Toolkit 3 - Research with clinical and non-typical populations Flashcards
What is a disadvantage of neuroimaging?
EEG, MEG, fMRI only provides correlational evidence, does not teach us about causality
How can we use atypical brains?
Use them to study causal links in the cognitive system.
Link physiological differences to differences in behaviour and assume a connection.
What is the use of brain lesions?
An insight into causal contribution of brain areas to cognitive function
What are brain lesions?
Areas of the brain that show damage
What do brain lesions help us understand?
the function of individual brain areas to the cognitive system
connectivity of brain areas with one another
What are the causes of brain lesions?
trauma
stroke
surgical lesions
What is single dissociation?
the loss or impairment of a brain function can be related to a single physical difference in the brain
What is double dissociation?
a situation in which a single dissociation can be demonstrated in one person and the opposite type of single dissociation can be demonstrated for another person
What is triple dissociation?
A situation in which a single dissociation of relayed brain processes can be demonstrated in 3 different individuals indicating independence of subprocesses
(extremly rare)
What are examples of single dissociations?
Broca - language production related to frontal lobe
Wernicke - language comprehension related to temporal lobe
Example of double dissociation
Broca and Wernickes areas form a double dissociation as they are both related to the same cognitive function (language)
What is hemispatial neglect?
a neuropsychological condition after damage to one hemisphere of the brain
results in a deficit in attention to one side of the body
affects attention, perception, memory and movement
What are the symptoms of hemispatial neglect?
inability to process and perceive stimuli on one side of the body
eg. a patient might fail to eat the foot on the left half of their plate, only shave or apply make up on one side, bump into objects on neglected side
What is the lesioning technique?
Removing part of the brain either surgically or by injection of chemical substances that locally break down tissue.
What is the lesioning technique used for?
Used to treat neurological dysfunctions in humans
Used to test role of given brain areas in certain cognitive functions in animal studies
Describe the case of Phineas Gage.
Iron through his cheek and out his skull.
Showed severe personality changes, became childish and violent, family did not recognise him.
The areas of the brain damaged were responsible for rational decision making, short term memory, motor attention, emotion, social cognition.
What is neurodegeneration?
The progressive loss of structure or function of neurons which involve cell death.
What are neurodegenerative diseases?
A heterogenous group of disorders that are characterised by the progressive degereneration of the structure and function of the CNS and PNS.
Cannot be cured, but we can delay progression.
What is alzheimers?
A disease caused by abnormal buildup of proteins in and around brain cells resulting in loss of neurons and synapses.
- Amyloid forms plaques around brain cells
- Tau forms tangles within brain cells
Alzheimers affects the cerebral cortex and certain subcortial structures resulting in a gross atrophy of the temporal lobe, parietal lobe, and parts of the frontal cortex and cingulate gyrus.
Behavioural profile of Alzheimers disease.
Early symptoms - difficulty in remembering recent events (forming new memories)
As it advances - problems with language, disorientation, mood swings, mood swings, loss of motivation, self-neglect, behavioural issues
As it declines - withdraw from family and society, lose bodily functions and ultimatley death
What is Parkinson’s disease?
Characterised by death of dopaminergic neurons in the midbrain.
What are the symptoms of parkinsons?
tremor, rigidity, slowness of movement, difficulty walking
cognitive and behavioural problems
dementia in advanced stages
problems with sleep
What does parkinsons disease give us an insight to?
motor and sensory system interaction
action cognition and action observation
executive function
What are atypical development disorders?
a heterogenous group of disorders that affect the development of the nervous system, leading to abnormal brain function which may affect aspects of cognition
What do atypical development disorders help us study?
aquisition, interaction and development of cognitive skills
brain plasticity and cognitive compensation strategies
What is autism spectrum disorder?
Autism affects information processing in the brain and how nerve cells and their synapses connect and organise
Affects social development, communication, face and emotion recognition, joint attention, sensory abilities are heightened
What does autism give us an insight to?
social cognition
emotion perception
abstract and logical thinking
language
network connectivity and function
What are the most researched disorders in cognitive psychology?
DLD - Developmental language disorder (formerly known as SLI- Specific Language Impairment)
Autism spectrum disorders
Neurogenetic disorders like down syndrome
Learning disorders like dyslexia
Aphantasia
