Behavioral Sciences Chapter 1

Chapter 1

What did 19th-century researchers begin to emphasize about psychology?

They increasingly studied psychology from a physiological perspective, linking thought and behavior to brain function.

What did Franz Gall believe?

Behavior, intellect, and personality were linked to brain anatomy.

What is phrenology?

The false doctrine that well-developed psychological traits corresponded to enlarged areas of the brain that could supposedly be detected by feeling the skull.

What part of Gall's phrenology was incorrect?

The idea that psychological attributes could be measured by feeling the skull.

What did Pierre Flourens study?

The functions of major sections of the brain.

How did Flourens study brain function?

He removed different brain regions from pigeons and rabbits and observed behavioral consequences.

What did Flourens's experiments suggest?

Different brain areas contribute to specific functions, while damage to one area can affect overall brain function.

Who is considered the founder of American psychology?

William James.

What did William James study?

How the mind adapts to the environment.

What is functionalism?

An approach that studies how mental processes help an organism adapt to its environment.

What did Paul Broca investigate?

Behavioral deficits associated with brain damage.

What was Broca's major discovery?

A specific left-brain lesion could cause a specific functional impairment involving speech production.

What is Broca's area?

A region of the dominant frontal lobe important for speech production.

What did Hermann von Helmholtz first measure?

The speed of a nerve impulse.

Why was Helmholtz's work important to psychology?

It connected nerve-impulse speed with reaction time and helped move psychology toward quantifiable natural science.

What did Charles Sherrington infer?

The existence of synapses.

What did Sherrington get wrong about synaptic transmission?

He believed transmission was electrical; most synaptic transmission is chemical.

What is the central nervous system?

The brain and spinal cord.

What is the peripheral nervous system?

Nervous tissue and fibers outside the brain and spinal cord.

About how many cells make up the CNS according to the chapter?

More than 100 billion cells.

What are afferent neurons?

Sensory neurons that carry information toward the spinal cord and brain.

What are efferent neurons?

Motor neurons that carry information away from the brain and spinal cord to muscles and glands.

What mnemonic helps distinguish afferent from efferent?

Afferent arrives at the CNS; efferent exits the CNS.

What are sensory neurons?

Afferent neurons that transmit sensory information from receptors to the CNS.

What are motor neurons?

Efferent neurons that transmit motor information from the CNS to muscles and glands.

What are interneurons?

Neurons located between other neurons, mostly in the brain and spinal cord.

Which of the three neuron types are most numerous?

Interneurons.

What are interneurons especially involved in?

Reflexive behavior and connecting neural pathways.

What is a reflex arc?

A neural circuit that controls an automatic reflex response.

What happens in a withdrawal reflex after stepping on a nail?

Pain receptors activate sensory neurons, which connect with interneurons in the spinal cord; motor pathways cause the foot to withdraw while information also travels toward the brain.

What are the two major divisions of the nervous system?

The central nervous system and peripheral nervous system.

How many pairs of spinal nerves are in the PNS?

31 pairs.

How many pairs of cranial nerves are in the PNS?

12 pairs.

Are the olfactory and optic nerves considered part of the PNS in this chapter?

Yes, although they are CNS outgrowths, they are considered components of the PNS.

What is the main role of the PNS?

It connects the CNS with the rest of the body.

What are the two major subdivisions of the PNS?

The somatic nervous system and autonomic nervous system.

What does the somatic nervous system include?

Sensory and motor neurons distributed throughout the skin, joints, and muscles.

What direction do somatic sensory signals travel?

Toward the CNS through afferent fibers.

What direction do somatic motor signals travel?

From the CNS to the body through efferent fibers.

What does the autonomic nervous system regulate?

Involuntary functions such as heartbeat, respiration, digestion, glandular secretion, sweating, and temperature regulation.

What does autonomic mean?

Independent of conscious control or automatic.

What are the two divisions of the autonomic nervous system?

Sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems.

How do the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems often relate?

They often act in opposition to one another.

What is the sympathetic nervous system associated with?

Stress, fear, rage, and the fight-or-flight response.

What is the parasympathetic nervous system associated with?

Rest, sleep, energy conservation, and digestion.

What happens to heart rate during sympathetic activation?

It increases.

What happens to heart rate during parasympathetic activation?

It decreases.

What happens to digestion during sympathetic activation?

Digestion and peristalsis are inhibited.

What happens to digestion during parasympathetic activation?

Digestion and peristalsis increase.

What happens to the pupils during sympathetic activation?

They dilate.

What happens to the pupils during parasympathetic activation?

They constrict.

What happens to the bronchi during sympathetic activation?

They relax/dilate.

What happens to the bronchi during parasympathetic activation?

They constrict.

What happens to blood glucose during sympathetic activation?

Blood glucose increases as glucose production/release is stimulated.

What happens to salivation during sympathetic activation?

Salivation is inhibited.

What happens to sweating during sympathetic activation?

Sweating is stimulated.

What neurotransmitter is responsible for parasympathetic responses according to the chapter?

Acetylcholine.

What are the three layers of the meninges?

Dura mater, arachnoid mater, and pia mater.

Which meningeal layer is directly connected to the skull?

Dura mater.

Which meningeal layer is in the middle?

Arachnoid mater.

Which meningeal layer is deepest?

Pia mater.

What are the functions of the meninges?

They protect and anchor the brain and help reabsorb cerebrospinal fluid.

What is cerebrospinal fluid?

An aqueous fluid that nourishes the brain and spinal cord and provides protective cushioning.

Where is cerebrospinal fluid produced?

By specialized cells lining the brain's ventricles.

What are the three major divisions of the brain?

Hindbrain, midbrain, and forebrain.

Which brain division contains basic survival functions?

The hindbrain.

Which brain division is associated with complex cognitive and emotional functions?

The forebrain.

What two divisions form the brainstem?

The hindbrain and midbrain.

What is the brainstem?

The most primitive region of the brain, formed by the hindbrain and midbrain.

What is the limbic system associated with?

Emotion and memory.

What behaviors are associated with the limbic system?

Aggression, fear, pleasure, and pain.

What is the cerebral cortex?

The outer covering of the cerebral hemispheres and the most recent major evolutionary development of the human brain.

What functions are associated with the cerebral cortex?

Language, problem solving, impulse control, and long-term planning, among others.

What does the neural tube develop into?

The central nervous system and the major embryonic brain regions.

What is the hindbrain also called?

The rhombencephalon.

Where is the hindbrain located?

Where the brain meets the spinal cord.

What does the hindbrain control?

Balance, motor coordination, breathing, digestion, arousal, and other survival processes.

What does the rhombencephalon divide into during development?

The myencephalon and metencephalon.

What does the myencephalon become?

The medulla oblongata.

What does the metencephalon become?

The pons and cerebellum.

What is the medulla oblongata?

A lower brain structure that regulates vital functions such as breathing, heart rate, and digestion.

Where is the pons located?

Above the medulla.

What does the pons contain?

Sensory and motor pathways between the cortex and medulla.

What is the cerebellum?

A structure that helps maintain posture and balance and coordinates body movements.

How does alcohol affect the cerebellum?

It impairs cerebellar functions such as coordination and balance.

What is the midbrain also called?

The mesencephalon.

Where is the midbrain located?

Just above the hindbrain.

What does the midbrain receive?

Sensory and motor information from the rest of the body.

What is the midbrain associated with?

Involuntary reflex responses triggered by visual or auditory stimuli.

What are the colliculi?

Prominent nuclei in the midbrain involved in sensory processing and reflexes.

What does the superior colliculus receive?

Visual sensory input.

What does the inferior colliculus receive?

Auditory sensory input.

What is the forebrain also called?

The prosencephalon.

Where is the forebrain located?

Above the midbrain.

What is the forebrain associated with?

Complex perceptual, cognitive, emotional, and behavioral processes.

Is the forebrain necessary for basic survival?

It is not primarily responsible for basic survival; it is strongly associated with human intellectual and emotional capacities.

What two major structures develop from the forebrain?

The telencephalon and diencephalon.

What does the telencephalon form?

The cerebral cortex, basal ganglia, and limbic system.

What does the diencephalon form?

The thalamus, hypothalamus, posterior pituitary gland, and pineal gland.

What is neuropsychology?

The study of functions and behaviors associated with specific regions of the brain.