Video Flashcards: Psychology Concepts (Heredity, Environment, and Brain)

Module 1.1 Interaction of Heredity & Environment

• Psychology: Scientific study of the human mind and its functions.

• Nature vs. nurture debate: Nature = biological/genetic factors (e.g., eye color, hair color); Nurture = environmental influences.

• Darwin's Origin of Species ideas related to psychology:

  • Evolutionary psychology: how human thoughts and behaviors developed to help survive.

  • Natural selection: traits that aid survival are more likely to be passed down.

  • Behavior genetics: genetic and environmental influences on behavior.

• How evolutionary psychologists explain behavior tendencies using natural selection:

  • Behaviors that enhance survival are more likely to be inherited.

  • Adaptation: a species becomes fitted to its environment via natural selection.

  • Mutation: errors in gene replication that lead to change.

• How behavior genetics explains individual differences:

  • Result of complex interactions between genes and environment.

  • Key terms:

  • Heredity: genetic transfer of characteristics from parents to offspring.

  • Genome: instructions for making an organism.

  • Genes: DNA that stores and passes genetic information between generations.

• Twin and adoption studies: used to disentangle genetic and environmental contributions; suggest that all human behaviors reflect influences of physical and psychological predispositions that helped ancestors survive.

• Monozygotic vs. dizygotic twins:

  • Monozygotic (identical): same egg; splits.

  • Dizygotic (fraternal): different eggs; regular siblings.

• How heredity and environment work together:

  • Genes influence traits, but the environment can trigger gene expression.

  • Epigenetics: environment influences how genes are expressed without changing the DNA sequence.

Module 12 Overview of the Nervous System

• Nervous system: body’s network of cells and nerves that carry messages to and from the brain.

• Central nervous system (CNS): processes sensory information and controls higher functions.

• Peripheral nervous system (PNS): connects CNS to the rest of the body.

• Autonomic nervous system (ANS): division that controls involuntary functions (e.g., heart rate, digestion, respiration).

• Somatic nervous system: division of the PNS that controls skeletal muscles and transmits sensory information to the CNS.

• Afferent neurons: sensory neurons that transmit information toward the CNS.

• Efferent neurons: motor commands from the CNS to muscles/glands.

• Interneurons: connect afferent and efferent neurons; act as intermediaries.

• Reflexes: involuntary, rapid, automatic responses that do not require conscious thought.

• Sympathetic nervous system: prepares the body for stressful or emergency situations (fight or flight).

• Parasympathetic nervous system: promotes rest and digest; conserves energy.

Module 1.1 ongoing: Key terms relating to genes and environment

• Epigenetics: environment influences how genes are expressed without changing the DNA sequence; environment can up-regulate or down-regulate gene expression.

Module 13a The Neuron & Neural Firing: Neural Communication & the Endocrine System

• Neuron: a fundamental unit of the nervous system; a specialized cell that transmits electrical and chemical signals throughout the body.

• Structure of a neuron (labeling and function):

  • Dendrite: receive signals from other neurons; transmit toward the cell body.

  • Soma (cell body): contains nucleus; integrates incoming signals and generates nerve impulses.

  • Axon: carries nerve impulses away from the cell body to other neurons, muscles, and glands.

  • Axon terminals / Terminal buttons: release neurotransmitters into the synaptic cleft.

  • Myelin sheath: fatty layer around the axon; speeds transmission.

  • Nodes of Ranvier: gaps in the myelin where impulses jump to speed conduction.

  • Schwann cells: produce the myelin sheath in the peripheral nervous system.

  • Glial cells: support neurons; provide nourishment, insulation, and waste removal; contribute to various other functions.

• How information passes through the neuron:

  • Through electrochemical processes involving the action potential and neurotransmitters.

• Key aspects of neural transmission:

  • Threshold: level of stimulus required to trigger an action potential.

  • Action potential: the neural impulse that travels along the axon.

  • Resting potential: neuron at rest maintains a negative charge inside relative to the outside.

  • Refractory period: brief period after an action potential during which the neuron is less responsive to stimuli.

  • All-or-none response: an action potential either fires at full strength or not at all, regardless of stimulus strength above threshold.

  • Neurotransmitters: chemical messengers released from the presynaptic neuron into the synaptic cleft; bind to receptors on the postsynaptic neuron to transmit the signal.

  • Synapse / synaptic cleft: junction between two neurons where communication occurs.

  • Reuptake: neurotransmitters are reabsorbed by the presynaptic neuron, helping terminate the signal.

  • Excitatory neurotransmitters: increase the likelihood that the postsynaptic neuron will fire an action potential.

  • Inhibitory neurotransmitters: decrease the likelihood that the postsynaptic neuron will fire an action potential.

• Neurotransmitters (summary chart):

  • Acetylcholine (ACh): learning, memory, muscle contraction, attention.

  • Dopamine: reward/motivation; motor control; implicated in Parkinson's disease; schizophrenia.

  • Serotonin: mood regulation, sleep, appetite, digestion, memory; linked to depression, anxiety, OCD.

  • Norepinephrine: fight-or-flight response; arousal; anxiety; ADHD.

  • Glutamate: major excitatory neurotransmitter; involved in learning and memory; excitotoxicity if in excess.

  • GABA: major inhibitory neurotransmitter; reduces neuronal excitability; anxiety reduction; memory effects.

  • Endorphins: natural pain relief; euphoria; stress reduction.

  • Substance P: signals for pain.

  • Note: Malfunctions of these neurotransmitters can contribute to various disorders (e.g., Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, depression, anxiety, schizophrenia, ADHD, etc.).

Module 13b The Neuron & Neural Firing: Substance Use Disorders & Psychoactive Drugs

• How drugs and other chemicals alter neurotransmitters:

  • By mimicking or enhancing neurotransmitter effects or by blocking neurotransmitter effects.

• Agonists vs. antagonists:

  • Agonists: bind to receptors and activate them, mimicking natural ligands (e.g., morphine).

  • Antagonists: bind to receptors but do not activate them; block the action of agonists or natural ligands (e.g., naloxone).

• Endocrine-nervous system interaction:

  • The endocrine system transmits information and interacts with the nervous system through a complex interplay of hormones and neural signals.

• Endocrine system chart (hormones, release sites, functions):

  • Adrenaline (epinephrine): released by adrenal glands; increases heart rate, blood pressure, energy supply; “fight or flight.”

  • Cortisol: released by adrenal glands; regulates metabolism; involved in stress response.

  • Oxytocin: release site: posterior pituitary; promotes social bonding; roles in reproduction.

  • Melatonin (pineal gland): regulates sleep-wake cycles.

  • Other endocrine components include the pituitary gland and hypothalamus as regulators of hormone release.

• Psychoactive drugs and their impact:

  • Substances that alter brain function and result in changes in mood and cognition.

  • Substance use disorder: a complex disorder characterized by a maladaptive pattern of substance use leading to clinically significant impairment or distress.

• Chart of psychoactive drugs (categories and examples):

  • Depressants: e.g., alcohol, barbiturates; slow brain activity; can impair judgment and coordination; physical and psychological dependence.

  • Stimulants: e.g., cocaine, caffeine, amphetamines, MDMA (ecstasy); increase alertness and energy; can cause increased heart rate, anxiety, addiction.

  • Hallucinogens: e.g., LSD, psilocybin (magic mushrooms), mescaline; alter perception and mood; can cause hallucinations and unpredictable effects.

  • Marijuana: sometimes categorized as a depressant or hallucinogen depending on effects; various subjective effects.

• Additional terms:

  • Near-death experience: altered state of consciousness reported after close brush with death.

  • Tolerance: body becomes used to a drug; larger doses needed for the same effect.

  • Withdrawal: unpleasant physical and psychological symptoms when stopping drug use.

• When does drug use become addiction?

  • Addiction is when drug use becomes dependent and individuals continue using despite harmful consequences and show cravings, tolerance, and withdrawal.

• Potential consequences of excessive/prolonged drug use:

  • Physical and mental health problems; addiction and dependence; relationship, financial, and legal problems; social consequences.

Module 14a The Brain: Neuroplasticity & Tools of Discovery

• Biological psychologists focus on the relationship between brain, behavior, and mental processes.

• Biopsychosocial approach: health and illness result from the interplay of biological, psychological, and social factors.

• How biology and experience influence the brain:

  • Neurogenesis: generation of new neurons in the brain.

  • Neuroplasticity: brain’s ability to change its structure and function in response to experience.

• Brain imaging and measurement tools:

  • Electroencephalograph (EEG): measures brain electrical activity via scalp electrodes.

  • Magnetoencephalography (MEG): measures magnetic fields produced by neural activity.

  • Positron Emission Tomography (PET): uses radioactive tracers to visualize brain metabolism.

  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI): uses magnetic fields to produce detailed anatomical images.

  • Functional MRI (fMRI): measures brain activity by detecting blood flow changes.

  • Computed Tomography (CT): uses X-rays to create cross-sectional images of the brain.

Module 1.4b The Brain: Brain Regions & Structures

• Explain how the brain has evolved over time:

  • Hindbrain: essential for vital functions (breathing, heart rate, balance); reflexes; survival.

  • Midbrain: processes sensory information and controls movement; a step up in complexity.

  • Forebrain: largest part; supports thought, language, memory, voluntary action.

• (continued) Brain imaging modalities and brain function mapping (brief reference): EEG, MEG, PET, MRI, fMRI, CT (see above).

• Location, purpose/function, and effects of damage for each brain structure (overview):

  • Brainstem: vital automatic functions (breathing, heart rate, blood pressure); damage can be life-threatening.

  • Thalamus: relays sensory and motor signals to cerebral cortex; damage affects consciousness and sensory/motor integration.

  • Medulla: controls vital functions like breathing and heart rate; damage can be fatal.

  • Pons: relays signals between cerebrum and cerebellum; involved in sleep and arousal; damage can cause sleep disturbances and cranial nerve issues.

  • Reticular formation: regulates sleep-wake cycles, consciousness, and arousal.

  • Cerebrum / Cerebral cortex: higher-order cognitive functions; motor and sensory processing; language; emotion.

  • Hypothalamus: regulates eating, thirst, body temperature; controls autonomic and endocrine functions.

  • Amygdala: processes emotions (fear, aggression); involved in emotional memory.

  • Hippocampus: memory formation and spatial navigation.

  • Corpus callosum: connects left and right hemispheres; its integrity supports interhemispheric communication.

  • Pituitary gland: master endocrine gland; secretes hormones that regulate other glands.

  • Pineal gland: secretes melatonin; regulates sleep-wake cycles.

• Regions of the cerebral cortex (drawn/labelled):

  • Frontal lobes: Prefrontal cortex (personality, planning, decision making);

  • Motor cortex: controls voluntary movements;

  • Broca’s area: speech production and language processing (dominant hemisphere);

  • Parietal lobes: Somatosensory cortex; processes touch, temperature, body awareness; angular gyrus involved in written language and number processing;

  • Temporal lobes: Auditory cortex; Wernicke’s area for language comprehension.

  • Occipital lobes: Visual cortex; processes visual information.

• Association areas: regions not directly involved in primary sensory or motor functions; integrate information across modalities (e.g., planning, interpretation).

• Phineas Gage case: famous neuropsychology case showing frontal lobe involvement in personality and behavior; rod injury led to personality changes, illustrating the frontal lobe's role in executive function and social behavior.

• Split-brain: a procedure where the corpus callosum is severed to treat severe epilepsy; reduces cross-hemispheric communication and has been used to study hemispheric specialization.

Module 1.4c The Brain: Damage Response & Brain Hemispheres

• Brief reference: the split-brain procedure demonstrates how the two hemispheres can operate somewhat independently when their connections are severed; lateralization of language, spatial processing, and other functions.