Convergent Evidence

What is a strength of fMRI in brain research?

It offers whole-brain imaging with good spatial resolution and is non-invasive.

What are the main limitations of fMRI?

It is indirect and correlative.

What is a strength of TMS (transcranial magnetic stimulation)?

It is non-invasive and provides causal information.

What are the limitations of TMS?

It is indirect and has limited spatial specificity.

How does neuropsychology contribute to brain research?

It provides causal evidence, despite being indirect and sometimes spatially imprecise.

What are the strengths and limitations of neurophysiology?

Strengths: direct measurements with better spatial and temporal resolution than fMRI.

Limitations: highly invasive, limited areas, and often correlative.

What is an integrative approach in cognitive neuroscience?

Combining multiple methods (e.g., fMRI, TMS, neuropsychology) to overcome individual limitations and gain convergent evidence.

What is convergent evidence in brain research?

Evidence that aligns across different methods, increasing the reliability of conclusions.

What is the Parahippocampal Place Area (PPA) selective for?

Places. It responds more to places than to faces, objects, or scrambled images.

What is the Fusiform Face Area (FFA) selective for?

Faces. It responds more to faces than to objects, scenes, or scrambled images.

Where is the FFA located?

In the posterior fusiform sulcus (pFs).

What is the Lateral Occipital (LO) area selective for?

Objects. It responds more to objects than to faces, scenes, or scrambled images.

When is the face area activated?

When faces are perceived, imagined, or when circular patterns are viewed.

What does activation in the face area tell us?

It provides clues to brain organization, evolution, and supports correlation between brain activity and behavior.

What categories activate the face area besides faces?

Categories for which subjects have extensive experience (e.g., expert bird watchers with birds).

What are some debates surrounding the face area?

Nature vs. nurture and distributed vs. modular coding.

In what conditions may the FFA be impaired?

In some cases of face recognition difficulties and in people with autism.

What was the state of research ethics before WWII?

No formal international ethical guidelines existed.

What event led to the formation of the Nuremberg Code?

Nazi human experiments and the Nuremberg War Crime Trials.

What did the Nuremberg Code introduce?

Voluntary informed consent, risk-benefit analysis, and participant rights.

What is the Declaration of Helsinki (1964)?

A set of ethical principles for human experimentation, revised multiple times.

What did Henry K. Beecher highlight in his article?

22 unethical clinical studies in prestigious journals, showing issues extended beyond Nazi research.

What was unethical about the Tuskegee Syphilis Study?

Participants were not told they had syphilis and were denied effective treatment for decades.

What does 'Respect for Persons' mean?

Treating individuals as autonomous agents and protecting those with diminished autonomy.

What are the three elements of informed consent?

Information, comprehension, and voluntariness.

What constitutes undue influence in informed consent?

Excessive rewards, social pressure, or exploitation of vulnerability.

How is privacy related to 'Respect for Persons'?

Individuals have the right to control access to themselves and their personal information.

What are the two components of beneficence?

Do no harm and maximize possible benefits while minimizing possible harm.

Who has the obligation under beneficence?

Both individual researchers and society at large.

How are risks assessed in research?

By evaluating both severity and likelihood, and balancing them against potential benefits.

What is a clear violation of beneficence?

The Tuskegee Study—treatment was withheld despite availability.

What is the principle of justice in research?

Fair distribution of research benefits and burdens.

What are examples of historical injustices in research?

Using poor ward patients or prisoners for studies without providing benefits or treatment.

How should research participants be selected?

Based on the scientific goals, not convenience or vulnerability.

What risks are associated with participant selection?

Undue influence and exploitation, especially of marginalized groups.