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Psychology - Biopsychology > Localisation > Flashcards

Localisation Flashcards

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1
Q

What is localisation of function?

A

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

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2
Q

Describe the Phineas Gage case

A
  • He worked on the railroad with explosives, an explosion hurled a pole through his left cheek, exiting his skull, taking a portion of mostly his frontal lobe
  • The damage left a mark on his personality, changed from calm to quick-tempered
  • Gage is a landmark case for change in temperament after the accident. Suggests frontal lobe may be responsible for regulating mood
  • Before this case, scientists supported the holistic theory of the brain
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3
Q

What is the function of the cerebrum?

A

Largest part of the brain, controls higher functions like complex perception, thinking

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4
Q

What is the function of the cerebellum?

A

Controls basic motor control, balance and simple learning

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5
Q

What is the function of the brain stem?

A

Basic life function, breathing and heart.

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6
Q

Outline the 2 hemispheres

A

The left and right sides of the brain are similar in most respects, but the presence of the language areas are on the left

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7
Q

What are the 4 lobes?

A
  • Frontal
  • Parietal
  • Occipital
  • Temporal
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8
Q

What are all the cortex’s/areas of the brain?

A
  • Visual cortex
  • Auditory cortex
  • Wernicke’s area
  • Motor cortex
  • Broca’s area
  • Somatosensory cortex
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9
Q

Where is the visual cortex found?

A
  • In the occipital lobe
  • Found in both hemispheres, the left receives input from the right visual field and the right from the left visual field.
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10
Q

How does visual processing work?

A
  • Begins the retina where light hits photoreceptors (rods and cones)
  • Nerve impulses from the optic nerve travel from the retina to the brain
  • Some of these impulses travel to the area of the brain involved in coordination of circadian rhythms, but most terminate in the thalamus (relay station, passing info to the visual
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11
Q

What are the areas in the visual cortex responsible for?

A

Visual cortex has areas responsible for different types of visual info like colour, shape and movement

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12
Q

Where is the auditory cortex found?

A
  • Found in the temporal lobe
  • In both hemispheres
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13
Q

How does auditory processing work?

A
  • Auditory pathways begin in the cochlea in the inner ear, where sound waves are converted to nerve impulses, and travel via the auditory nerve to the auditory cortex
  • On the way, it stops at the brain stem where basic decoding takes place (e.g. duration and intensity of sound), then to the thalamus which acts as a relay station and carries out further processing of the auditory stimulus
  • Lastly, the auditory cortex recognises the decoded messages and an appropriate response may be made
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14
Q

Where is Wernicke’s area located?

A

In the left temporal lobe

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15
Q

What is Wernicke’s area responsible for?

A
  • Patients with a lesion in Wernicke’s area could speak but couldn’t understand language.
  • Wernicke proposed language involves separate motor and sensory regions located in different regions.
  • The motor region, located in Broca’s area, is close to the area that controls the mouth, tongue and vocal cords. The sensory region, located in Wernicke’s area, is close to the regions of the brain responsible for auditory and visual input.
  • Input from these regions is thought to be transferred to Wernicke’s area where it’s recognised as language and associated with meaning.
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16
Q

Where is Broca’s area located?

A

In the left frontal lobe

17
Q

What is Broca’s area responsible for?

A
  • Broca treated a patient (referred to Tan, as it was the only syllable this patient could express.) Tan had been able to understand spoken language, he was unable to speak, nor express his thoughts in writing.
  • After, Broca studied 8 patients who has similar language deficits and lesions in the left frontal lobe.
  • Patients with damage to these areas in the right hemisphere didn’t have the same language problems. This led him to identify the ‘language centre’ in the posterior of the left frontal lobe.
  • This area is believed to be critical for speech production
18
Q

What do other neuroscientists find evidence of in Broca’s area?

A
  • Evidence of activity in Broca’s area when people perfom cognitive tasks that have nothing to do with language.
  • Fedorenko et al disovered two regions of Broca’s area, one involved in language, the other involved in responding to demanding cognitive tasks (e.g. maths problems)
19
Q

Where is the motor cortex located?

A
  • At the end of the frontal lobe
  • In the both hemispheres (with the motor cortex on one side of the brain controlling the muscles on the opposite side of the body
20
Q

What is the motor cortex responsible for?

A
  • Responsible for the generation of voluntary motor movements
  • Different parts of the motor cortex exert control over different parts of the body. These regions are arranged logically next to one another, e.g. the region that controls the actions of the foot is next to the region that controls the leg and so on
21
Q

Where is the somatosensory cortex located?

A
  • In both hemispheres, where the somatosensory cortex on one side of the brain receives sensory info from the opposite
  • In the parietal lobe, along the postcentral gyrus, dedicated to the processing of sensory info related to touch
22
Q

What is the somatosensory cortex responsible for?

A
  • Detects sensory events arising from different regions of the body
  • Using sensory info from the skin, the somatosensory cortex produces sensation of touch, pressure, pain and temperature, which it then localises to specific body regions
23
Q

Give evaluation for localisation (aphasia studies)

A
  • Aphasia studies support the existence of distinct language centres in the brain
  • Brain scans have shown that damage to Broca’s and Wernicke’s area results in different types of aphasia
  • Expressive aphasia (or Broca’s aphasia) is an impaired ability to produce language. Receptive aphasia (or Wernicke’s aphasia) is an impaired ability to extract meaning from spoken or written words.
  • Demonstrates the important and distinct roles of these brain regions in different aspects of language
24
Q

Give evaluation for localisation (language is not confined)

A
  • Language production may not be confined to Broca’s area alone
  • Dronkers et al re-examined the preserved brain of 2 of Broca’s patients. They used high resolution MRI imaging to identify the lesions in more details.
  • MRI findings showed that other areas could’ve contributed to the patients limited speech abilities. Although lesions in Broca’s area alone can cause temporary speech disruption, they don’t usually result in severe language disruption
  • Suggests localisation is limited in explaining language and cognition. These are more complicated than once thought and involve networks of brain regions rather than being localised to specific areas
25
Q

Give evaluation for localisation (equipotentiality theory)

A
  • There are challeneges to localisation, an influential conflicting view is the equipotentiality theory.
  • Lashley believed that basic motor and sensory functions were localised, but the higher mental functions were not
  • He stated that intact areas of the cortex could take over responsibility for specific cognitive functions following injury to the area normally responsible for the function. The impact of damage would be determined by the extent rather than the location of the damage
  • This is supported by findings that humans can regain some cognitive abilities, following damage to specific areas of the brain
26
Q

Give evaluation for localisation (individual differences)

A
  • The pattern of activity observed in response to various language activities can differ between individuals
  • Bavelier et al found different patterns of activation across individuals when reading. There was activity in the right temporal lobe and in the left frontal, temporal and occipital lobes
  • Others have found gender differences in the size of brain areas linked to language. Harasty el al found women have a larger Broca’s and Wernicke’s area compared to men

Psychology - Biopsychology (17 decks)

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