Neuroplasticity Flashcards

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1
Q

Define neuroplasticity

A

the ability of the brain to change structurally and functionally over time due to environmental factors or genetic inputs.

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2
Q

Study

A

Maguire et al (2000) - posterior vs anterior hippocampus for spatial memory

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3
Q

Aim

A

to investigate the growth of hippocampus in London taxi drivers in relation to their navigation experience.

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4
Q

Procedure

A
  • the participants were 16 right-handed male licensed taxi drivers.
  • the taxi drivers were compared with the MRI scans of 50 right-handed males who did not drive taxis.
  • the controls were taken from an MRI database.
  • the sample included a range of ages
  • the data from the MRI was measured using voxel-based morphometry (VBM) and pixel counting.
  • VBM: used to measure the density of grey matter in the brain.
  • Pixel counting is used to calculate the area of the hippocampus.
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5
Q

Design of the study

A
  • the study is correlational in nature (IV is not manipulated by the researcher).
  • it is a single-blind study (the researcher did not know whether she was looking at the scan of a taxi driver or a control.
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6
Q

Results

A
  • pixel counting revealed an increased brain matter volume in the posterior hippocampi of taxi drivers compared to the control group.
  • VBM showed the volume of the right posterior hippocampi correlated with the amount of time spent as a taxi driver.
  • the “shift” of brain matter is related to taxi drivers’ experiences as a result of neuroplasticity.
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7
Q

Link to localization

A
  • Posterior hippocampus: previously learned spatial information is used
  • Anterior hippocampus: encoding of new environmental layouts.
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8
Q

Evaluation

A
  • lacks certainty: no cause-and-effect relationship.
  • single-control is used: no researcher bias.
  • the results are hard to generalise: only males participants are used.
  • ethics: informed consent + use of data.
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