PSYCHOLOGY - Brain and Neuropsychology key terms

Autonomic nervous system

Automatic acts that cannot be controlled

Central nervous system

The overall control of the body

Peripheral nervous system

Supports the actions of the central nervous system

Somatic nervous system

Voluntary movements that can be controlled

Fight of flight response

Psychological changes that effect the cardiovascular system

The James-Lange theory

Event, arousal, interpretation, emotion

Emotion

How we interpret the change

Exicatatory

When neurotransmitters increase their charge making them more likely to fire

Inhibition

When neurotransmitters increase their negative charge making them less likely to fire

Neurons

Nerve cells send electrical and chemical signals to each other

Neurotransmitters

The chemical molecules released by neurons and detected by receptor sites

Sensory neuron

Specialised dendrites that detect external stimuli

Relay neuron

Receives information from sensory neurons and sends information to motor neurons

Motor neuron

Carries the electrical signals from the CNS to the muscle

Synaptic transmission

Presynaptic neurons converting electrical impulses to a chemical signal

Synaptic cleft

Gap between neurons

Hebb’s theory

Theory of ‘plasticity’ in the brain which suggests areas of the brain with more activity become stronger as the synaptic connections become stronger

Cerebellum

Attention, language and movement

Occipital lobe

Visual areas

Parietal lobe

Somatosensory area; touch and heat

Frontal lobe

Thinking, planning, language

Wernickes area

Understanding what others say and making up new words

Broca’s area

Difficulty remembering and forming words

Localization

Different areas of the brain are responsible fro specific functions

Motor area

Controls movement on teh opposite side of teh body

Somatosensory area

Sensations

Interpretive cortex

Interpretations and memories located in teh temporal lobe

Cognitive psychology

Study of mental processes

Cognitive neuropsychology

Study of brain structures and mental processes

Neurological damange

Any damage to neurons in teh brain

CT scan (computerized tomography)

X-rays

FMRI (functional magnetic resonance imagery)

Measures activiyt with oxygenated and deoxygenated blood

PET scan (position

Measures metabolic activity using gamma rays produced by a radioactive tracker

Self attitudes

High self esteem and strong sense of identity

Personal growth

Extent to which individuals develop their full capabilities

Integration

Ability to cope with stressful situations

Autonomy

Being independent and self regulating

Mastery of environment

Ability to love, function and adjust

Reflex arc

Formed by all neurons to allow the body to react quickly

Electrical transmission

Communicate electrochemically

Engram

The trace of learning left in the brain

Amygdala

Processing emotions

Stroke

Bloody supply to part of the brain is interrupted