Individual Influences on Behavior

Question 1

What are the 5 types of somatosensation?

Answer 1

Temperature

Touch

Pain

Position

Vibration

Question 2

What are the different kinds of somatosensory receptors? What is a major structural difference between them?

Answer 2

• Mechanoreceptors
• Nociceptors
• Thermoreceptors
• • Nociceptors and thermoreceptors have bare nerve endings, while mechanoreceptors do not

Question 3

Is the autonomic nervous system composed of afferent or efferent neurons?

Answer 3

Efferent

Question 4

ANS neurons control what 3 main cell types?

Answer 4

1. Smooth muscle: Responses that involve changes in blood flow
2. Cardiac muscle: Makes up heart
3. Gland Cells; Activated differently at different times:

Sweat glands activated by SNS

Salivary glands activated by PNS

Question 5

Describe the structure of the sympathetic nervous system

Answer 5

• Soma in middle of spinal cord
• Axon synapses on 2nd neuron in ganglia close to 1st neuron (ganglia collectively known as sympathetic chain) ; 2nd neuron sends longer axon to reach target cell (smooth, cardiac, or gland)

Question 6

Describe the structure of the parasympathetic nervous system

Answer 6

• Soma in brainstem or at bottom of spinal cord
• Long axon synapses with 2nd neuron in a ganglion far away from 1st neuron; 2nd neuron sends shorter axon to synapse on target cell

Question 7

Lower motor neurons

Answer 7

• Control skeletal muscle cells, telling them when to contract
• Soma in brainstem or spinal cord
  
  • Those that pass through spinal nerves primarily control muscles of limbs/trunk
  • Those that pass through cranial nerves primarily control skeletal muscles of head/neck
• Send axons out through nerves in PNS to synapse on and control skeletal muscle cells

Question 8

Upper motor neurons

Answer 8

• Control lower motor neurons and their activity
• Somas found mainly on outside surface of cerebrum
• Axons descend down to synapse on lower motor neuron in the brainstem or spinal cord
• Divided into different pathways/tracts depending on where they synapse onto lower motor neurons

Question 9

What are the major structures in the frontal lobe, and what are they responsible for?

Answer 9

• Motor Cortex (aka Motor Strip): Responsible for body movements
• Prefrontal Cortex: Responsible for executive functions, like thinking and problem-solving; also helps to supervise and direct all other areas of the brain
• Broca’s Area: Associated with speech production

Question 10

In what lobe do you find the motor cortex?

Answer 10

Frontal lobe

Question 11

What are the main structures/functions of the parietal lobe?

Answer 11

• Somatosensory Cortex: Associated with feeling; receives sensory information
  
  • Part of the sensorimotor cortex, which consists of both the somatosensory cortex and the motor cortex of the frontal lobe
• ​Responsible for spatial processing (spatial manipulation): Helps to orient yourself in 3D space
  
  • Not only helps us understand where we are in space, but also helps us understand the space around us more generally

Question 12

In what lobe do you find the somatosensory cortex?

Answer 12

Parietal Lobe

Question 13

In what lobe do you find the striate cortex?

Answer 13

Occipital Lobe

Question 14

For the most part, the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body and vice versa. What is the one exception?

Answer 14

Smell (communicates ipsilaterally)

Question 16

Psychoanalytic Perspective

Answer 16

Our childhood experiences and unconscious desires influence our behavior

Question 17

Describe the Id, ego, and superego

Answer 17

• 1. Id - unconscious part of our mind that makes up most of the mind; hidden below surface
     * Develops right after birth; Demands immediate gratification
• 2. Ego - part of conscious and unconscious mind
     * Involved in our perceptions, thoughts, and judgments
     * Seeks long-term gratification
• 3. Superego
     * Develops around 4 years old
     * Our moral compass; our conscience

Question 18

Humanistic Perspective

Answer 18

Humans have free will and we can actively develop ourselves to our highest potential and reach self-actualization

Question 19

Compare the psychoanalytic perspective and the humanistic perspective

Answer 19

• (Freud’s) Psychoanalytic Theory
  
  • Was deterministic (our behavior is determined by our unconscious desires)
  • Focused on individuals who had mental conflicts, not all people
• Humanistic Theory
  
  • Focuses on conscious
  • Says people are inherently good and that we are self-motivated to improve
  • We want to always improve because we want to reach self-actualization

Question 20

Biological Perspective

Answer 20

Important parts of personality are inherited/determined in part by genes

• Temperament: innate disposition; Innate = brought up by genetics; inherited
• Our inherited genes, to some degree, lead to our traits, which in turn lead to our behavior/personality
• Inherited/genes → Traits → Behavior/Personality
• But this is not an end-all be-all: genes don’t always determine our total personality → must be other things that account for this

Question 21

Behavioral Perspective

Answer 21

Personality is a result of the interaction between the individual and their environment; also focused on observable and measurable behaviors (vs mental/emotional)

• Skinner and Pavlov believed that the environment determines behavior and people have consistent behavior patterns because we have particular kinds of response tendencies
• These responses can change if we encounter new situations → why our personality develops over entire lifespan; constantly evolving/changing

Question 22

Trait Perspective

Answer 22

Defines personality in terms of identifiable patterns of behavior; uses description of traits versus explanation of traits (as other theories do)

• Trait = relatively stable characteristic; causes individuals to consistently behave in certain ways
  
  • Combination/interaction of various traits forms personality, which is what is unique to each person