Localistion

Localisation of function

The theory that different areas of the brain are responsible for specific behaviours

Holistic theory

The opposing historical view that all parts of the brain are involved in processing thought and action.

Cerebrum

The main part of the brain divided into two symmetrical left and right hemispheres.

Hemispheric lateralisation

The concept that certain physical and psychological functions are controlled or dominated by one specific hemisphere.

Cerebral cortex

The outer layer of the brain (grey matter) that covers the inner structures and is subdivided into four lobes per hemisphere.

Motor centre

Located at the back of the frontal lobes in both hemispheres; regulates voluntary movement on the opposite side of the body.

Somatosensory centre

Located at the front of the parietal lobes; processes sensory information from the skin (touch

Visual centre

Located in the occipital lobes at the back of the brain; receives and processes visual information from opposite visual fields.

Auditory centre

Located in the temporal lobes; analyses speech-based information and sound.

Broca’s area

An area in the left frontal lobe responsible for speech production.

Broca’s aphasia

A condition resulting from damage to Broca’s area characterized by slow

Wernicke’s area

An area in the left temporal lobe responsible for language comprehension.

Wernicke’s aphasia

A condition resulting from damage to Wernicke’s area causing patients to speak fluently but produce meaningless nonsense words (neologisms).

Dougherty et al. (2002) neurosurgery evidence

Found that 30% of OCD patients fully responded and 14% partially responded to a cingulotomy (destroying the cingulate gyrus)

Glasser et al. (2016) brain mapping support

Used high-resolution fMRI scans to identify 180 distinct functional regions per hemisphere in the human cerebral cortex.

O’Sullivan (2025) counterpoint

Criticised brain mapping for treating brain regions as isolated units rather than interconnected

Dick and Tremblay (2016) language review

Showed only 2% of modern researchers view language as strictly localized

Phineas Gage case study

Railroad worker whose left frontal lobe was damaged by an iron rod

Case study limitation

Individual cases like Phineas Gage lack generalisability and rely on subjective retrospective interpretation by researchers.