Maguire et al. (2000)

Question 1

What is meant by the term ‘neuroplasticity’?

Answer 1

Neural changes in response to the environment.

Question 2

What is the hippocampus?

Answer 2

Main function is the involvement in memory and special recognition. Bilateral brain structure.

Question 3

What is spacial navigation?

Answer 3

Finding your way around and remembering where you’re going.

Question 4

What was the main aim of Maguire’s study?

Answer 4

• Maguire wanted to see if experience causes actual changes in the structure of the brain
• Want to see if plasticity occurs in the hippocampus in people who use it every day (taxi drivers)

Question 5

What was the experimental design of this study?

Answer 5

Independent measure.

Question 6

Outline the taxi-driver sample.

Answer 6

• 16 right-handed male London taxi-drivers
• Aged 32-62
• All licenses taxi drivers for at least 1.5 years
• Average time they spent ‘being on The Knowledge’ was 2 years

Question 7

What is ‘The Knowledge’?

Answer 7

• Have to learn detailed knowledge of 25,000 streets with 6 mile radius as well as general knowledge of major routes
• Have written test on 80 routes and then interview style exam of 240 routes
• Then start learning suburban routes

Question 8

Outline the control group sample.

Answer 8

• 50 right-handed males
• Aged 32-62 years old
• Nobody with health problems included

Question 9

What did Maguire do in the procedure? What 2 techniques did Maguire use to analyse the MRI scans?

Answer 9

Maguire took MRI scans of the males

-Used 2 different techniques for analyzing the MRI scans - Voxel-based Morphometry and Pixel counting

Question 10

What is pixel-counting and how was it carried out?

Answer 10

• Carried out by one person - 2D analysis
• Analysed slices of the scan (24 of these slices were of the hippocampus, 6 of the posterior, 12 of the overall hippocampal volume and 6 of the anterior)

Question 11

What is Voxel-based morphometry and how was it carried out?

Answer 11

• Measures the grey matter volume
• 3D analysis
• Allows a computer program to calculate the volume of the area in the scan - in this case the grey matter volume in the MRI scans

Question 12

What did they find about the overall volume of the hippocampus in pixel counting?

Answer 12

No difference in the overall volume of the hippocampus between taxi drivers and controls, however did show a regionally significant difference by side (right and left)

Question 13

What did they find about the Anterior hippocampus in pixel counting?

Answer 13

-Non-taxi drivers had higher hippocampal volume in the right anterior hippocampus than in the left.

Question 14

What did they find about the Hippocampus body in pixel counting?

Answer 14

-Taxi drivers showed no difference in overall volume in the hippocampus body compared with controls, but analysis by side showed non-taxi drivers had higher volume in right side

Question 15

What did they find about the Posterior hippocampus in pixel counting?

Answer 15

-The taxi drivers had a generally higher volume in their posterior hippocampus than the non-taxi drivers

Question 16

What did the VBM analysis show?

Answer 16

• In taxi-drivers there was an increase in grey matter bilaterally (left and right) in the posterior hippocampus
• Also decrease in volume bilaterally in anterior hippocampus

Question 17

What were the correlational findings of Maguire’s study?

Answer 17

• Positive correlation between volume of posterior hippocampus and length of time as taxi driver
• Negative correlation between volume of anterior hippocampus and length of time as taxi driver

Question 18

What are the main conclusions of Maguire’s study?

Answer 18

• Structure of the brain changes in response to environmental demand. This indicates plasticity as a function of increasing exposure to an environment stimulus.
• Map of London stored in posterior hippocampus