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Paper 2 - only named researchers are Broca + Wernicke
What is the central nervous system made of?
brain and spinal cord
What is the peripheral nervous system made of?
Autonomic nervous system and somatic nervous system
What is the autonomic nervous system made of?
Sympathetic division and parasympathetic division
What are sensory neurones?
Neurones that carry messages from the peripheral nervous system to the central nervous system
What are motor neurones?
Neurones that connect the CNS to muscles and glands
What are relay neurones?
Neurones that connect sensory neurones and motor neurones (short dendrites and axons)
What is the role of the CNS?
It controls the brain and regulating the body's phsyiological processes.
What is the role of the autonomic nervous system?
Regulates INVOLUNTARY actions needed to function (digestion, heartbeat etc)
What is an excitatory neurotransmitter?
Increases positive charge in post synaptic neurone (eg adrenaline) and the chance of another action potential being fired
What is an inhibitory neurotransmitter?
Increases negative charge in post synaptic neurone (eg Serotonin) and decreases the chance of another action potential being fired.
Explain synaptic transmission
Action potential reaches axon terminal
Calcium channels open
Ca2+ causes vesicles to release neurotransmitter
Neurotransmitter crosses synapse
Neurotransmitter binds to neuroreceptors
Triggers signal in Post synaptic neurone
What is the endocrine sysytem?
A collection of glands that produce hormones to regulate human functions - works using a negative feedback loop
Give an example of the endocrine system in action
Hypothalamus sends signal to pituary gland
Pituary Gland secretes a stimulating hormone into bloodstream
Adrenal Gland produces target hormone
Hypothalamus shuts down secreteing hormone and pituary shuts down stimulating hormone to balanc target hormone levels
Give an example of a major gland in the endocrine system
Pituary Gland
Adrenal Gland
Ovaries
Testes
What is a hormone?
A chemical messenger circulating the bloodstream
What does the pituitary gland do?
Anterior secretes cortisol and ACTH \n Posterior secretes Oxytocin
What is a target Cell?
Specific cells which have receptor sites which bind to specific hormones
What is the sympathetic response?
Increased heart rate
Dilate pupils
Inhibited saliva production
What is the parsympathetic response?
Decreased Heart rate
Decreased blood pressure
Increased Digestion
What is the SAM pathway?
Hypothalamus commands the…
AUTONOMIC Nervous system to activate the…
SYMPATHETIC branch stimulating the…
ADRENAL MEDULLA to release…
ADRENALINE and NORADRENALINE activating the…
FIGHT/FLIGHT response
What does Taylor et al. (2000) suggest about the gender differences in fight or flight?
Females have a 'tend and befriend' response more often than not, linked to higher oxytocin levels i.e holding babies in a situation - BETA BIAS
Give one limitation of FIGHT or FLIGHT
Maladaptive to modern day stressors - we're unable to do anything w/ excess cortisol + adrenaline causing sickness i.e hypertension, colds and stress
What is localisation?
The theory that specific areas of the brain have specific biological and psychological functions
Which area of the brain is this?
Frontal lobe/motor cortex
Which area of the brain is this?
Occipital lobe/ visual cortex
Which area of the brain is this?
Temporal lobe/ auditory centres
Which area of the brain is this?
Parietal lobe / somatosensory cortex
Where is Broca’s area found?
Left side of the frontal lobe
Where is Wernicke’s area found?
Left side of the temporal lobe
What is the role of the somatosensory cortex?
The somatosensory cortex is responsible for receiving and processing sensory information
What is the role of the motor cortex?
It is responsible for the generation of voluntary motor movements
What is the role of the auditory centre?
Located in the temporal lobe, the auditory centres are concerned with hearing
What is the role of the visual centre?
Located in the occipital lobe, the visual cortex is responsible for visual processing.
Why is equipotentiality a limitation of localisation?
Equipotentiality is a limitation of localisation because it suggests that all parts of the brain region may be able to perform any given function. This suggests localision is reductionistic + too simple
Why do apahasia studies show support for localisation of language centres?
Aphasia studies have consistently found that damage to specific areas of the brain, such as Broca's and Wernicke's areas, can result in specific language deficits.
Give an issue or debate regarding the localisation of brain function
Localisation is biologically reductionist in nature and tries to reduce very complex human behaviours and cognitive processes to one specific brain region
What is hemispheric lateralisation?
The dominance of one hemisphere of the brain for a particular physical and psychological functions e.g. the left is dominant for language, and the right excels at visual motor tasks
What are the functions of left hemisphere?
Control of right side of body, right visual field, speech, understanding written + spoken language, logical thinking, analytical tasks
What are the functions of right hemisphere?
Control of left side of body, left visual field, spatial awareness, creativity, recognising faces, musical ability, emotional content of language, drawing
What is the corpus callosum and what is its function?
The corpus callosum connects the two hemispheres of the brain + allows the 2 sides together
What is an issue/debate with lateralisation?
↳ The idea of lateralisation iself is nomothetic however the research that support this uses case studies as support which is idiographic
What were the findings of Sperry and Gazzaniga's (1967) study?
Left and right hemispheres of the brain have different functions
Information presented to one hemisphere cannot be accessed by the other hemisphere
Each hemisphere can operate independently
Describe the experimental design of Sperry and Gazzaniga's (1967) study
Quasi Experiment
Small Sample (11 pps)
Case Study
What is an advantage of brain lateralisation?
It is adaptive as we can use one hemisphere for a particular task and free up the other for a different task
What is a disadvantage of brain lateralisation?
Szaflarski et. al (2006) found that after 25 lateralisation decreased with each decade of life - this is known as cognitive decline
What is plasticity?
The brains tendency to change and adapt (functionally and structurally) as a result of experiences, new learning or training. Functional plasticity decreases with age
What is functional recovery?
The brains ability to redistribute or transfer functions usually performed by damaged areas, to not damaged area(s)
Give research support for Functional Recovery
Taijiri et al. (2013)
They found that stem cells provided to rats after brain trauma showed a clear development of neuron-like cells in the area of injury. This demonstrates the ability of the brain to create new connections using neurons manufactured by stem cells
What is neural reorganisation?
The transfer of functions to undamaged areas
What is axon regeneration?
When new neurons may grow and/or new connections may form to compensate for the damaged areas where neurons are lost
Give an example of research into plasticity
↳ Looked at the brains of London cab drivers who had taken ‘The Knowledge’ exam
They found significantly more volume of grey matter in posterior hippocampus compared to a control
Give research support for plasticity from animal studies
Kempermann (1999) conducted a study on mice
He found that environmental enrichment increased the production of new neurons in the hippocampus, a brain region important for learning and memory.
This study provided evidence for the concept of neuroplasticity, which suggests that the brain is capable of changing and adapting in response to environmental stimuli
Give an issue/debate with neuroplasticity
↳ Neuroplasticity takes an interactionist approach where it considers both the environment and biological predisposition in its develoment
What is spatial resolution?
The smallest measurement available - greater spatial resolution to allows discrimination between different brain regions with greater accuracy
What is temporal resolution?
How quickly it can detect changes in brain activity
Describe the procedure of an fMRI
fMRI measures blood flow changes to detect brain activity.
Patients lie in a tube-like machine while magnetic fields and radio waves create brain images.
They perform tasks or rest during the scan.
Images show active brain areas.
fMRI is used to diagnose neurological disorders
Give a strength of fMRIs
Non-invasive
More data means more understanding of localisation of function
Good spatial resolution (1-2mm)
Determine areas of function with greater accuracy
Give a weakness of fMRIs
Poor temporal resolution (1-4 secs) = unable to predict with high accuracy the onset of brain activity; Don't provide direct measure of neural activity - changes in blood flow indicate activity, but can't associate it with a specific function
What is an EEG?
EEG is a non-invasive test that measures electrical activity in the brain.
Electrodes are placed on the scalp to detect the electrical signals produced by the brain.
The test is used to diagnose and monitor conditions such as epilepsy, sleep disorders, and brain injuries.
EEG can also be used to study brain function and activity in research settings.
Give a strength of EEGs
Used in clinical diagnosis, e.g. epilepsy
Has real world application
High temporal resolution (detect changes at 1 millisecond)
Accurately measure particular task with associated brain activity
Cheap
Give a weakness of EEGs
Only detect superficial brain activity can't look at deeper parts, e.g. hippocampus
Poor spatial resolution - can't pinpoint where electrical signal originated from
Unable to distinguish between activities from different but adjacent parts
What is an ERP?
It measures the electrical activity of the brain in response to a stimulus
Electrodes are placed on the scalp to record the brain activity
The resulting waveform is analyzed to determine cognitive processes such as attention, memory, and language
ERP provides insight into the neural mechanisms underlying cognitive processes
It can identify abnormalities in brain function associated with various disorders.
Give a strength of ERPs
Measure processing of stimuli in absence of behavioural response, e.g. reaction to seeing an unfamiliar object
They can monitor processing of stimulus without requiring person to respond
Give a weakness of ERPs
Lack validity as can't completely eliminate background noise
↳ could be influenced by extraneous variables, so cautious generalising
What is a post-mortem exam?
Analysing the brains of someone after they've died
↳ most likely if they have a rare disorder or experienced u
usual deficits in mental processes or behaviour
Areas of damage examined to try and correlate to structural abnormalities
Give a strength of post-mortems
More detailed exam of anatomical areas of brain, e.g. hippocampus and hypothalamus
Contributed towards understanding of key processes in the brain, e.g. making link between language and the Brocas and Wernickes areas
Give a weakness of post-mortems
Can't establish cause and effect as
Only shows physiology, not actual brain activity
Confounding influences, e.g. disease, time between death and examination, medications, age
Retrospective meaning they can't follow up on interesting findings
What are biological rhythms?
Cyclic changes in body activity
What are endogenous pacemakers?
Internal body clocks
↳ They control the SCN and pineal gland for the circadian sleep-wake cycle
Give research evidence to support endogenous pacemakers
He destroyed SCN in 30 chipmunks which destroyed their sleep wake cycle
They were then transferred back to their natural habitat
A significant number of them had been killed by predators as they were awake when they should have been aslep (and vice versa) leaving them vulnerable to attack
What are exogenous zeitgebers?
External cues that affect our biological rhythms, e.g. light on sleep-wake cycle
What are circadian rhythms?
Type of biological rhythm where a pattern of behaviour occurs, or reoccurs, approx. every 24 hours. Its set and reset by environment (light and temp), e.g. sleep wake cycle
Give an example of research into circadian rhythms
↳ Spent time underground (no natural light, sounds) for 2 and 6 months (he did it twice)
Found that his biological rhythm settled to 25 hours, with him falling asleep on a regular basis
Give a strength of circadian rhythms
Practical application to shift work
Practical + economic implications as can maintain worker productivity + prevent workplace accidents
Useful for timing drug dosing
Supporting evidence (Siffre) = increased validity
Give a limitation of circadian rhythms
Research lacks external validity as small sample
Siffre’s research is idiographic
Doesn't look at gender or age influence
Poor control in studies, e.g. only assuming natural not artificial light having an influence = lacks validity
What is the SCN?
Suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) is a cluster of nerves, thant link with other rgions that control sleep and arousal, to reulate circadian rhythms
↳ Sends signals to the pineal gland increasing melatonin production at night and decreasing it in the day
Negative feedback loop
Give an issue/debate regarding Circadian Rhythms
↳ Sleep/Wake cycle is reductionist as it reduces the functioning of sleep cycles to the biological control - SCN, and ignores psychological factors such as stress
Give research support for Exogenous Zeitgeibers
↳ They monitored the body temperatures of 15 volunteers who slept in a laboratory
They introduced light to the during the night at a series of intervals by shining a beam of light onto the back of their knees
They were woken at different times and a light pad was shone on the back of their knees
The participant’s circadian rhythms were disrupted by up to three hours
This shows that it is not necessary for light just to enter the eyes to have a physiological effect on biological rhythms and shows the EZ do have an effect on our biological rhythms
Give research weaknesses of EZ’s and EP’s
Issue of generalising animal studies to humans
Lack of reliability found for exogenous zeitgebers
What are Infradian rhythms?
Infrequent - biological rhythm with duration of over 24 hours, e.g. the menstrual cycle
Give an example of an Infradian Rhythm
↳ approx. 28 days
ovulation occurs in middle when oestrogen is highest
next progesterone increases to prep for pregnancy
If pregnancy doesn’t occur egg is absorbed and leaves with womb lining
Give research support for Infradian Rhythms
↳ 10 year longditudinal study
29 women with irregular periods, collected pheromones from 9 from armpit using cotton wool
Other 20 had it rubbed on their upper lip; pads were collected on different days of the cycle
68% experienced changes to their menstrual cycle which bought it closer to their ‘donors’
What is the endogenous pacemaker for the menstrual cycle?
Hormones
What is the Exogenous Zeitgeber?
Pheremones of other women
Stress
Diet
Explain the evolutionary basis of the menstrual cycle
Beneficial for women to fall pregnant around the same time
Collective caregving to the social group
What is an Ultradian Rhythm?
Biological rhythm that lasts less than 24 hours, e.g. stages of sleep
Sleep cycle
Has 5 stages it goes through (1-4, REM) that altogether spans 90-120 mins
Stage 1 of the sleep cycle
Light sleep, easily awoken, have alpha (restful) and theta (between sleep and wake) brainwaves
Stage 2 of the sleep cycle
Between light and deep sleep, breathing + heart rate slows; slower brainwaves, mainly theta
Stage 3 of the sleep cycle
Deep sleep begins, muscle activity decreases; slow delta waves, but also some fast ones
Stage 4 of the sleep cycle
Deep sleep (very hard to be awoken); almost all delta waves
REM stage of the sleep cycle
Dreaming occurs, eyelids can be seen flickering; brainwaves reach similar levels to when awake
Give a strength of Ultradian Rhythms
Reseearch Support
Give a weakness of Ultradian Rhythms
Often carried out in sleep labs
↳ Low Ecological Validity
↳ High control
Hormones released by adrenal glands
Adrenaline and Cortisol
What was the procedure of Sperry and Gazzaniga's (1967) study?
Sperry and Gazzaniga's (1967) study involved split-brain patients who had undergone surgery to sever the corpus callosum
The researchers presented visual stimuli to either the left or right visual field of the patients.
When stimuli were presented to the left visual field, which is processed by the right hemisphere, patients say ‘I saw nothing’ but could draw the object with their left hand.
When stimuli were presented to the right visual field, which is processed by the left hemisphere, patients were able to say what they had seen but couldn’t draw the object with their right hand.
What was the only anomaly in Sperry and Gazzaniga's (1967) study?
Facial Recognition: When a face was shown to the right visual field, they could recognise it was a face but not the age, race, gender becuase facial recognition is in the right hemisphere
Note 
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