localisation Flashcards
what is localisation of function ao1
the idea that certain functions (i.e language, memory etc) have certain locations in the brain
what happened to Phineas gage ao1
1848, working on a rail line, drastic incident, iron went through his skull, experienced change in personality, from being nice to being angry, this change showed evidence to support the theory of localisation of brain function as it was believed that the area that the metal went through affected his personality.
what key areas of the brain should I be aware of ao1
motor area, somatosensory area, visual area and auditory areas
where is the motor area and what does it do ao1
frontal lobe and responsible for voluntary movements by sending signals to the muscles in the body
where is the somatosensory area and what does it do ao1
parietal lobe and receives sensory information from the skin to produce sensations related to pressure, pain, temperature etc.
where is the visual area and what does it do ao1
occipital lobe which receives and processes visual information
where is the auditory area ao1
temporal lobe and responsible for analysing and processing acoustic information
what is broca area and what how was it discovered ao1
Paul broca discovered this area while treating a patient named tan. tan could understand spoken language but was unable to say any words other than tan. after tans death broca conducted a post mortem exam on tans brain and discovered a lesion on his left frontal lobe. this led broca to conclude that this area was responsible for speech production. people with damage to this area experience broca aphasia, which results in slow and inarticulate speech.
what is wernickes area and how was it discovered ao1
carl wernicke discovered another area of the brain that is involved in understanding language. wernicke found that patients with lesions to wernickes area were able to speak but unable to understand language. this area is on the left temporal lobe and thought to be responsible for language processing/comprehension.
what did lashley propose ao3
CONFLICTING
the equipotentiality theory, suggesting that basic motor and sensory functions are localised but that higher mental functions are not. he claims that intact areas of the cortex could take over responsibility for specific cognitive functions following brain injury.
what did Peterson propose ao3
SUPPORTING
localisation is supported by credible brain scan evidence. Peterson et al used brain scans to show that the wernickes area is active during listening tasks and the broca area is active during reading tasks. brain scans are sophisticated and objective methods for measuring brain activity so are reliable and scientific evidence.
why is localisation useful
extreme neurosurgical removals of parts of the brain have equally shown that some symptoms of mental health disorders are localised.
what is the testability of localisation
brain scans particularly with extreme cases such as phieneas gage and HM show how different areas of the brain can affect human functioning.
