Neuroplasticity & Related Concepts

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms from the lecture on neuroplasticity, brain reorganization, and related clinical and psychological concepts.

Neuroplasticity

The brain’s ability to reorganize and rewire itself throughout life in response to experience, learning, or injury.

Wiring by Firing

The principle that repeatedly activated neural pathways strengthen their synaptic connections, forming lasting brain circuits.

Synapse

The junction between two neurons where electrical or chemical signals are transmitted.

Experience-Expectant Plasticity

Neural changes that rely on common, species-typical experiences (e.g., visual input) to develop normally.

Experience-Dependent Plasticity

Neural adaptations shaped by unique, individual experiences beyond typical developmental inputs.

Map Expansion

A form of experience-dependent plasticity where cortical representation of a body part enlarges after altered input (e.g., phantom limb sensations).

Phantom Limb

The vivid sensation that an amputated limb is still present, often including movement or pain.

Somatosensory Cortex

Parietal-lobe region that processes touch, temperature, and pain; organized as a body map (homunculus).

Homunculus

Distorted “map” of the body on the motor or somatosensory cortex, reflecting the amount of cortical area devoted to each part.

Mirror Region Takeover

Plastic process where remaining brain tissue on one hemisphere assumes functions of the damaged or removed opposite side.

Rasmussen’s Encephalitis

Rare childhood inflammatory brain disorder causing severe seizures, sometimes treated by hemispherectomy.

Hemispherectomy

Surgical removal or disconnection of one cerebral hemisphere, often performed in young children with intractable seizures.

Growth Mindset

The belief that abilities can be developed through effort and learning, fostering greater neuroplastic change.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Psychotherapy that targets maladaptive thought patterns to reshape neural circuits and behavior.

Perseveration

Repetitive, uncontrollable thought or behavior that reinforces rigid neural pathways (e.g., in depression or OCD).

Phantom Limb Pain

Chronic pain perceived in an amputated limb due to maladaptive cortical reorganization.

Redundancy (Neural)

Presence of duplicate neural systems that allows one area to compensate when another is damaged.

Age and Plasticity

Younger brains exhibit greater capacity for reorganization; plasticity generally declines with age but can be enhanced by lifestyle factors.