History of Psychology, Cognitive Neuroscience, and Behavioral Genetics Overview

Behavioral genetics

Study of the relative power and limits of genetic and environmental influences on behavior.

Functionalism

Introduced by William James, this perspective states that behavior must serve a function to continue to exist.

Behaviorism

The perspective that psychology should focus on observable thoughts or feelings, rather than the unconscious mind.

Electroencephalogram (EEG)

A noninvasive method that measures brain activity through electrodes picking up waves of electricity, providing temporal resolution.

Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI)

A method that measures regional changes in blood flow and oxygen concentration in the brain, offering good spatial resolution but poor temporal resolution.

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)

A technique that can temporarily disrupt brain activity by sending magnetic pulses to induce hypoactivity or hyperactivity in specific brain areas.

Polygenic inheritance

Occurs when a group of gene pairs acts together to produce a specific trait.

Epigenetics

The study of how environmental factors can affect gene expression, influencing traits and characteristics. How environmental factors can modify gene expression without changing the DNA sequence.

Evolutionary psychology

Study of the evolution of behavior and the brain.

Cognitive reserve

Ability of the brain to cope with damage or degeneration, often built through intellectual and social engagement.

Motivation

Desire and willingness to act or behave in a particular way to achieve a goal.

Mesolimbic pathway

Pathway involving the amygdala and emotions, connecting the mesencephalon with the limbic system. This pathway is activated during rewarding experiences, such as eating, having sex, or using drugs.

Dopamine

Neurotransmitter associated with various functions, including drug-seeking behavior.

Motivational toxicity

Disruption of the motivational hierarchy where the efficacy of drugs decreases the motivation for natural rewards.

Wilhelm Wundt

Often considered the father of modern psychology, he established the first psychology lab in 1879 in Leipzig, Germany. He emphasized introspection to study the conscious experience.

William James

Known as the father of American psychology, he contributed to the development of functionalism and emphasized how mental processes help individuals adapt to their environments.

Sigmund Freud

Introduced psychoanalysis, focusing on the unconscious mind, childhood experiences, and dream interpretation.

B.F. Skinner

Expanded behaviorism with operant conditioning, emphasizing reinforcement and punishment in shaping behavior.

Ivan Pavlov

Known for his work on classical conditioning, he demonstrated how stimuli can condition reflexive responses in animals (e.g., Pavlov's dogs). The most famous example of classical conditioning is Pavlov's experiment with dogs. Pavlov rang a bell (neutral stimulus) before presenting food (unconditioned stimulus) to his dogs. After repeated pairings, the dogs began to salivate (conditioned response) at the sound of the bell alone, even without the presence of food.

Gestalt Psychology

Emphasizes perceiving patterns and wholes over parts.

Reductionism

Complex phenomena understood by breaking into smaller parts.

Classical Conditioning

Pairing automatic response with specific stimuli.

Scientist-Practitioner

Balances research and practice in psychology.

Scholar-Practitioner

Focuses on applying psychological principles in practice. It does not focus on research. It is someone who combines theory with practice.

Central Nervous System (CNS)

Includes brain and spinal cord, processes sensory info.

Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)

Nerves outside CNS, connecting to limbs and organs.

Temporal Resolution

Accuracy of measuring changes over time.

Spatial Resolution

Precision in pinpointing activity location in the body.

PET (Positron Emission Tomography)

Visualizes brain metabolic processes with radioactive tracers.

MEG (Magnetoencephalography)

Measures magnetic fields from neural activity.

EDA (Electrodermal Activity)

refers to changes in the electrical conductivity of the skin. These changes are primarily caused by variations in sweat gland activity, which is regulated by the sympathetic nervous system. EDA is typically measured using sensors placed on the skin, often on the fingertips or palms.

Heart Rate Variability (HRV)

Assesses autonomic nervous system balance via heartbeat intervals.

Pupillometry

Measures changes in pupil size linked to cognitive processes.

Heritability

A statistical estimate that reflects how much variation in a trait within a population is due to genetic differences.

Nature vs. Nurture

The debate regarding the relative contribution of genetics (nature) and environmental factors (nurture) to the development of traits and behaviors.

Gene-Environment Interaction

It involves how different genotypes respond differently to the same environmental exposures.

Adoption Studies

A method of research where adopted individuals are compared to their biological and adoptive families to assess genetic versus environmental influences.

Context-Dependent Heritability

Heritability estimates depend on the specific environment and population being studied. The same trait might have different heritability in different populations.

Population-Level Metric

Heritability coefficients apply to groups, not individuals. A high heritability for a trait in a population doesn't mean that environment is irrelevant for individuals.

Turkheimer

Challenges the traditional debate by showing that genes and environment are deeply intertwined, making it less about 'nature versus nurture' and more about 'nature with nurture.'

Dynamic Relationship

The influence of nature and nurture can change over time. For instance, the environment might play a larger role in early development, while genetic predispositions might emerge more strongly later in life.

Complexity of Traits

Most traits (like intelligence or personality) are influenced by many genes and various environmental factors, so separating these influences is complex.

Ethical Limitations

It's unethical to randomly assign children to different environments to study the effects of nurture, which limits the scope of experimental research.

Twin Studies

Compare identical twins (100% shared genes) and fraternal twins (50% shared genes) to estimate genetic vs. environmental influences. If identical twins are more similar than fraternal twins, genetic factors are at play.

Family Studies

Study traits in biological families to see how traits run in families, comparing relatives with varying degrees of genetic relatedness (siblings, parents, cousins).

Longitudinal Studies

Follow individuals over time to see how genetic and environmental factors interact across different stages of development.

Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS)

Identify specific genes associated with traits, contributing to the understanding of genetic influence on behavior.

Cross-Fostering Studies (in animals)

Place animals with non-biological parents to see how environment affects traits, helping to disentangle the effects of nature and nurture.

Structuralism

Described by Edward Titchner, it involves dividing things into parts and describing them with units. It focuses on the relationships between these parts rather than the individual elements themselves.

Psychoanalysis

Developed by Sigmund Freud, it focuses on unconscious motives and conflicts, including the interactions between the conscious and unconscious mind.

Implicit bias

Refers to biases that are outside of our conscious awareness.

Radical behaviorism

Proposed by B.F. Skinner, it suggests that both conscious and unconscious behaviors can be observed and influenced by the environment.

Operant conditioning

A learning process where behavior is modified by its consequences, such as being rewarded or punished.

Event-Related Potential (ERP)

A method that averages brain activity across repeated stimuli to identify event-related brain responses with high temporal resolution.

CRISPR

A technology for editing genes by modifying DNA sequences, with potential applications in genetic engineering and medical treatments.

Natural selection

Process where traits associated with reproduction and survival are more likely to be passed on to future generations.

Mating behaviors

Behaviors related to why certain characteristics are found attractive in a potential mate.

Brain architecture

The organization and structure of the brain, including the sequence of development from lower-level capabilities to higher capacities.

Longitudinal research

Research design involving repeated observations of the same variables over long periods of time.

Cortical specificity

Subdivision of the cortex into discrete functional areas with specific properties.

Compensation and adaptability

The ability to adjust and adapt to changes in the brain.

Positivity bias

Tendency for individuals to focus more on positive experiences and memories than negative ones.

Reward

Reinforcement provided to an individual for behaving in a specific manner.

Set points

Ideal or desired values for physiological parameters in the body that the body works to maintain.

Homeostatic mechanisms

Processes the body uses to maintain set points and keep physiological parameters stable despite external changes.

Regulatory behaviors

Regulatory behaviors are actions or strategies that individuals use to manage their emotions, thoughts, and behaviors; controlled by homeostatic mechanisms.

Mesocortical pathway

Higher-order pathway connecting the mesencephalon with the cortex, involved in high-order cognitive functions. This pathway is active during tasks that require focused attention, problem-solving, and decision-making.