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gcse psychology > neuropsychology > Flashcards

neuropsychology Flashcards

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1
Q

stimulus

A

something that is detected by the sense receptors, which the nervous system will react to

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2
Q

sensory information

A

information which is picked up by the sense organs of the body and passed on to the central nervous system

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3
Q

CNS

A

central nervous system, which consists of the brain and spinal cord

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4
Q

function of the CNS

A

coordinates incoming sensory information and responds to it by sending appropriate instructions to the other part of the nervous system.

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5
Q

PNS

A

peripheral nervous system, the network of nerve fibres connecting the various parts of the body with the central nervous system. made up of the SNS and ANS

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6
Q

SNS

A

somatic nervous system, network of myelinated sensory and motor neurons that carry sensory info. to, and instructions for movement from, the CNS

it is what allows us to feel and move

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7
Q

ANS

A

autonomic nervous system, network of unmyelinated nerve fibres running through the body and connecting the senses and internal organs with the CNS

concerned with moods and feelings

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8
Q

sympathetic division

A

sets off arousal, which can be mild like a feeling of anxiety, or extreme like the fight or flight response. it is activated when we are ‘under threat’

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9
Q

parasympathetic division

A

allows our body to store up energy when we are not ‘under threat’

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10
Q

fight or flight response

A

an automatic reaction to threat, stimulated by the ANS and maintained by the endocrine system, which activates the body’s reserves of energy to prepare it for action

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11
Q

our bodies reaction during fight or flight

A
  • adrenaline is released
  • increases heart and breathing rate, - - we sweat more to cool our muscles
  • pupils dilate
  • brain produces natural painkillers: endorphins
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12
Q

parasympathetic to sympathetic division

A

under normal conditions, the parasympathetic division is in control of the body, storing energy. When a threat is detected the sympathetic division automatically switches on and the body prepares for action

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13
Q

james-lange theory of emotion

A

said that you experience the physics changes felt by your body first and then interpret these as the emotion. believed that our emotions are really us perceiving physical changes in the body. the brain makes sense of these changes by concluding that we are feeling certain emotions.

quote: ‘we do not weep because we feel sorrow: we feel sorrow because we weep’

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14
Q

evaluation of james-lange theory of emotion

A

+ real life examples back up the theory e.g phobias and panic disorders

+ his theory promoted a lot of research and recognised the importance of the ANS in emotional experiences

  • other researchers have challenged the theory e.g Cannon-Bard claimed that people actually experience emotions at the same time as the related physiological arousal
  • other researchers said that for his theory to be correct, there would have to be separate and distinctive patterns of physical arousal, meaning a different pattern for each emotion. there is no research to suggest that this is the case
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15
Q

neuron

A

a specialised nerve cell which generates and transmits an electrical impulse

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16
Q

the types of neurons in the human nervous system

A
  • motor neuron
  • sensory neuron
  • relay neuron
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17
Q

sensory neurons

A

nerve cell that picks up information from sense receptors and carries it to the CNS

e.g tasting food, smelling, hearing are all examples of sensory neuron action

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18
Q

motor neuron

A

a nerve cell that takes messages from CNS to the muscles to cause them to move

e.g moving your arms, screaming, chewing are all examples of motor neuron action

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19
Q

relay neuron

A

a nerve cell that passes messages within the CNS

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20
Q

synapse

A

the small gap between the dendrite of one neuron and the receptor site of the next one

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21
Q

neurotransmitter

A

a chemical which is released into the synapse by one neuron, and picked up by the next neuron

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22
Q

synaptic transmission def.

A

the process by which messages are passed from one neuron to another by sending neurotransmitters across the synaptic gap so they can bind with receptors on the next neuron

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23
Q

synaptic transmission detailed process

A

electrical impulse arrives at the dendrites of the first neuron. the vesicles in the synaptic knobs open and release a special chemical called a neurotransmitter into the synapse. the chemicals are then picked up at receptor sites on the next neuron.

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24
Q

excitation

A

when a neurotransmitter binds with a receptor on the next neuron, and increases the chance that the next neuron will fire an electrical impulse

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25
Q

inhibition

A

when a neurotransmitter binds with a receptor on the next neuron, and decreases the chance that the next neuron will fire an electrical impulse

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26
Q

reuptake

A

a process by which neurotransmitter is reabsorbed into the synaptic knob after it has been used during the synaptic transmission

27
Q

neuronal growth

A

when a neuron repeatedly excites another neuron leading to a process of growth in one or both of the neurons

28
Q

hebb’s theory of learning and neuronal growth

A
  • suggests that when we learn, new connections are created in our brains.
  • suggested that if a neuron repeatedly or persistently excites another neuron, neuronal growth takes place, so the synaptic knobs become larger.
  • During learning, cell assemblies fire together and if this happens frequently, neural pathways are developed.
  • The more we do the task we have learnt, the stronger and more efficient these new neural
    pathways become.
29
Q

evaluation of Hebb’s theory of learning and neuronal growth

A

+ Hebb’s theory has a scientific basis and although it was developed in the 1950’s, it has been supported by more recent research and advances in neuroscience

+ Hebb’s theory has a number of practical applications including use in education

  • Hebb’s theory is reductionist because it attempts to explain the complex area of learning by referring
    mainly to just the area of activity in the brain
30
Q

cerebrum

A

the largest part of the brain in humans, which consists of two large cerebral hemispheres

31
Q

frontal lobe

A

the area of the brain that controls cognitive processes such as thought and memory

32
Q

parietal lobe

A

the area of the brain that is responsible for integrating information from other areas to form complex behaviours.

responsibility for all behaviour involving the senses and also language, helps us form words and thoughts

33
Q

temporal lobe

A

the area of the brain that is responsible for aspects such as the comprehension and production of spoken language

helps us understand and process what we hear

34
Q

occipital lobe

A

the area of the brain where visual information is processed

35
Q

cerebellum

A

a small, wrinkled structure at the back of the brain which coordinates motor movement, dexterity, and balance

36
Q

localised function

A

a function such as language or vision, which is found in a particular area on the cerebral cortex

37
Q

localisation of function in the brain

A

Certain cognitive functions are carried out by specific areas of the brain. Localised functions include sensations, movement, touch, vision, hearing, and language.

  • area which controls movement is called the motor area: controls deliberate movement, uses motor neurons to send msgs to muscles
  • are behind this is the somatosensory area: deals with touch, more sensitive an area=more somatosensory cortex it involves
38
Q

motor cortex

A

the area of the cerebral cortex concerned with movement

39
Q

somatosensory cortex

A

area of the cerebral cortex concerned with sensory feeling

40
Q

visual cortex

A

area of the cerebral cortex concerned with vision.

in the occipital lobe, receives info from both eyes through the optic nerve.

damage causes blindness

41
Q

auditory cortex

A

area of the cerebral cortex concerned with hearing.

in the temporal lobe, receives information from the ears.

damage causes hearing loss

42
Q

broca’s area

A

at the base of the left frontal lobe, deals with speech production.

damage to this area means people can understand what is said to them but have problems saying things themselves (motor aphasia)

43
Q

wernicke’s area

A

in the temporal lobe, concerned with understanding speech.

damage to this area means people can speak perfectly well, but have a problem understanding what other people are saying to them. (wernicke’s aphasia)

44
Q

angular gyrus

A

back of the parietal lobe, deals with reading. receives info about written language from the visual cortex and interprets it as being like speech.

damage to this area means people experience difficulties in reading (acquired dyslexia)

45
Q

penfield’s interpretive cortex study aim

A

to investigate the workings of the conscious mind

46
Q

penfield’s interpretive cortex study design

A

clinical case studies- investigated brain functions in patients who were undergoing open brain surgery

47
Q

penfield’s interpretive cortex study method

A

The doctor applied gentle electrical stimulation to different areas of the cortex and asked the patients
to describe what happened to them

As a control, the doctor sometimes told the patients that he was stimulating the brain but he actually
was not doing so

48
Q

penfield’s interpretive cortex study results

A

stimulation of the temporal lobe made one patient report that he could hear a piano playing, while a female patient reported hearing an orchestra playing a particular tune

in earlier research, Penfield had stimulated the visual cortex and people ‘saw’ different things such as colors, shadows, and even balloons floating into the sky.

49
Q

penfield’s interpretive cortex study conclusion

A

Penfield concluded that his findings were evidence for the idea of localisation of function and that the
temporal lobe must have a strong role in memories

50
Q

evaluation of penfield’s interpretive cortex study

A

+ The medical procedure used was very precise and detailed.

+ Penfield’s work provided a lot of information about localisation of function in the brain and contributed
to the mapping of the brain

  • The participants were all having brain surgery because they were severely epileptic. This is a very
    unique sample, so they may not have been representative of the wider population
  • Penfield’s later research did not support his earlier findings
  • The findings were different for each participant, so it is hard to draw conclusions
51
Q

cognitive neuroscience

A

the study of how cognitive processes connect with brain activity and structure

52
Q

different brain scans

A
  • CT scans
  • PET scans
  • fMRI scans
53
Q

CT scans

A

which scans the brain by building up a 3D image from a series of X-ray ‘slices’

+ useful for showing damaged areas of the brain, e.g tumours and blood
clots (common cause of strokes).

+ image quality is much better an x-ray.

+ cheaper than PET scan and fMRI’s.

54
Q

PET scans

A

locates blood flow in the brain by detecting radioactive tracers. small amount of radioactive chemical is injected into the blood supply.

Brain cells that are active use more blood than ones that are
inactive, so PET scan can identify the more active parts of the brain. Different levels of activity show
up as different colours on the computer screen.

+ scans can show the brain in action. It can be useful at finding reasons for something e.g stroke by using blood flow.

+ able to show if there is a blockage in the blood flow around the brain

  • slight risk from radioactivity
55
Q

fMRI scans

A

scans the brain by identifying the magnetic activity of water molecules in active brain cells

+ shows which area of the brain is active when a specific task is being performed.

+ Produces a 3D image

+ safe and do not use radiation.

+ quick to carry out and produce very
clear and accurate images

  • but are most expensive
  • time lag
56
Q

neurological damage

A

injury to the nervous system, affects how the neurons work

57
Q

stroke

A

sudden interruption to the blood supply in a part of the brain

can produce permanent damage because nerve cells can die due to lack of nutrients

58
Q

symptoms of strokes

A
  • slurred speech
  • dragging muscles on one side of the face
  • lessened function of the muscles on one side of the body
59
Q

post-stroke side effects

A
  • emotional and behavioural changes
  • memory problems
  • inappropriate behavior in social situations
60
Q

tulving’s ‘gold’ memory study aim

A

to find out where activity occurred in the brain when people were experiencing episodic and semantic memories.

61
Q

tulving’s ‘gold’ memory study method

A

case study, he injected six volunteers with mildly radioactive gold isotope. They had a type of PET scan that
measures blood flow in different parts of the brain

they lay on a couch with eyes closed and thought about the topic, after 1 minute they were injected.

Each participant’s brain activity was watched while they thought about a episodic memory or semantic
memory

62
Q

tulving’s ‘gold’ memory study results

A

The results of three of the participants weren’t used because their results weren’t consistent enough.

The scans of the others did show clear differences in blood flow patterns

episodic memory=more activity and blood flow in the frontal and temporal lobes.
semantic memory=more activity and blood flow in the parietal and occipital lobes

63
Q

tulving’s ‘gold’ memory study conclusion

A

concluded that semantic and episodic memories result in different parts of the brain being active

64
Q

evaluation of tulving’s ‘gold’ memory study

A

+ ethical as all participants were volunteers and gave consent

+ used scientific methods and produced objective, unbiased findings

+ gold radioactive isotope only had a half-life of 30 secs so risk to the
participants was very small

  • Only three participants had consistent results, so the sample size is very small
  • not possible to make sure that the participants only thought about what they were asked to, can’t be sure the scan was really measuring a specific type of memory

gcse psychology (7 decks)

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