Introduction to biopsychology

Slides #1

Biopsychology

The scientific study of the biology of behavior

The history of Biopsychology: Prehistoric

All humans understood, was that damage to our Brain would be fatal, but not much else.

The history of Biopsychology: Trepanation

Medical practices that involved drilling holes in the skull to treat head injuries or mental illness.

The history of Biopsychology: Ancient Egypt

Well understood significance of the brain/head for survival. Seed of intellect was considered the heart, but the brain isn’t critical for intellect.

The history of Biopsychology: Ancient Greece

Brain may be important. Hippocrates challenged heart theory, brain the organ inside the head is the seed of intellect. His argument failed, Aristotle and others opposed him and “won”. Heart remains seed of intelligence.

The history of Biopsychology: Roman Empire

Galen: examines solders from the roman army. Is clear to him that the brain is the center of behavior. Brain acts like a heart: beats and pumps out fluid in ventricles and pushes into arms and legs to make then move

The history of Biopsychology: Renaissance

Scientist noticed the brain locked the same from one person to another. Maybe difference bumps/parts could be doing difference jobs?

The history of Biopsychology: 1859

Charles Darwin: Noted that species evolve, but also good behaviors are passed down - makes you more likely to reproduce, and that behavior has some evolutionary component.

The history of Biopsychology: 1949

Each and every single place in the brain does have one and only job (NOT TRUE).

The history of Biopsychology: Modern

Individual places in the brain are specialized for certain purposes but other areas can contribute to that areas function.

Biopsycology holds that behavior is a product of interactions among three factors:

The organisms genetic endowment (the set of genes that will unfold over the course of your life), the organisms experience (will influence the creation of the current you), and its perception of the current situation (what is happening rn and how are you going to deal with it)

Major dimensions along with approaches vary (Humans)

NONEXPERIMENTS

Major dimensions along with approaches vary (NonHumans)

EXPERIMENTS

Humans

Pros: have humans brains, follow instructions, report experience, cheaps. Cons: Randoms, Marco-level

Nonhumans

Pros: controlled; Mirco-level, simpler brains. Cons: Nonhuman brains, expensive. xp

Experiments

involve the controlled manipulation of variables

Design: between

different groups. One control and one variable

Design: within

One control and the same group used to experience

Variables: independent

the thing we are changing

Variables: dependent

The thing we measure the effect of. How much did the change effect xzy

Variables: confounding

what could go wrong. Usually in experiments: try to minimize

Nonexperiments

the research does not control the variables of interest

Quasi-experimental

real-world groups

Case studies

single individual

Physiological Psychology

Study of the neural mechanisms of behavior, by manipulating the nervous system of nonhuman animals in controlled experiments. +NONHUMANS +EXPERIMENTS. Interests mircoeletrodes, uses lesions techniques (removing, damaging, inactivating parts of the brain)

Psychopharmacology

Study of the effects of effects of drugs on the brain. +NONHUMANS/HUMANS +EXPERIMENTS/NON-EXPERIMENTS. Locates Neurotransmitters to figure out where the drug is taking effect - In situ hybridization (defect specific proteins in RNA strains)

Neuropsychology

Study of the psychological effects of brain damage in human patients. +HUMANS +NONEXPERIMENTS. Assess intelligence (memory, language, perception) with nonexperiments (Wisconsin Card sorting, IQ). Very specific have to figure out what with memory isn’t working.

Psychophysiology

Study of the relation between gross physiological activity and the psychological processes in human subjects by noninvasive psychological recordings. +NONEXPERIMENTS +HUMANS. Measures brain waves, muscle tension, eye movement with electrodes places on skin

Cognitive Neuroscience

Study of the neural mechanisms of human cognition. The ideas is that where neurons are active in the brain, blood flows. Where blood flows / if blood flows to that part of the brain we can monitor it we will know which parts of the brain go with which parts of behavior. +HUMANS +EXPERIMENTS, not fully developed yet. Studying of humans on the level of individual neurons. Monitors Blood Oxygen Levels.

Comparative psychology

Study of the evolution, genetics and adaptiveness of behavior in laboratory species. +NON HUMANS +EXPERIMENTS. Use genetic manipulations, change genes see how behavior is effected. Morris water maze

Cognitive Neuroscience: 2

PET -inject radioactive substance into brain, have subject perform behavior scan a horizontal slide of brain and subtract brain at rest to detect movement

fMRI - Have subject perform behavior, scan brain for oxygenated blood