Biopsychology: Evaluation

Question 1

Localisation of Function AO3

Answer 1

+ research support for language centres from aphasia studies (Broca’s and Wernicke’s aphasia)
+ research support from case studies (Phineas Gage: iron rod, change in personality)
- Lashley’s idea of equipotentiality (removed some of rats brains, learning maze required every part)
- early research relies on case studies (‘Tan’, problem of generalisability, fMRI scanners have validated it)

Question 2

Lateralisation AO3

Answer 2

+ increases neural processing capacity (leaves other hemisphere to do separate function, little empirical evidence, Rogers et al found in chickens lateralisation associated with enhanced ability to perform two tasks)
- relationship between lateralisation and immune system (mathematically gifted use right-hemisphere and likely to be left handed and have problems with immune system, Tonnessen et al found small but significant relationship)
- doesn’t stay the same throughout life (switch to bilateral, Szaflarski et al found language lateralisation decreases after 25)

Question 3

Split Brain Research AO3

Answer 3

• unrepresentative sample (epileptic, 11 people)
• language may not be restricted to left hemisphere (J.W.: developed capacity to speak out of right hemisphere, can speak about stimuli presented to both visual fields)
  + high degree of control (stimuli shown for very short duration, operationalises IV)

Question 4

Plasticity AO3

Answer 4

+ research support from human studies (Maguire et al, high ecological validity, low population validity)
+ research support from animal studies (Kempermann et al: rats in complex environment showed increase in neurons in hippocampus)
- reduces with age (happens more in childhood due to learning, Bezzola et al: reduced motor cortex activity in novice golfers)
- can sometimes have maladaptive behavioural consequences (60-80% of amputees develop phantom-limb syndrome)

Question 5

Functional Recovery AO3

Answer 5

+ link between educational attainment and functional recovery (Schneider et al: 39.2% with 16+ years and 9.7% with <12 years DFR in one year, cognitive reserve, correlational, intervening variable)
+ real world application: therapy (encouraged to practice impaired ability to promote recruitment of homologous areas)
- age differences (reduces with age, develop compensatory behavioural strategies instead)