AP Psychology Unit 1 Study Guide I

Biological Bases of Behavior

Neuroplasticity

The brain's ability to change, adapt, and reorganize itself in response to new experiences, environments, and learning

Hemispheric Specialization

The left and right hemispheres of the brain have specialized functions, with the left hemisphere generally associated with analytical and verbal tasks, while the right hemisphere is linked to creativity and nonverbal skills.

Circadian Rhythm 

The natural, internal process that regulates the sleep-wake cycle, typically lasting about 24 hours.

Insomnia

Chronic difficulty falling or staying asleep

Narcolepsy

Uncontrollable sleep attacks; lapsing into REM sleep at bad times

Sleep Apnea

Temporary cessations of breathing during sleep and repeated momentary awakenings

Somnabulism

Sleepwalking; rarely remember trips

REM Sleep Behavior Disorder

Acting out dreams in sleep because normal REM paralysis occurs

Consolidation Theory

Dreams help us sort out the day's events and consolidate our memories

Activation Synthesis Theory

REM sleep triggers random visual memories and the brain creates stories; AKA random and meaningless

Limits of the Senses

Absolute threshold is the minimum stimulus energy needed to detect a stimulus 50% of the time. Just-noticeable difference is the minimum stimulus difference a person can detect 50% of the time. Weber's law states that for two stimuli to be perceived as different by a minimum constant percentage, not a constant amount.

Agonist

A molecule that increases a neurotransmitter’s action (key words: increase, strengthen, and amplify) most drugs are agonists

Antagonist

A molecule that blocks a neurotransmitter’s action (key words: block, stop, and prevent)

Reuptake Inhibitors

The Reflex Arc

1) Info is carried from skin receptors along a sensory neuron to the spinal cord

2) From there it is passed by intraneurons to motor neurons that lead to arm and hand muscles

3) Because reflexes involve only the spinal cord the hand jerks away from the stimulus before information about the event reaches the brain

Parts of the Nervous System

Central Nervous System

Autonomic Nervous System

Somatic Nervous System

Sympathetic Nervous System

Parasympathetic Nervous System

Types of neurons

Sensory- (sends messages) carry info from body tissues and sensory receptors to the brain and spinal cord.

Motor- (moves the body) carries outgoing info from the brain and spinal cord to the muscles and glands.

Iterneurons- neurons within the brain and spinal cord that communicate internally and process sensory inputs an motor outputs

Parts of a neuron

Cell body (contains the nucleus)

Dendrites (receives and integrates messages)

Axon (passes messages to other neurons or muscles/glands)

Myelin Sheath (enables greater transmission speed of neurons)

Neurotransmission

Neurotransmitters are released by the axon terminal and bind to and react with the receptors on the dendrites of another neuron (pre and post synapse)

Synapse

The junction between two neurons where a nerve impulse is transmitted to another

Steps of a Neural Impulse

1. A stimulus depolarizes a neuron’s membrane and becomes permeable to sodium flow

2. Because of the stimulus, ions begin to move sign the action potential in the neuron (a brief electrical charge that travels down the axon)

3. All-or-none response (neuron either fires with a full-strength response or doesn’t fire AKA resting potential)

4. Repolarization (Refractory period); a brief resting pause that occurs after a neuron has fired 

Multiple Sclerosis and Neurotransmitters

Degeneration of the myelin sheaths causes diminished control and slower reaction time because it is the part of the neuron that is responsible for speed of neurotransmission

Excitatory Neurotransmitters

Excites a nerve cell and binds nerve cells to increase its electrical activity 

Inhibitory Neurotransmitters

Make neurons less likely to generate action potential

Reuptake

A nerve cell’s reabsorption of a neurotransmitter after it has delivered its message

Nature vs Nuture

Heredity and genetics vs environment, and the role they play in who we become

Evolutionary Perspective

Examining human thoughts and behavior through the lens of enhancing survival and reproduction, shaped by natural selection 

Twin/Family/Adoption Studies Takeaways

Your genetics do determine to an extent your mental illnesses and some tendencies, but your environment ultimately shapes which parts of your personality develop. It has also shown us that parenting deeply matters. 

Acetylocholine

Functions: Enables muscle action and sends messages between motor neurons and skeletal muscles. Also plays a role in learning and memory.

Problems: muscle spasm (S), myasthenia gravis (D)

Dopamine

Functions: Learning, attention, and emotion, and also influences movement.

Problems: Schizophrenia, addiction, mania (S), and Parkinson’s (D)

Serotonin

Functions: Mood stabilization, hunger, sleep, and arousal

Problems: Hallucinations (S), depression (D)

Norepinephrine

Functions: Helps control alertness and arousal

Problems: Mania and anxiety (S), depression (D)

GABA

Functions: Natural tranquilizer (major inhibitory neurotransmitter on axons)

Problems: Sleep and eating disorders (S), anxiety, seizures in epilepsy, and insomnia (D)

Endorphins

Functions: Natural pain-killers and allow us to feel pleasure

Problems: Euphoria (S) and addiction (D)

Glutamate

Functions: An excitatory effect on axons; involved in memory

Problems: Migraines and anxiety (S), any neurotransmitter that needs a boost won’t receive it (D)

Susbstance P

Functions: Involved with pain perception and immune response

Problems: leads to chronic pain the body can’t keep up with (S), pain, depression, and anxiety (D)

Reuptake inhbitors

Work like an agonist but block the resorption of the body’s neurotransmitter

Adrenaline

Provides energy for fight-or-flight response. (Increased heart rate, higher blood pressure, and higher blood sugar)

Ghrelin

Hunger arousing hormone

Leptin

Hunger suppressing hormone

Oxytocin

Bonding hormone that enables orgasms, contraction, milk flow, and social support

Melatonin

Sleep-inducing hormone

Depressants

Lower neural activity and slow body function. GABA. Alcohol and barbituates. 

Stimulants

Excite neural activity and speeds up body functions. Dopamine/adenosine. Caffeine, cocaine, nicotine.

Hallucinogens

Distort perception and evoke sensory and images and create a “near death experience.” Serotonin. LSD and marijuana.

Opioids

Reduce GABA and slow the release of dopamine, temporarily reducing pain and anxiety. Opium, oxycontin, and morphine.

EEG vs fMRI

EEG is show brain activity and responses to stimuli, fMRI helps to how brain functions in particular areas. EEG shows electrical activity and fMRI shows blood flow. 

Sleep Stages

Drwosy and relazed (alpha waves)

nonREM 1: hynagogic sensations; jerking or feeling like you’re falling (Theta waves)

nonREM 2: aid memory process and you are clearly asleep (Sleep spindles

nonREM 3: deep sleep (Delta waves)

REM: dreams occur and though externally calm you are internally awake (Beta-like waves)

REM on a chart is the straight line that extends forward

Kinesthetic sense

Responsible for the awareness of your body’s parts and movements, involving your cerebellum and cerebral cortex to communicate with receptors in muscles, tendons, and joints

Vestibular sense

Responsible for balance or awareness of your head’s position, involving working with the receptors in your inner ear to connect with your cerebellum

Taste

6 flavors: umami, salty, sweet, sour, olegustus, and bitter. There are supertasters, medium tasters, and nontasters. Taste involves the gustatory cortex.

Sensation of Touch

Sensations on the skin are registered in the somatosensory cortex, which is located in the parietal lobe.

Gate Control Theory

The spinal cord contains a neurological gate that controls the transmission of pain messages to the brain. The gate is opened by the activity of pain signals traveling up small nerve fibers and close by activity in larger fibers.

How Smell and Taste Work Together

Without smell our taste is either muted or not experienced. Smell is the only sense that doesn’t go through the thalamus, and has a connection to memory and emotions.

Eye Parts

Lens- changes shape to help focus images on the retina (accomodation)

Cones- detect white and enable you to receive color

Rods- enable black and white vision

Optic Nerve- nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain

Retina- contains receptor rods and cones and layers of neurons that begin processing visual information

Color Theories and Colorblindness

Trichromatic Theory- The retina contained three different color receptors: green, red, and blue which can produce the perception of any color

Opponent Process Theory- Opposing retinal processes (red-green, yellow-blue, and white-black) enable color vision, and you can’t see both at the same time.

Colorblindness- lacking in red or green sensitive cones, or sometimes both

Hearing Loss and Hearing Theories

Sensorineural hearing loss: nerve deafness, caused by damage to the coachlea’s receptor cells or auditory nerve

Conduction hearing loss: caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound waves

Place theory- we hear different pitches because different sound waves trigger activity at different places along the cochea’s basilar membrane (helps with high pitch)

Frequency theory- the brain reads pitch by monitoring the frequency of neural impulse traveling up the auditory nerve, which matches the frequency of a tone (helps with low pitch)

Volley theory- neural cells alternate firing “volleying” back and forth