Topic 8- Ways Of Studying The Brain

Question 1

PEEL 1
Strength of fMRI

Answer 1

P- A strength of fMRI’S is its non invasive.
E- It can be used to measure activity in the living brain without causing hard.

P-Another strength is its more objective than relying on verbal reports of psychological processes.
E- Useful for studying non-verbal phenomena.

Question 2

PEEL 1
Limitations of fMRI’S

Answer 2

P- A limitation is it isn’t measuring neural activity directly.
E- Findings can be misinterpreted.

P- Another limitation is it overlooks the network of brain activity.
E- May be more important than localised activity.

Question 3

PEEL 2
STRENGTH OF EEG

Answer 3

P- A strength of EEG is it records brain activity in real time.
E- Researchers are able to monitor responses to task.

P- Another strength is that it’s useful for clinical diagnosis.
E- E.G epileptic seizures give characteristic EEG spikes.

Question 4

PEEL 2
LIMITATION OF EEG

Answer 4

P- A limitation if EEG is it can’t detect activity in deeper brain regions.
E- such as the hippocampus.

P- Another limitation is it can’t pinpoint the exact source of activity.
E- As electrodes detect electrical activity from overlapping areas.

Question 5

PEEL 3
Strength of ERP

Answer 5

P- A strength of ERP is that they provide a continuous measure of processing in response to a stimulus.
E- Giving quantitative experimental data.

P- Another strength of ERP is they can measure brain responses without the need for behavioural responses or speech.
E- Researcher’s can covertly monitor responses.

Question 6

PEEL 3
Limitations of ERP

Answer 6

P- A limitation of ERP’S is it requires many repetitions to gain meaningful data.
E- So they can address simple questions.

P- Another limitation is they only record voltage change in superficial brain areas.
E- So only events in the neocortex are measurable.

Question 7

PEEL 4
Strength of post-mortems

Answer 7

P- A strength of post-mortems is brain tissues can be examined in detail.
E- Deeper strictest can be investigated.

P- Another strength is that changes in neurotransmitter levels can be measures.
E- E.G abnormalities associated with schizophrenia.

Question 8

PEEL 4
Limitations of post-Morton’s

Answer 8

P- A limitation of post-mortems is use of drugs and age may affect brain tissue.
E- So there’s are many confounding variables

P- Another limitation is its only retrospective data that’s collected
E- It’s too late to test cognitive function.