AP Psych Brain Parts / Functions

Hindbrain

Controls basic life functions

Medulla

Controls heartbeat, breathing, and vital reflexes (life support)

Pons

Helps coordinate movement, regulates sleep, dreaming, and arousal

Cerebellum

Coordinates balance, fine motor skills, and procedural memory (like riding a bike)

Midbrain

Sensory processing & movement

Reticular Formation

Controls arousal, attention, and filters incoming stimuli

Substantia Nigra

Produces dopamine; involved in movement (linked to Parkinson's)

Forebrain

Higher-level functions

Thalamus

Sensory relay station, directs sensory messages (except smell) to proper brain areas

Hypothalamus

Regulates hunger, thirst, body temperature, sexual behavior, and links nervous system to endocrine system (via pituitary gland)

Amygdala

Processes emotions (fear, aggression)

Hippocampus

Forms new explicit (declarative) memories; learning

Pituitary Gland

Master endocrine gland; releases growth hormones and regulates other glands

Cerebral Cortex

Thinking, perception, decision-making

Frontal Lobe

Higher thinking, planning, judgment, decision-making, personality

Motor Cortex

Controls voluntary movement

Prefrontal Cortex

Decision making, planning, impulse control

Broca's Area

Produces speech and language (left frontal)

Parietal Lobe

Processes sensory input (touch, pressure, pain)

Somatosensory Cortex

Registers body sensations such as touch and pain

Temporal Lobe

Processes auditory information (hearing)

Wernicke's Area

Understanding language (comprehension) (left temporal)

Occipital Lobe

Vision and visual processing

Corpus Callosum

Connects the two hemispheres; allows communication between them

Basal Ganglia

Movement and habit formation

Limbic System

Emotional center (includes hippocampus, amygdala, hypothalamus)