Week 4 Flashcards
Behaviour and mental problems arise from (biological)
- Genetic predisposition
- Brain mechanisms
- Hormonal influences
Behaviour and mental problems arise from (socio-cultural)
- Family, societal, and cultural influences
- Peer influence
- Group influence
Behaviour and mental problems arise from (psychological)
- Emotional response
- Learned behaviour
- Cognitive ability
- Perceptual ability
How is communication transferred in the nervous system?
- Along a neuron is via an electrical impulse which travels down the axon toward the axon terminal
- From one neuron to another neuron, muscle, or gland is via chemicals known as neurotransmitters.
Whats Peripheral Nervous System
contains all the neural structures that lie outside of the brain and the spinal cord.
what is the Somatic Nervous System
is a system of sensory and motor neurons that allow us to sense and respond to our environment
It sends information from the sense organs to the central nervous system and carries information from the central nervous system to the muscles.
E.g. reading this information on this slide
What is Autonomic Nervous System
sense the body’s internal functions and controls many of the body’s glands and muscles
E.g., “rest and digest” or “fight or flight or freeze”
whats Homeostasis
Both systems work together to maintain equilibrium
Enteric Nervous System acts exclusively on the gastrointestinal tract
Some functions include:
- Determining the movements of the gut
- Regulating gastric acid secretion
- Changing blood flow in the gut
Neurotransmitter system
a group of neurons that communicate using the same neurotransmitter
Excitatory transmitter
Exerts an effect that makes the neuron more likely to produce a neural impulse (the electrical means of communication)
E.g., Glutamate
Involved in all behaviours; important for memory and learning
- Seizures (oversupply)
- Psychosis (undersupply)
Inhibitory transmitter
Exerts an effect that makes the neuron less likely to produce a neural impulse (the electrical means of communication)
E.g. Gamma – aminobutyric acid (GABA)
- Involved in the motor system
- In Huntington’s disease, destruction of GABA-producing neurons produces tremors abd loss of motor control, as well as personality changes.
Psychoactive drugs
substances that when consumed or administered into one’s body, affect mental processes and behaviour
E.g. caffine, alcohol, nicttine
Produces their effects by either increasing or decreasing the activity of neurons
Antagonists
amphetamines boose the activity of exicator neurotransmitters dopamine and neurosporene. People feel more emotionally aroused, cognitively alert and more social.
Endocrine System
consists of glands which secrete hormones which are disturbed, via, the bloodstream, throughout the body.
