Biological Psychology: Brain Structure and Aggression

Flashcards reviewing the brain's role in aggressive behavior, covering brain structures, neurotransmitters, and research findings.

What is the function of the Hypothalamus?

Produces hormones, helps with sleep, and manages mood, hunger, thirst, sexual arousal, blood pressure, body temperature, and heart rate.

What role does the Thalamus play in brain function?

Processes sensory information and helps with memory, planning, and emotions.

What is the primary function of the Hippocampus?

Responsible for forming new memories.

What are the key functions of the Amygdala?

Plays a role in experiencing emotions like anxiety, anger, and fear, as well as memory and social interpretations; assesses and responds to environmental threats.

What did Coccaro et al (2007) discover about the amygdala and aggression?

fMRI scans showed high levels of amygdala activity in individuals with intermittent explosive disorder when viewing angry faces.

What is the role of the Orbitofrontal Cortex (OFC) in aggression?

Plays a role in rational thinking, decision making, self-control, impulse regulation, and inhibition of aggressive behavior.

How does Serotonin function as an inhibitory neurotransmitter?

Slows down and dampens neural activity, contributing to self-control when at normal levels in the OFC.

What did Virkkunen et al (1995) find regarding serotonin levels in violent offenders?

Higher levels of a serotonin breakdown product in the cerebrospinal fluid of violent impulsive offenders, along with sleep irregularities.

What role does Dopamine play in relation to aggression?

Regulates motivated behavior and our experience of reward; underactivity of serotonin with dopamine overactivity is linked to impulsivity and aggression.

What did Pardini (2014) discover about the amygdala and aggression?

Identified a strong negative correlation between amygdala volume and levels of aggression in males who had a history of aggressive behavior.

What was the finding of Raine's (1997) study on brain activity and murderers?

Showed a clear link between brain activity and murderers' brains.

What did Andy and Velamati discover in 1978 about the relationship between aggression and the hypothalamus?

Electrical stimulation of the hypothalamus results in aggressive behaviour

What is the significance of PET and fMRI scans in biological research into aggression?

PET and fMRI scans are precise and objective methods of measuring brain activity.

Why is a reductionist approach seen as a weakness of biological explanations of aggression?

Social, environmental, and psychological factors interact with a person's biology, making it difficult for the reductionist approach to fully explain the complexity of human behaviour.

Why are animal studies a limitation in biological research into aggression?

Findings may not be able to be generalised to humans.

Why is correlational research a limitation in biological research into aggression?

Due to ethics, experimental research can’t be done so correlations must be used instead.