The Biological Approach

Question 1

What is a summary of the biological approach?

Answer 1

• Believes that behaviour is a consequence of our genetics and physiology
• Examines the relationship between neural mechanisms, the influence of heredity on behaviour and the relationship between the mind and the body.

Question 2

What is heredity?

Answer 2

The passing of characteristics from one generation to the next through genes

Question 3

What is a genotype?

Answer 3

Genetic make-up of an individual, a collection of inherited genetic material that is passed from generation to generation

Question 4

What is a phenotype?

Answer 4

Observable characteristics of an individual - a consequence of the interaction of the genotype with the environment

Question 5

What is heritablity?

Answer 5

Measure of how well differences in people’s genes account for differences in their traits (height, eye colour, intelligence , schizophrenia etc.)

Question 6

What do twin studies show about behaviour?

Answer 6

• Look for a degree of concordance (similarity) between identical and non-identical twins
• Higher concordance rates amongst MZ (identical) twins is evidence of a genetic basis of behaviour

Question 7

What does Nestadt et al (2010) show about twins?

Answer 7

68% of MZ twins both have OCD compared to 31% of DZ twins.

Question 8

What is neurochemisty?

Answer 8

The study of chemical and neural processes associated with the nervous system

Question 9

What does Carré et al’s (2006) research show?

Answer 9

• Studied a Canadian ice hockey team over the course of a season.
• Evidence of a surge in the levels of the hormone testosterone whenever the team played in their home stadium
• Suggests that the hormone energised the players to defend their home territory

Question 10

What are hormones?

Answer 10

Chemical substances secreted by glands throughout the body and carried in the bloodstream

Question 11

What did Quadagno et al (1977) find out?

Answer 11

Found that female monkeys who were deliberately exposed to testosterone during prenatal development later engaged in more rough-and-tumble play than other females

Question 12

What was Young (1966) research and what does it show?

Answer 12

• Changed sexual behaviour of male and female rats by manipulating the amount of male and female hormones that rats received during early development.
• They demonstrated ‘reversed’ sexual behaviour and the effects were unchangeable
• Had changed the sexually dimorphic nucleus (SDN) in the brain

Question 13

What is natural selection?

Answer 13

• The process whereby organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring
• Any genetically determined behaviour that enhances survival and reproduction will be passed on to future generations (adaptive genes)

Question 14

What is the process of neurochemistry?

Answer 14

• Nerve reaches end of neuron, neurotransmitter released
• Neurotransmitter travels across synapse
• Some neurotransmitters (excitatory) trigger receiving neurons to send an impulse - stimulate brain
• Some neurotransmitters (inhibitory) stop the receiving neuron from sending an impulse - calm and balance mood
• Dopamine is an excitatory associated with ‘drive or motivation’
• Serotonin is inhibitory which sustain a stable mood

Question 15

What did Crockett et all (2008) find out?

Answer 15

When serotonin levels are low, people tend to display increased aggression

Question 16

What happens during the fight or flight response?

Answer 16

• The hypothalamus prepares the body for emergency response
• Adrenaline is released from the adrenal gland
• The adrenaline triggers switches from parasympathetic to sympathetic activity and back again

Question 17

What are the direct effects of adrenaline?

Answer 17

• Increased heart rate
• Increased blood pressure
• Increased blood to the brain and skeletal muscle which increases respiration and sweating