3) . Recruitment of homologous =

areas on the opposite side of the brain to perform specific tasks.

43
Q

What are the evaluations of plasticity and functional recovery?

A

1) . Practical application.
2) . Negative plasticity.
3) . Age and plasticity (easier to recover as a child).
4) . Support from animal studies.

44
Q

What practical application is there for plasticity and functional recovery.

A

Neurorehabilitation =

movement therapy after stroke to aid functional recovery.

45
Q

Explain negative plasticity?

A

Phantom limb syndrome =

60-80% of amputees experience this pain due to changes in somatosensory cortex.

46
Q

Explain age and plasticity?

A

(Easier to recover as a child) = Bezzola et al. =

40 years of golf training changed neural representations of movements in 40-60 year olds.

47
Q

What animal studies support plasticity and functional recovery?

A

Hubel and Weisel =

sewing kittens eye shut –> still processed info from open eye.

  • shows how loss of function leads to compensatory activity in the brain - neural plasticity.
48
Q

What is hemispheric lateralisation?

A
  • Idea that the 2 hemispheres are functionally different.

- Certain mental processes are controlled by one hemisphere and not the other (language = left).

49
Q

Describe Sperry’s split brain research?

A
  • Investigated 11 participants who had a commisurotomy to inhibit epilepsy.
  • Quasi-experiment (natural).
  • Wanted to see if the hemispheres were specialised for certain functions.
50
Q

Outline Sperry’s ‘recognition by touch’?

A

Recognition by touch =

  • LVF –> could not name object but select a matching object (info going to RH).
  • Left hand could select a matching object to that shown in the LVF (info going to RH).

patients couldn’t verbally say the object that was needed (as LH is needed –> language centre).

51
Q

Outline Sperry’s ‘composite words’?

A
  • Key presented to LVF (info going to RH).
  • Ring presented to RVF (info going to LH).

Found;

  • Writes key with with left hand (info goes to RH).
  • But says the word ring (info form RVF goes to LH).
52
Q

What is Sperry’s conclusions?

A
  • Studies support hemispheric lateralisation.
  • Each hemisphere can operate as a separate ‘brain’ if the corpus callosum is severed.
  • He argues that each hemisphere has its own perceptions, memories and experiences.

Psychology - Paper 2 (3 decks)

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