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A Level Psychology > Biopsychology > Flashcards

Biopsychology Flashcards

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1
Q

What two parts is the nervous system split into

A

Central nervous system

Peripheral nervous system

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2
Q

What is the PNS split into

A

autonomic and somatic nervous systems

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3
Q

What is the ANS split into

A

sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems

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4
Q

What is the CNS made up of

A

the brain and spinal cord

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5
Q

What is the spinal cord responsible for

A

reflex actions and involuntary movements

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6
Q

What are the four main lobes in the brain

A

frontal lobe
parietal lobe
temporal lobe
occipital lobe

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7
Q

What does each lobe process

A

frontal - reasoning and logic
parietal - integrates sense info
temporal - auditory info
occipital - visual info

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8
Q

What is the PNS’s job

A

to relay nerve impulses to and from the CNS to the rest of the body

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9
Q

What does the somatic NS do

A

carry sensory info from the outside to the brain and provides motor responses
made up of sensory receptors

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10
Q

What is ANS’s job

A

homeostasis, and actions are mostly agnostic

only motor neurons

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11
Q

What are agnostic actions

A

actions that work in opposition to each other

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12
Q

What does sympathetic do

A

fight or flight - increases heart rate

dilates pupils and bronchi

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13
Q

What does parasympathetic do

A

rest and digest - decreases heart rate

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14
Q

What is the endocrine system in charge of

A

body processes that happen slowly

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15
Q

What is the nervous system in charge of

A

body processes that happen fast

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16
Q

What do the adrenal glands do

A

release adrenalin into the bloodstream which constricts blood vessels to the stomach, increases heart rate and blood pressure

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17
Q

What do pituitary glands do

A

controls the release of hormones from all other endocrine glands

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18
Q

What do the ovaries do

A

release progesterone and oestrogen for menstrual cycle

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19
Q

What is the nervous system made up of

A

neurons

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20
Q

What part of the neuron receives the message

A

the dendrite

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21
Q

Which part of the neuron sends the message away

A

the axon

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22
Q

What is the area between the myelin sheath called

A

the nodes of Ranvier

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23
Q

What is the role of the nodes of ranvier

A

speed up rate of transmission by forcing impulse to jump

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24
Q

What are the types of neurons

A

motor, sensory and relay

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25
Q

What is the function and the length of sensory neurons

A

carries messages from the PNS to the brain and spinal cord

long dendrites short axons

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26
Q

What is the function and the length of relay neurons in the CNS

A

transfer messages from sensory to other relay or motor neurons
short dendrites and short or long axons

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27
Q

What is the function and the length of motor neurons

A

carries messages from the CNS to effectors

short dendrites long axons

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28
Q

in the reflex arc, a stimulus is picked up by sense organs in which NS

A

peripheral nervous system

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29
Q

Describe the pathway of a stimulus in the reflex arc

A

sensory neuron pathway to CNS
Relay neuron in CNS
Motor neuron
effector

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30
Q

What do neurotransmitters allow

A

communications between neurons

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31
Q

Where are chemicals released in the synapse

A

synaptic vesicle in the presynaptic neuron

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32
Q

What do the chemicals do (3 ways)

A

they bind to receptors on the post synaptic neuron
or they are metabolized by an enzyme
or they are taken back up into terminal buttons of the pre synaptic neurons through the process of reuptake

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33
Q

What is an inhibitory neurotransmitter

A

a NT that will make it less likely that the next neuron will fire

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34
Q

What is an excitatory NT

A

a NT that will make it more likely that the next neuron will fire

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35
Q

What is the action potential

A

an explosion of electrical activity when a stimulus causes the resting potential to move forward

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36
Q

Why does fight or flight include beta bias

A

Taylor (2000) found that women tend to tend and befriend in stressful situations

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37
Q

Who studied the freeze response as an opposition to fight or flight

A

Gray (1998)

we freeze and become hyper vigilant to assess the situation

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38
Q

Why is fight or flight a maladaptive response in modern day

A

useful for ancestors
intense bio response that can cause damage to our bodies if repeated regularly such as narrowing of blood vessels = heart disease

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39
Q

What is localisation

A

specific areas of the brain are associated with particular physical and psychological functions

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40
Q

Who changed the holistic theory

A

Broca and Wernicke

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41
Q

Which side of the brain controls the left hand side of the body

A

right

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42
Q

Is the brain symmetrical

A

yes

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43
Q

What is lateralisation

A

the dominance of one hemisphere for particular physical and psychological

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44
Q

Where is language lateralised

A

left hemisphere

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45
Q

What is aphasia

A

inability to understand (Wernicke’s aphasia) or produce speech (Broca’s aphasia)

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46
Q

What are the three concentric layers of the brain

A

the central core
the limbic system
the cerebral cortex

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47
Q

What structure does the central core contain

A

the hypothalamus

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48
Q

What does the hypothalamus do

A

homeostasis

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49
Q

What does the limbic system do

A

controls our emotions

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50
Q

What structure does the limbic system contain

A

hippocampus

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51
Q

What does the hippocampus do

A

memory

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52
Q

Why does our cerebral cortex differentiate us from other animals

A

it is more developed

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53
Q

What structure does the cerebral cortex contain

A

corpus callosum

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54
Q

What is the corpus callosum

A

a bundle of nerves that allows messages to be sent from one hemisphere to another

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55
Q

What are the four lobes

A

occipital, frontal, parietal and temporal

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56
Q

What does the frontal lobe do

A

awareness of environment

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57
Q

What does the occipital lobe do

A

vision

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58
Q

What does the parietal lobe do

A

sensory and motor movements

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59
Q

What does the temporal lobe do

A

auditory ability and memory acquisition

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60
Q

What is the motor area responsible for

A

controls voluntary movements

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61
Q

What is the somatosensory area responsible for

A

touch/receptors

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62
Q

What separates the motor and somatosensory area

A

central sulcus

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63
Q

What is the visual area responsible for

A

vision

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64
Q

What is the auditory area responsible for

A

analysing speech based information

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65
Q

What is Broca’s aphasia characterised by

A

slow, laborious speech

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66
Q

Where did Broca find language to be

A

frontal left lobe

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67
Q

Where did Wernicke find language comphresion to be

A

left temporal lobe

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68
Q

What is Wernicke’s aphasia characterised by

A

nonsense words (neologisms)

69
Q

Why is the Phineas Gage case study a positive evaluation of localised function

A

as he lost most of his frontal left lobe, and his personality switched which suggested this part of the brain was responsible for regulating mood

70
Q

Explain why brain scan studies are a positive evaluation for localised function of the brain

A

Peterson (1988) found that Wernicke’s area was active during a listening task and Broca’s area was active during a reading task
it is a highly sophisticated and scientific method

71
Q

Why are not all cognitive functions localised

A

Lashley (1950) suggested that basic motor and sensory functions are localised but not high mental functions
suggested that localised function was affected by the extent of damage and not the location as othe rparts of the brain can take on new tasks
research into rats and ability to go round maize after parts of brain removed

72
Q

What did Lashley call the reorganising of the brain

A

Law of equipotentiality or plasticity

73
Q

Why does the brain change and adapt

A

as a result of new learning and experience

74
Q

When does the brain experience rapid growith

A

infancy

75
Q

What grows in infancy and is double the amount of an adults

A

synaptic connections

76
Q

What is it called when rarely used connections are deleted and regularly used connections are strengthened

A

synaptic pruning

77
Q

What is this process of the brain changing called

A

plasticity

78
Q

Name and explain a plasticity study

A

Maguire et al (2000)
MRI scans on london taxi drivers
found more grey matter in the posterior hippocampus
this area is used for spatial and navigation skills

79
Q

Evaluate Maguire’s study

A

control group allows us to say there is a significant difference
scientific method used
cant be sure the difference is from knowledge as they may have become taxi drivers because of the existing difference

80
Q

What can happen to the brain after physical trauma eg infection

A

unaffected areas can compensate for damage and the function is recovered

81
Q

What is functional recovery also known as

A

neural plasticity

82
Q

What happens to the brain during recovery

A

it is rewired by forming new synaptic connections close to the area of damage and secondary neural pathways that are not usually specialised are unmasked to enable functioning to continue

83
Q

What are the structural changes in functional recovery

A

axon sprouting
reformation of blood vessels
recruitment of homologous areas

84
Q

What is axon sprouting

A

new nerve endings grow and connect with undamaged areas

85
Q

What is recruitment of homologous areas

A

where the same area on the opposite hemisphere takes over functions

86
Q

What are the positive evaluations of plasticity

A

practical application - understanding plasticity has contributed to the field of neurorehabilitation
movement therapy and electrical stimulation can help those who need to recover after trauma
Hubel and Wiesel (1963) found that after sewing a kittens eye shut the brain continued to process the info of the open eye

87
Q

What are the negative evaluations of plasticity

A

negative plasticity can occur, where the rewiring can be maladaptive
Medina et al (2007) drug use leads to poorer cognitive functioning
60-80% of amputees experience phantom limb pain due to cortical reorganisation

88
Q

Why is the brain contralateral

A

as the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body

89
Q

Who looked into split brain research

A

Sperry

90
Q

What did Sperry do

A

severed the corpus callosum to treat resistant epilepsy `

91
Q

Explain a split brain research study

A

Sperry
quasi experiment
looking at split brain p’s hypothetically compared to normal p’s

92
Q

What were the visual results from this study

A

left visual field showed nude picture

would blush and laugh but couldnt say why

93
Q

What were the tactile findings from the study

A

lvf shown a word and left hand could pick up the right object
because lvf to right motor cortex to left hand, right hand receives no info

94
Q

Which hemisphere is dominant for facial recognition

A

right

95
Q

Explain the strengths of brain lateralisation

A

uses highly specialised and standardised procedures

Sperry developed a very clever, useful and controlled procedure

96
Q

Explain the issues with brain lateralisation

A

issues with generalisation as only a unique sample of epilepsy patients were tested and the control may have been inappropriate
differences in function may be overstated as both hemispheres can perform functions when the situation requires it

97
Q

What are 4 ways we can investigate the brain

A

fMRI
EEG
ERPs
Post mortem examinations

98
Q

What does fMRI do

A

Detects changes in the blood oxygenation and flow as a result of neural activity in specific parts of the brain

99
Q

Wha response is fMRI looking for

A

haemodynamic response

100
Q

What does an fMRI produce

A

a 3D image showing parts of the brain involved in particualr mental processes

101
Q

What does EEG do

A

Measures electrical activity within the brain

102
Q

How is EEG done

A

through placing electrodes on the scalp of a patient

103
Q

What does EEG record

A

brainwave patterns from neurons

104
Q

What is EEG used to diagnose

A

epilepsy and tumours

105
Q

What does ERP meassure

A

general brain activity

106
Q

What is ERP used for

A

psychology tests looking into stimulus in performance tasks

107
Q

What are the 3 positives of fMRI

A

doesnt rely on radiation
non invasive = risk free
high spatial resolution making it good to localised functions

108
Q

What are the 3 negatives of fMRI

A

very expensive
poor temporal resolution
must be completely still

109
Q

What are the 3 positives of EEG

A

able to diagnose conditions
helps us understand sleep cycles
high temproal resolution

110
Q

What is the negative of EEG

A

poor spatial resolution

111
Q

What are the 2 positives of ERP

A

high temporal resolution

makes up for EEG limitations

112
Q

What are the 2 negatives of ERP

A

lack of standardisation in methodology

must be absolute silence - not easy to achieve

113
Q

What are the 2 positives of post mortem examination

A

Broca and Wernicke relied on this

help improve medical knowledge

114
Q

What are the 2 negatives of post mortem examination

A

causation not easily established

ethical issues as not often informed consent

115
Q

What is a circadian rhythm

A

biological rhythms that occur over a 24 hour period

116
Q

What is a biological rhythm

A

patterns of changes in body activity over cyclic periods

117
Q

What is an ultradian rhythm

A

biological rhythms that occur more than once cycle in 24 hours

118
Q

What is a infradian rhythm

A

biological rhythms that occur less than once in a 24 hour period

119
Q

What are endogenous pacemakers

A

Internal body clocks that regulate biological rhythms

120
Q

What are exogenous zeitgebers

A

external cues that influence our biological rhythms

121
Q

What does circadian rhythm regulate

A

sleeping and feeding patterns, alertness, body temp

122
Q

What are the two most important hormones that the circadian rhythm governs

A

melatonin (sleep)

cortisol (anti stress sugar)

123
Q

What is the endogenous pacemakerin the brain

A

suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN)

124
Q

What is a study that supports circadian rhythms

A

Siffre 1962
spent 2 months in a cave without natural sound or light
circadian rhythm still was 25 hours

125
Q

What study backs up siffre and also suggests that a rhythm is longer than 24 hours

A

Aschoff and Wever 1976
4 weeks in a bunker
all but 1 had rythms of 25 hours, 1 being 29 hours

126
Q

Discuss Folkard et al 1985 study

A

in cave for 3 weeks
researxhers sped up clock so 24 hours was now 22
only 1 could adjust to new pattern
suggests a strong circadian rhythm cannot be overrun easily by external cues

127
Q

When does core temperature reach its minimum

A

4:30am

128
Q

Name a practical application of circadian rhythms

A

should shift work
early work causes disruptions/desynchronisation
night workers go through a cricadian trough at 6am - could lead to mistakes
sleep/wake cycle may have economic implications on productivity

129
Q

Name another practical application of circadian rhythms

A

drug treatments

peak times of day or night when they’d be most effective

130
Q

Name some limitations of circadian rhythms

A

individual differences (Czeislar et al 1999)
night owls and early birds/larks preference
poor control in studies as artificial lights were still used

131
Q

Name 2 infradian rhythms

A

menstrual cycle

Seasonal affective disorder (SAD)

132
Q

How often does the menstrual cycle come

A

every 28 days and governed by hormones

133
Q

Name the study to do with menstrual systems

A

McClintock (1998)
endogenous system but may have exogenous factors such as synchronising with other women
68% of women synched with odour donors

134
Q

What is SAD

A

a depressive disorder

aka winter blues

135
Q

What hormone governs SAD

A

melatonin as it is produced in the dark and can affect when serotonin is released

136
Q

Which hormone governs menstrual cycle

A

oestrogen and progesterone

137
Q

What other type of rhythm is SAD

A

circannual rhythm

138
Q

Why is menstrual synchrony an evolutionary benefit

A

as if women menstruated at the same time and fell pregnant at the same time then their children could be collectively cared for, increasing chances of survival

139
Q

Why is menstrual synchrony and its evolutionary benefit questioned

A

its validity is questioned by Schank (2004)

he argued that there would be too much competition for the best males at the same time so offspring wouldnt be the best

140
Q

What is the practical application of SAD

A

phototherapy used as it resets melatonin levels

works on 60% of sufferers (Eastman et al 1998)

141
Q

Name an ultradian rhythm

A

sleep cycle

142
Q

How many stages of sleep are there

A

5

143
Q

Explain stages 1 and 2

A

sleep escalator
brain waves start to become slower and more rhythmic
can be easily woken

144
Q

Explain stages 3 and 4

A

slow wave sleep

harder to wake someone up

145
Q

What type of waves are in stages 1 and 2

A

alpha and theta

146
Q

What type of waves are in stages 3 and 4

A

delta waves

147
Q

Explain stage 5

A

REM sleep
paralysed body but mind just as active as being awake
dreams occur here

148
Q

Name evidence and a study for sleep stages

A

Dement and Kleitman (1957)
EEG recorded
looked at effects of alcohol and caffeine
REM = dreaming
p’s woken during REM could accurately recall dreams
replicated well but small sample size

149
Q

What are the three main focusses of endogenous pacemakers

A

SCN, pineal gland, melatonin

150
Q

What does SCN stand for

A

Suprachiasmatic Nucleus

151
Q

Where is the SCN and what does it do

A

most important EP in mammals
in the hypothalamus
regulates circadian rhythms

152
Q

Where does the SCN get info from

A

light from the optic nerve constantly

153
Q

What is entrainment

A

when our EZ resets our EP so we maintain a 24hr cycle

154
Q

What does the pineal gland do

A

controls production of melatonin according to its light sensitive cells
light levels fall = melatonin increases
induces sleep by inhibiting brain mechanisms that keep us awake

155
Q

Explain a EP study

A

DeCoursey et al (2000)
destroyed SCN connections in 30 chipmunks the returned them to the wild
80 days, most had been killed
suggested they were awake when they should have been asleep and vulnerable to predators
many ethical issues

156
Q

what is free running

A

when the body clock runs without any influence from EZ

157
Q

What is an exogenous zeitgebers

A

external factors in the environment that reset our biological clocks

158
Q

What process does EZ do this through

A

entrainment

159
Q

NAme two key EZ

A

light

social cues

160
Q

What does light reset

A

the SCN

161
Q

What processes does light have an effect on

A

sleep/wake cycle
secretion of hormones
blood circulation

162
Q

Who found that light can change a sleeping pattern even when not shone on the eyes

A

Campbell and Murphy (1998)

163
Q

At what age does circadian rhythms start in babies

A

6 weeks

164
Q

At what age are most babies entrained

A

16 weeks

165
Q

What is shown as an effective way to beat jet lag

A

adapting to local eating and sleeping rather than listening to needs

166
Q

Why is research for EP’s unethical

A

DeCoursey et al
animals exposed to considerable harm and subsequent risk
dont know if we learn enough for this to be worth it
cannot generalise animal findings to humans

167
Q

Why might the influence of EZ be overstated

A

Miles et al (1977)
blind man had 24.9 hour sleep cycle
no amount of social cues coukd change it
artic people who live in constant sunlight show normal sleeping patterns

168
Q

What are the methodological issues in EZ studies

A

Campbell and Murphy
not been replicated
p’s believed to had some exposure to light in eyes
confound variable

A Level Psychology (12 decks)

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