Biopsychology: Localisation of function in the brain Flashcards
The brain is divided into the left and right hemisphere, which hemisphere controls the activity of each side of the body?
right-left hand side of the body
left-right hand side of the body
Define the theory of localisation
the theory that different areas of the brain are responsible for different behaviours , processes and activities
What does the term lateralisation refer to?
that some of our physical and psychological functions are controlled by a particular hemisphere
Describe the location and function of the motor area
-what can happen as a result of damage to this area
-at the back of the frontal lobe , in both hemispheres
-controls voluntary movement in the opposite side of the body
-damage to this area may result in a loss in muscle function or paralysis
Describe the location and function of the somatosensory area
-at the front of the parietal lobe , in both hemispheres
-its separated from the motor area by the central sulcus
-area where sensory info from the skin is represented
Describe the location and function of the visual area
-what can happen as a result of damage to this area
-located in the occipital lobe at the back of the brain , in both hemispheres
-each eye sends info to the opposite side of the occipital lobe
-damage in one hemisphere can cause blindness in the visual field of the opposite side of both eyes
Describe the location and function of the auditory area
-what can happen as a result of damage to this area
-located in the temporal lobe , in both hemispheres
-analyses sound based info
-damage may produce hearing loss
Which side of the brain is language restricted to ?
What does this mean?
the left side
-it is lateralised
Describe the location and function of Broca’s area
-what can happen as a result of damage to this area
located in the left frontal lobe
responsible for speech production
damage results in Broca’s aphasia , which is where speech is slow and lacks fluency
Describe the location and function of Wernicke’s area
-what can happen as a result of damage to this area
located in the left temporal lobe
responsible for language comprehension
damage results in Wernicke’s aphasia , patients produce nonsense words and sentences are difficult to understand
What are the 2 strengths of the theory?
+evidence support from a range of methods
-human case studies such s Phineas Gage demonstrated the role of the frontal lobe in mood regulation
-Petersen et al 1998 showed how Wernicke’s area was active during listening task and how Broca’s area was active during reading task
-means can be confident in making conclusions about localisation of function
+practical apps
knowing about language centres has led to apps in speech and language therapy , shows that knowing about diff areas provides useful insights
What are 2 weaknesses ?
-evidence has limitations
case studies are very unique so generalisability is limited , means conclusions can be difficult to make
-its a limited explanation
its unlikely that complex functions like personality are localised to one specific area but the theory doesn’t account for this , suggesting it may be too simplistic
Who provides contradictory evidence?
Lashley
damaged areas of the cortex in rats that were learning a maze and found that no 1 area showed to be responsible for learning and undamaged parts of the cortex could take over the role of damaged parts (equipotentiality principle)
this research suggests some behaviours are too complex to be localised
