Physiological Approaches

Question 1

State the three systems of the brain

Answer 1

Sympathetic nervous system (sweat, pupil dilation)

Hormone system (cortisol, testosterone)

Other physiological systems (other physiological measures)

Question 2

What is skin conductance?

Answer 2

Measuring the electricity conducted due to sweat glands on skin

Question 3

List the stages of skin conductance for an introvert.

Answer 3

Introversion (personality trait)

Anxiety inducing environment

Galvanic skin response (physiological measure)

Sweat gland activity (physiological response linked to SNS)

Sensitivity to threat (psychological response linked to SNS)

Question 4

List the Hormones and personality links

Answer 4

Cortisol - released during stress

Testosterone - aggression, competitiveness, sex drive.

Estrogen - regulation of women’s cycle

Oxytocin -

Question 5

State sevel issues with finding reliable and replicable results

Answer 5

Difficulty measuring physiology repeatedly

High cost of research resulting in a small sample size

Links from physiological measures to personality might be a lot more complex than first thought