NEUR1020 Module 1

What is psychology?

Defined as the scientific study of mind, brain and behaviour

What makes up the scientific theory?

Observation (data), explanation (theory) - organises data coherently and shows how observations relate to each other, prediction (hypothesis) - predictive statement

What are the properties of scientific theories?

They have testable predictions - evaluated against data and can be falsified - the prediction much allow for the theory to be proved false

Is a theory ever stable?

A theory can be correct for a period of time, until more evidence is presented. From here the theory can be adjusted or disproved and completely disregarded. An example of this is that all swans are white - eventually proved wrong

What does critical thinking involve?

Judgements about the quality, adequacy and alternative explanations

What is reliability?

How repeatable or consistent measurements are. This is assessed by checking results across various times, observers and parts itself

What is validity?

Refers to the degree to which measurements link to the theory. Individuals may assess the degree of validity by analysing how well the results correspond to the established theories

Correlation vs causation

Just because two variables are related to each other it doesn't mean that one causes the other

What does quantitative data provide?

Allows us to put a numerical value on a measurement. It is most importantly used for comparison

Sampling and populations

To gain information about a general population, researchers take a sample of the population to generalise - the outcome from one sample may not be the same outcome an another sample

Uncertainty and replication

Experiments are repeated to tell us how effective a variable is

Implications

An inference can often be false - sometimes a study will produce evidence for an effect when there is no true effect found - false positive 5%

What is a paradigm?

It is an understanding and investigation in a phenomena which outlines fundamental assumptions that are made. It provides an outline in colours how one views (seek to understand) human psychology

What is the root metaphor for the psychodynamic paradigm?

Psychological disorder

What does the psychodynamic paradigm mean?

It is the conflict between the conscious and unconscious mind. It the fight between the pleasure principle (Id) and the reality principle (the ego)

What is the Id in the psychodynamic paradigm?

- Reservoir of base instincts and drive
- Operates on the pleasure principle
- Disregards methods to achieve this

What is the superego in the psychodynamic paradigm?

- It is the opposite to the ID
- Seat of morality and one's conscious mind and dictates how one ought to behave and provides an ideal self one can strive for - there is shame and guilt if this isn't achieved

What is the ego in the psychodynamic paradigm?

- Middle - competing demands from the Id and the superego
- Reality principle - 'long term' outlook compared to the Id

What are the problems associated with the psychodynamic paradigm?

- When the Id or the superego dominate over each other
- It was theorised by clinical observation and patient interviews
- Rightly criticised as unscientific and untestable
- Puts an emphasis on what can go wrong

What is the humanist paradigm?

- Encourages people to look at the positive aspects of life
- Establishes an empathetic and supportive environment
- Assumes humans are inherently seeking improvement and self-betterment
- Most of its core ideas can be tested (unlike the psychodynamic paradigm)

What are the levels in Maslow's hierarchy of needs?

Physiological needs, safety needs, belongingness and love needs, esteem needs, self actualisation

What is a negative associated with the humanist paradigm?

Lacks a strong scientific basis

Facts about the behaviourist paradigm?

- Rejection of the psychodynamic paradigm
- Looked to the external environment
- Adopts the stance that humans and other animals can be viewed as a blank slate whose psychology is determined purely by the external environment
- Rejects the idea that the mind plays a role in psychology
- law of effect - behaviours that are rewarded tend to be repeated

Facts about the cognitive paradigm ?

- root metaphor like a computer
- inputs are processed and transformed into outputs
- key concepts of mental representations and mental states
- currently the dominate paradigm in psychology
- seeks to understand the processes that transform stimuli into behaviours

Facts about the biological paradigm?

- Root metaphor of the biological machine - tells how the cognitive works
- Focus on identifying psychological behaviours and how they relate to cognition
- measurements of the brain activity and identification of genetic contribution to behaviours or psychological disorders

Which three paradigms adhere to the scientific theory?

Behaviourist, cognitive and biological

Experimental design

- Are set up to support a causal inference
- Manipulated and independent variable is changes whilst measuring the effects on the dependent variable

What is bias?

Refers to the factors that affect the data that is obtained in an experiment
- can have follow on effects

What are the types of bias?

Sampling bias - when the sample is not representative of the population
Expectation effects - bias from participant expectation e.g. placebo effect, Hawthorne effect (change actions when being observed), stereotype threat, and the demand threat (when the participant infers the purpose of the experiment and changes their actions accordingly), Rosenthal effect (when the experimenter predicts a certain hypothesis and hence changes their actions to achieve this)

Introspection as a research design

Introspection is a process that involves looking inward to examine one's own thoughts and emotions. ... The experimental use of introspection is similar to what you might do when you analyze your own thoughts and feelings but in a much more structured and rigorous way.
It is sometimes not accurate as people can think differently and loose accuracy

Case study as a research design

Biographical information about a single individual, obtained retrospectively, and often through interview.

Survey and self-report as a research design

The combination of introspection and case study - structured set of questions retains an interview-like quality that can quantify insights via introspection

Naturalistic observation as a research design

Method of observing people in a particular setting or task environment without intervening. Shows typical behaviour - a baseline set of behaviour

Correlational design as a research design

Where a researcher seeks to understand what kind of relationships naturally occurring variables have with one another. In simple terms, correlational research seeks to figure out if two or more variables are related and, if so, in what way. A limitation is that is cannot make claims about causality

Experimental design as a research design

Specifically set up to enable causal inference - they randomly allocate people and then add an experimental manipulation that introduce a single systematic difference. Allows causal inference

What does the occipital lobe control?

Vision from the retina - there are different regions for share, colour, motion and orientation. Different neurons do different things

Temporal lobe

Located near the ears. Receives hearing from cockles. Contains Wernicke's area, which controls language comprehension. Also contains the medial temporal lobe which contains the limbic system. This is comprised of the amygdala which gives alerts to threat and the hippocampus which helps with language and memory - forming new episodic memories

Parietal lobe

Located behind the frontal lobe. It gives a sense of space - where we are?. Directs attention and eye movements to explore the visual world. Links vision (where things are) to determine action

Frontal Lobe

Incharge of body movement. Incharge of human behaviour - reasoning, planning and selects what is appropriate

The corpus callosum

- Allows for connection of neurons from the left to right hemispheres
- Epilpsy patients have this cut - proves this connection to stop seizures

History of brain mapping

By the 1950s there was a good understanding of localised function
- Phineas Gage - railway worker got an iron rod stuck in his head - damaged the frontal lobes. Gage's physician John Harlow said he was a changed man - proves the frontal lobe is incharge and controls behaviour

Broca's area

Incharge of speech production
- left frontal lobe
- Founded by Broca in 1861
- Condition called Broca's aphasia - speech is slow and not fluent - hesitant, however can still comprehend

Wernicke's area

- Controls comprehension
- Left posterior temporal lobe
- Wernicke's aphasia - speech carries with no meaning

Wilder Penfield

- Stimulated the brain with electrical probes during surgery
- 1951 published maps of toro and sensory cortexes

What does the brainstem drive?

The autonomic nervous system. This is part of the peripheral nervous system. It controls involuntary control, sweating, stress, fight or flight

What is the autonomic nervous system made up of?

The sympathetic nervous system- arouses and activates body, fight or flight and increases heart rate and respiration.
Is also made up of the parasympathetic nervous system which is the opposite - rest and digest and lowers heart rate and respiration

The brainstem

- contains medulla. Controls heart rate, respiration, regulation of blood pressure, temp (homeostasis - keeps the body alive)
- Reflex centres for swallowing, coughing

What happens when people are in a vegetative state and the brainstem remains intact?

They can still complete autonomic nervous system activities. But with extensive damage to the cerebral hemisphere the patient has no conscious awareness

Motor Neuron Disease

Loss of motor neutrons to the spinal cord
- Intact cerebrum and brainstem but 'disconnected' from spinal cord
- normal cognitive function, hearing and vision, but can't move - fully conscious and aware, but totally unresponsive

Cerebellum

- connects to brainstem
- sense of balance and coordination
- motor fine movements based on feedback

Primary motor cortex

Send signals to create muscle contractions

Primary sensory cortex

Activity that leads to sensation - touch

Are movements planned in the brain?

They are planned and programmed in the brain
- either creates program before action
- or retrieves it from previous events

Feedback

Comes from vision, touch and proprioception (where the body is)
- the brain computes difference between planned and performed actions and makes corrections
- The brain automatically thinks you are the cause (causality)

Neuron

- do the work of the brain
- they secrete neurotransmitters to send their signals across synapses to other neurons

What are the cells that produce the myelin sheath?

Oligodendrocytes - if these are not present it can lead to multiple sclerosis. IF there is a lack of myelin, there is a lack of efficiency

What are astrocytes?

-Supply the nutrients from blood to neurons
- maintain the 'blood to brain barrier/

Microglia cells

- brain's immune system
- clean up foreign toxins and waste

Action potentials

Are the electrical impulses that help the brain communicate with nerve pathways

The cell membrane wall

- 70% of the brain is water
- Water surrounds the cell outside the cell
- Water fills the cell - intracellular fluid
- so the cell membrane is just a barrier between the intra and extracellular fluid
- the water contains K+ and Na+

The concentration of ions across the cell membrane

There are more positive ions outside of the cell
Fewer positive inside the cell - this gives a difference to the overall charge

Membrane potential

The difference in electrical charge between the inside and outside of the cell - concentration

Resting membrane potential

Membrane potential at rest - when the cell is not filling. This is -70 mili volts

How does the movement of ions occur across a membrane?

-Sodium Potassium pump - anything in high concentrations in positive areas (outside the cell) wants to become more positive
- this pumps them outside of the cell to maintain the membrane potential - uses 25% of a person's energy
- the action potential can change due to inputs from dendrites
- if voltage exceeds threshold it triggers action potential

Depolarisation of the cell

Membrane potential goes back to 0

repolarisation of the cell

Membrane potential back to -70mv resting potential

Voltage dependent ion channels

- Sodium wants to get in but at the resting potential, these channels are closed so sodium can't move
- when threshold occurs these channels open - free flowing Na+ and this causes depolarisation (becomes balanced)
- K+ opens at peak action potential when Na+ channel closes and this causes repolarisation (establishing imbalance -70mv

Refractory period

When repolarisation goes further below resting potential

Synapses

- join axon terminals of one neuron to the dendrites of another neuron
Presynaptic: Axon - axon terminal - synapse
Postsynaptic: Synapse - dendrite - cell body
Each receptor will only bind with a specific neurotransmitter e.g. serotonin and dopamine