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Psychology 2 > Biopsychology > Flashcards

Biopsychology Flashcards

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1
Q

How is the nervous system divided?

A

divided into two main sub systems: the central nervous system (CNS) and peripheral nervous system (PNS)

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2
Q

What is the role of the CNS?

A
  • has two main functions: controlling behaviour and regulation of the body physiological processes
  • consists of brain and spinal cord
  • brain receives information from sensory receptors and sends messages to muscles/glands
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3
Q

What is the role of the spinal cord within the CNS?

A
  • spinal cord is a group of nerve fibres enclosed in spinal column that connect almost all body parts to the brain
  • relays info between the brain and rest of body, enabling the brain to monitor and regulate internal processes and coordinate voluntary movement
  • consists of 31 pairs of spinal nerves, each nerve divides into 2 roots: one containing sensory neurons (enabling transmission of sensory info to the brain), the other contains motor neurons (involved in transmission of motor signals to skeletal muscles and organs)
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4
Q

What is the role of the brain within the CNS?

A

4 main areas of brain:
1- cerebrum - 85% of mass, divided into 4 lobes with different functions: frontal lobe (speech/thought), occipital lobe (visual), temporal lobe (hearing/memory), perietal lobe (sensory)
2- diencephalon - top of brain stem, containing 2 structures: thalamus (relay station for nerve impulses coming from senses, involved in sleep) and hypothalamus (regulates body temp, hunger, thirst, links endocrine system to nervous system)
3- brain stem - regulates automatic functions e.g. heartbeat, motor/sensory neurons travel through here, allowing impulses to pass between brain and spinal cord
4- cerebellum - sits beneath back of cerebrum, controlling motor skills, balance, muscle coordination

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5
Q

What is the function of the PNS?

A
  • consists of nerve cells outside the brain and spinal cord that lead to and from the CNS, connecting it with the body and outside world
  • consists of somatic nervous system and autonomic nervous system
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6
Q

What is the function of the somatic nervous system?

A
  • made up of cranial and spinal nerves
  • carries sensory and motor information to and from the CNS and coordinates voluntary movement of skeletal muscles, but is also involved in reflex actions
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7
Q

What is the function of the autonomic nervous system?

A
  • governs involuntary activity of internal body systems, can be divided into two branches:
  • sympathetic nervous system - produces arousal and energy, preparing the body fro rapid action (fight/flight response)
  • parasympathetic nervous system - involved in reducing arousal, conserving energy and digestion (relaxes body into state of normality)
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8
Q

What are neurons?

A

the cells that make up the nervous system by conducting electrical impulses - make up 10% of brain cells

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9
Q

What are the different types of neurons?

A
  • sensory neuron (convert sensory input from sensory receptors into neural impulses, and carry these sensory impulses to the CNS, where they are transplanted into sensations for appropriate responses, however can bypass the brain by travelling as far as the spinal cord before conversion to motor neurons, allowing reflex actions)
  • relay neuron (within the CNS that interconnect parts of it and allow sensory/motor neurons to communicate with each other by carrying information between them)
  • motor neuron (carry motor commands from CNS to skeletal muscles/glands, allowing for movement/response of internal systems)
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10
Q

What is the basic structure of all neurons?

A
  • dendrites (receive signals from other neurons/sensory receptors)
  • cell body (control centre of the neuron incl the nucleus)
  • axon (conduct nerve impulses away from cell body towards other neurons, axon terminals fire impulse into synaptic gap)
  • axon may be covered in myelin sheath - acts as insulator and allows impulse to jump gaps in sheath to travel quickly
  • impulse travelling along neuron is also called action potential
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11
Q

What is synaptic transmission?

A

the process in which a nerve impulse passes across the synaptic cleft from one neutron (presynaptic neuron) to another (postsynaptic neuron)

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12
Q

What is a synapse?

A

small gap between neurons in which neurotransmitters are released, allowing impulses to be transmitted between neurons

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13
Q

What are neurotransmitters?

A

chemical substance that transmits nerve impulses across a synapse

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14
Q

How does synaptic transmission happen?

A
  1. synaptic vesicles at the end of an axon are stimulated by the action potential (impulse) as it travels down
  2. this causes the release of neurotransmitters into the synapse
  3. neurotransmitter diffuses across the gap over to the post synaptic neuron and binds to special receptors unique to that neurotransmitter
  4. this produces either excitatory (making neuron more likely to fire) or inhibitory effects (making neuron less likely to fire) on the postsynaptic neuron
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15
Q

What happens to the neurotransmitter following synaptic transmission?

A
  • diffusion
  • breakdown by enzymes
  • re-uptake by the presynaptic neuron (the quicker this is, the shorter the effects on the postsynaptic neuron)
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16
Q

What is meant by the endocrine system?

A
  • network of ductless glands throughout the body that manufacture and secrete hormones into bloodstream, affecting the activity of ‘target cells’ - unlike nervous system, endocrine system exerts indirect control and acts slowly, with longer lasting effects
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17
Q

What is the function of the endocrine system?

A
  • to maintain a stable concentration of hormones in the body - creation of a negative feedback loop
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18
Q

What are the major glands in the endocrine system?

A
  • pituitary gland
  • adrenal gland
  • gonads
  • thyroid
  • pancreas
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19
Q

What is the function of the pituitary gland?

A
  • ‘master gland’ which releases many hormones that often control secretions from other endocrine glands
  • two main parts: Anterier (front) and Posterior (back)
  • Anterier (front): releases hormones e.g. ACTH (stimulates adrenal glands to produce cortisol in stress reponse), LH and FSH (important in control of reproductive functioning)
  • Posterior (back): released hormones e.g. Oxytocin (stimulates uterus contraction in childbirth and promotes mother-infant bonding) and ADH (regulates water balance)
20
Q

What is the function of the adrenal glands?

A
  • Adrenal Medulla - inner part that released adrenaline and noradrenaline into bloodstream, causing increase heart rate/pressure, releases glucose for fight/flight response
  • Adrenal Cortex - outer part that releases hormones e.g. cortisol which regulate a variety of functions e.g. cardiovascular functions
21
Q

What are hormones?

A

chemical substances released from endocrine glands into the bloodstream and carried to ‘target sites’ which hormones will act on, either altering their function or to release other hormones
- hormones carried round the body slowly, so most are slow acting and their effects can last some time

22
Q

How do hormones stimulate target sites?

A
  • hormones come into contact with many cells but can only affect those with receptors for that particular hormone (target cells)
  • receptor sites are stimulated by hormones, resulting in physiological reaction in the target cell
  • the levels of hormones and timing of release are critical for normal functioning - altering the levels/timings can result in dysfunction
23
Q

How is the endocrine system regulated?

A
  • hypothalamus (controls the release of hormones from its direct connections with the pituitary gland: hypothalamus sends a releasing hormone to stimulate the pituitary gland to release stimulating hormones into the bloodstream, which stimulate other endocrine glands to secrete hormones)
  • negative feedback system (increased hormone levels detected by hypothalamus which stops itself sending releasing hormones to the pituitary gland, which will decrease its secretion of the stimulating hormone to other glands - results in stable concentration of hormones in the bloodstream)
24
Q

What is ‘fight or flight response’?

A
  • sequence of activity within the body that is triggered when the body prepares itself for defending/attacking or running away/safety
  • this involved changes in the nervous system and the secretion of hormones that are necessary to sustain arousal
25
Q

What is the process of the fight or flight response?

A
  1. appraisal of threat: higher brain centres e.g. amygdala (part of limbic system) detects fearful/threatening stimuli, rapidly and often unconsciously
  2. hypothalamus (acts as control centre, communicates to the rest of the body via the ANS) is alerted of threatening stimuli and activates 2 systems:
    - sympathetic adrenal medullary (SAM) pathway (initial shock response to stresser - arousal of sympathetic branch of ANS, stimulates adrenal medulla)
    - pituitary adrenal axis (minimises damage caused by excessive activity in the SAM, countershock response where pituitary releases ACTH which travels to adrenal cortex, stimulating release of hormones e.g. cortisol)
  3. the adrenal medulla releases adrenaline/noradrenaline into the bloodstream - adrenaline boosts oxygen supply to muscles and restricts non-emergency processes e.g. digestion, noradrenaline constricts blood vessels causing increased blood pressure
26
Q

How can the fight or flight response be evaluated?

A
  • may be gender differences in stress response - argument that females display ‘tend and befriend’ behaviours: protect themselves/their young through nurturing behaviours and actively seek social support/protective alliances with other women - therefore female stress response may have evolved in context of being primary caregiver so may have different coping system - oxytocin may inhibit ‘flight’ response by increasing relaxation, and these effects are increased by oestrogen (research tends to focus on men and not consider role of oxytocin)
  • there may be a ‘freeze’ response, argued first phrase of reaction to stress it neither fight nor flight but to avoid confrontation, most animals display ‘freeze’ response which allows them to focus attention on new information to make best decision of how to respond
  • response may not be adaptive for modern day stressors which rarely require physical activity - increased blood pressure from stress can lead to physical damage in blood vessels, too much cortisol suppresses immune system
27
Q

What are the 4 different ways of studying the brain?

A
  • fMRIs
  • EEGs
  • ERPs
  • post-mortem examinations
28
Q

How do fMRIs work?

A
  • detect changes in blood oxygenation/flow that occur from neural activity in specific parts in the brain: active areas consume more oxygen so flow increases
  • fMRIs produce 3D images showing which parts are involed in particular mental processes - important for understanding localisation of functions
29
Q

How do EEGs work?

A
  • measure general electrical activity in brain
  • electrodes fitted to brain using skull cap, measuring brainwave patterns generated from neurons, providing overall account of brain activity
  • used to investigate arrhythmic patterns of activity that may indicate neurological abnormalities e.g. epilepsy
30
Q

How do ERPs work?

A
  • extraneous brain activity from an EEG is filtered out, leaving only the responses relating to a specific stimulus: ERPs - types of brainwaves that are triggered by particular events
31
Q

How do post-mortem examinations work?

A
  • technique involving analysis of brain after death, likely to be those with a rare disorder with unusual deficits in mental processes - areas of damage are examined to establish causes of affliction
32
Q

What are the strengths and limitations of fMRIs?

A
  • strengths: doesn’t rely on use of radiation (unlike PET), virtually risk-free/non-invasive, images produced have high spatial resolution (detailed)
  • limitations: expensive compared to other techniques, image only clear if person v still, poor temporal resolution as 1sec lag time between image on screen and initial firing of neural activity, can only measure blood flow and not not individual neuron activity so may be difficult to tell what kind of brain activity is being represented
33
Q

What are the strengths and limitations of EEGs?

A

.

34
Q

What are the strengths and limitations of ERPs?

A

.

35
Q

What are the strengths and limitations of post-mortems?

A

.

36
Q

What is localisation of function?

A

belief that specific areas of the brain are associated with specific funtions e.g. memory- prefrontal lobes in the STM

37
Q

What is hemispheric lateralisation?

A

belief that 2 halves of the brain are not entirely alike and each has its own functional specialisations
e.g. left dominant for language/speech
right dominant for visual-motor tasks

38
Q

Do you know what the parts of the brain are and where they are located?

A
  • cerebrum: frontal lobe (front) parietal lobe (top) occipital lobe (back) temporal lobe (bottom)
  • cerebellum: bottom next to brain stem
  • brain stem (stem at bottom)
  • diencephalon: top of brain stem
39
Q

Do you know what the areas of cortical specialisation are in the brain and where they are located?

A
  • motor cortex (in right of frontal lobe)
  • somatosensory cortex (in left of parietal lobe, touching motor cortex)
  • visual cortex (very back in occipital lobe)
  • auditory cortex (where ears would be, in temporal lobe)
40
Q

What is the function of the motor cortex?

A
  • controls voluntary motor movement
  • located in frontal lobe along the precentral gyrus region
  • in both hemispheres with each side coordinating muscles on the opposite side
  • different regions of motor cortex exert control over different areas of the body, arranged logically (e.g. region controlling foot movement is next to leg)
41
Q

What is the function of the somatosensory cortex?

A
  • processes input from sensory receptors sensitive to touch
  • detects sensory events from regions of the body - produces sensations of tough, pressure, pain etc which it localises to specific body regions
  • located in parietal lobe along the postcentral gyrus region
  • in both hemispheres, with each side interpreting sensory info from opposite side of the body
42
Q

What is the function of the visual cortex?

A
  • visual processing begins in retina, nerve impulses then transmit to brain via optic nerve - majority of these impulses terminate in the thalamus (acting as relay station, passing info to visual cortex)
  • spans both hemispheres with the right receiving input from left hand side of visual field and vice versa
  • different areas of visual cortex process different types of visual info e.g. colour, shape etc
43
Q

What is the function of the auditory cortex?

A
  • in temporal lobes on both sides of brain
  • concerned with hearing - sound waves converted into impulses in cochlea in inner ear, impulses then travel to brain stem where basic coding takes place, then to thalamus acting as relay station, then to auditory cortex via auditory nerve
44
Q

What are the language centres of the brain?

A
  • language centres thought to be in the left hemisphere

- main areas incl: Wernicke’s area and Broca’s area

45
Q

What is the Wernicke’s area?

A
  • located in posterior portion of left temporal lobe

- important in language comprehension ie processing spoken language

46
Q

What is the Broca’s area?

A
  • located in posterior portion of left frontal lobe

- critical for speech production

47
Q

How are the Wernicke’s and Broca’s areas linked?

A
  • by a neural loop called arcuate fasciculus that runs between the two areas

Psychology 2 (3 decks)

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