Neural and Hormonal Influences Flashcards
The amygdala is in the ——— system.
Limbic
The amygdala controls…
emotional response and arousal
Electrical stimulation to the amygdala caused…
Aggression
Matthies found…
Smaller size is linked to higher levels of aggression
The neurotransmitter is…
Serotonin
Serotonin inhibits firing in the…
Amygdala
Low levels of serotonin removes the inhibition of the amygdala causing…
Impulsive behaviour
What did Valzelli find?
low 5-HIAA levels in mice, and that was linked to aggressive behaviour.
What is the AO3 for neural?
Raleigh et al (and his vervet monkeys)
What did Raleigh et al feed his vervet monkeys? Why?
A diet high in tryptophan. Because tryptophan is high in serotonin.
Raleigh et al found…
that the group of vervet monkeys were much less aggressive than the control group
What is the discussion point for Raleigh et al?
Hard to generalise results because they tested monkeys, and humans and monkeys are very different. (e.g. complex human social structure)
The hormonal mechanism is…
testosterone
It naturally fluctuates and in males come from the…
testes.
Castration has been shown to…
decrease testosterone and therefore aggression
Testosterone injections can…
increase testosterone
Testosterone facilitates activity in the
ventromedial hypothalamus
The ventromedial hypothalamus is linked with..
attack behaviour
What is the AO3 for hormonal?
Eisenegger
What did Eisenegger do?
Elevated women’s testosterone levels before a competitive game
Eisenegger found the women were…
fairer
Eisenegger: This suggests that there are other responses to testosterone other than aggression, for example….
‘status-seeking behaviour’
What is the discussion for Eisenegger?
Determinism
What is biological determinism
What are the social implications?
behaviour is controlled by genetics and hormones, humans for this reason have no free will
Lock people up or let people off, or invade privacy to check.
Criticism because of social implications
What AO3+ (IDA)
Reductionism
Why is the neural and hormonal explanation reductionist?
Simplifies aggression to a solely biological process
KIinesmith found…
when men made a gun their testosterone increased higher than the control group that made a board game
Klinesmith is a weakness because…
it suggests the hormonal explanation ignores both environmental and social factors
