Biological Bases of Psychology

Unit 1 - Biological Bases of Psychology

AP Psychology-Test Review Sheet

Test Format

  • Weighting on AP Exam: 15-25%

  • Structure: 50 multiple choice questions (sourced from College Board test bank)

  • Answer options: A, B, C, D

  • Assessment Organization:

    • The test is divided into four learning target subgroups.

    • Students are graded on each subgroup additionally to the whole test.

    • Options to reassess selected subgroup(s) later on.

Subgroups Breakdown

  • Subgroup 1: Heredity and Environment (Questions #1-10)

  • Subgroup 2: The Neuron, Nervous System, Neural Transmission, and Psychoactive Drugs (Questions #11-23)

  • Subgroup 3: The Structures and Function of the Brain and Sleep (Questions #24-38)

  • Subgroup 4: Sensation (Questions #39-50)

  • Note: Each subgroup includes one more question than the available points, allowing for one missed question without penalty. A correct answer on the bonus question adds extra credit.

Key Ideas/Concepts

Nature vs. Nurture Debate

  • Nature (Heredity): Focuses on genetic predispositions.

  • Nurture (Environment): Encompasses external factors including

    • Family and peer interactions

    • Education

Natural Selection and Evolutionary Perspective

  • Evolutionary psychology examines survival and reproductive success.

Neural Transmission and the Spinal Reflex Arc

  • Neural Transmission Process:

    • All-or-Nothing Principle: Neurons either fire or do not fire.

    • Depolarization: A change that makes the inside of the neuron more positive.

    • Refractory Period: Time after an action potential during which the neuron cannot fire.

    • Resting Potential: The state of a neuron when not firing (-70 mV).

    • Action Potential: The electrical signal transmitted along the neuron.

Neurotransmitters

  • Chemical messengers that transmit signals across synapses

  • Types include:

    • Dopamine: Involved in movement, attention, and reward.

    • Serotonin: Affects mood, hunger, and sleep.

    • Norepinephrine: Influences alertness and arousal.

    • Glutamate: Major excitatory neurotransmitter.

    • GABA (Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid): Primary inhibitory neurotransmitter.

    • Endorphins: Pain relief and pleasure.

    • Substance P: Involved in the perception of pain.

    • Acetylcholine: Relates to muscle movement and learning.

  • Excitatory and Inhibitory Neurotransmitters:

    • Excitatory increases likelihood of action potential.

    • Inhibitory decreases likelihood of action potential.

Neurons Types

  • Three types of neurons:

    • Sensory Neurons: Transmit sensory information to the brain.

    • Motor Neurons: Convey signals from the brain to muscles.

    • Interneurons: Connect neurons within the central nervous system (CNS).

Glial Cells

  • Supportive cells in the nervous system assisting in neuronal function.

Structures and Functions of the Nervous System

  • Central Nervous System (CNS): Consists of the brain and spinal cord.

  • Peripheral Nervous System (PNS): External to the CNS; includes

    • Autonomic Nervous System: Controls involuntary functions and regulates bodily processes.

    • Sympathetic Division: Mobilizes body’s resources during stress (fight-or-flight).

    • Parasympathetic Division: Conserves energy and restores the body to resting state (rest-and-digest).

    • Somatic Nervous System: Controls voluntary movements.

Hormones

  • Examples include:

    • Adrenaline: Fight-or-flight response.

    • Leptin: Regulates energy balance and inhibits hunger.

    • Ghrelin: Stimulates hunger.

    • Melatonin: Regulates sleep-wake cycles.

    • Oxytocin: Controls social bonding and reproductive behaviors.

    • Pituitary Gland: Master gland controlling hormonal functions.

Psychoactive Drugs

  • Types of Psychoactive Drugs:

    • Stimulants: Heighten activity in the CNS (e.g., caffeine, nicotine).

    • Depressants: Decrease CNS activity (e.g., alcohol).

    • Hallucinogens: Alter perception and mood (e.g., LSD).

    • Opioids: Pain relief (e.g., morphine, heroin).

  • Agonists vs. Antagonists:

    • Agonists mimic neurotransmitters.

    • Antagonists block neurotransmitter actions.

  • Reuptake Inhibitors: Prevent neurotransmitter reabsorption, increasing their availability.

  • Concepts of Tolerance: Refers to decreasing response to a drug over time.

  • Dependency and Addiction: The psychological or physical reliance on a substance.

  • Withdrawal: Physical symptoms experienced after reducing or discontinuing drug use.

The Human Brain Structure

  • Brain Components:

    • Brainstem: Includes midbrain, pons, and medulla.

    • Cerebellum: Coordinates voluntary movement and balance.

    • Cerebral Cortex: Associated with higher brain functions.

    • Limbic System: Involved in emotion and memory.

    • Thalamus: Relay station for sensory information.

    • Hypothalamus: Regulates homeostasis and endocrine functions.

    • Hippocampus: Key role in the formation of new memories.

    • Amygdala: Processing emotions, particularly fear.

    • Brain Lobes:

    • Frontal Lobe: Involved in reasoning, planning, and problem-solving.

    • Occipital Lobe: Responsible for visual processing.

    • Temporal Lobe: Associated with hearing and language comprehension.

    • Parietal Lobe: Involved in sensory perception and integration.

    • Corpus Callosum: Connects the left and right hemispheres of the brain.

Cortexes and Their Functions

  • Somatosensory Cortex: Processes tactile information.

  • Prefrontal Cortex: Involved in decision making and social behavior.

  • Motor Cortex: Controls voluntary movements.

  • Visual Cortex: Processes visual information.

Sleep and Biological Rhythms

  • Circadian Rhythms: Biological processes that follow a roughly 24-hour cycle, including the sleep/wake cycle.

  • Types of Biological Rhythms:

    • Infradian: Longer than one day (e.g., menstrual cycle).

    • Ultradian: Less than one day (e.g., stages of sleep).

    • Circannual: Yearly cycles (e.g., seasonal affective disorder).

    • Diurnal: Day/night cycles.

  • Stages of Sleep:

    • NREM Stages: NREM1, NREM2, NREM3 - each stage represents increasing depths of sleep.

    • REM Sleep: Characterized by rapid eye movement and dreams.

  • Hypnagogic Sensations: Sensory experiences that occur when falling asleep.

  • REM Rebound: Increased REM sleep following sleep deprivation.

Dream Theories

  • Activation-Synthesis Theory: Describes dreams as the brain’s attempt to make sense of spontaneous neural activity during sleep.

  • Consolidation Theory: Proposes that dreaming helps consolidate memories.

Sleep Disorders

  • Examples include:

    • Insomnia: Difficulty falling/staying asleep.

    • Narcolepsy: Recurrent, uncontrollable sleep attacks.

    • REM Sleep Behavior Disorder: Acting out dreams during REM sleep.

    • Sleep Apnea: Breathing disruptions during sleep.

    • Somnambulism: Sleepwalking episode during the night.

Sensation

  • Threshold Concepts:

    • Absolute Threshold: Minimum stimulus intensity required to detect a stimulus.

    • Just-Noticeable Difference (JND): Minimum change in stimulus intensity required to detect a difference.

  • Weber's Law: States that the difference threshold is a constant fraction of the original stimulus.

  • Sensory Interaction: Interaction of various senses in perception.

  • Synesthesia: Condition where stimulation in one sensory modality leads to experiences in another sensory modality.

  • Sensory Adaptation: Diminished sensitivity to a stimulus as a result of constant exposure.

Transduction

  • Process of converting sensory signals into neural signals.

Visual Sensory Processing

  • Retina: Light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye.

  • Rods and Cones: Types of photoreceptor cells in the retina.

  • Lens: Focuses light onto the retina.

  • Blind Spot: Part of the visual field that cannot be perceived because of the optic nerve.

  • Accommodations: The eye's ability to change focus on distant or near objects.

  • Nearsightedness: Difficulty seeing distant objects clearly.

  • Farsightedness: Difficulty seeing near objects clearly.

  • Color Vision: The ability of the human eye to distinguish colors.

    • Young-Helmholtz Trichromatic Theory: Proposes three color receptors (RGB).

    • Opponent-Process Theory: Proposes that color perception is controlled by opposing neural processes (e.g., red vs. green).

    • Afterimage Effect: Visual illusion where an image remains seen after original stimulus is removed.

    • Color Vision Deficiencies: Including dichromatism and monochromatism.

    • Prosopagnosia: Difficulty recognizing faces (face blindness).

    • Blindsight: Ability to respond to visual stimuli without consciously perceiving them.

Auditory Sensory Processing

  • Key Concepts:

    • Wavelength and Amplitude: Determines pitch and loudness, respectively.

    • Place Theory: Frequency is determined by where sound waves stimulate the cochlea.

    • Frequency Theory: Pitch is related to the frequency of neuron firing.

    • Volley Theory: Neurons fire in groups, allowing for a higher frequency perception.

  • Difficulties:

    • Sound localization difficulties can occur with aging or damage.

  • Hearing Impairments:

    • Conduction Deafness: Issues in the outer/middle ear affecting sound transmission.

    • Sensorineural Deafness: Damage to inner ear structures or auditory nerve.

Olfactory and Gustation Sensory Processing

  • Olfaction:

    • Structures in the nose and brain responsible for the sense of smell.

    • Role of the Thalamus: Typically, olfactory information bypasses the thalamus.

    • Pheromones: Chemical signals influencing behavior.

  • Gustation:

    • Types of tastes: Sweet, salty, sour, bitter, umami.

    • Structures in tongue, mouth, and brain.

    • Taste Receptors: Cells responsible for taste perception.

    • Taster Categories: Supertasters, medium tasters, and nontasters.

    • Interaction of chemical senses contributes to the overall sense of taste.

Touch Sensory Processing

  • Pain: Critical sensory function.

  • Structures within the skin and brain detect tactile sensations.

  • Types of Tactile Sensations: Include pressure, temperature, and pain.

  • Gate Control Theory: Proposes that non-painful input can close the nerve ‘gates’ to painful input, reducing perceived pain.

  • Phantom Limb Sensation: Perception of pain or sensation in a limb that has been amputated.

Vestibular Sense and Kinesthesis

  • Vestibular Sense:

    • Involves balance and spatial orientation.

    • Semicircular Canals: Structures in the inner ear that contribute to balance.

  • Kinesthesis: Awareness of body position and movement, contributed by receptors in muscles and joints.

Learning Objectives

  • 1.1A: Explain the relationship between heredity and environment in shaping behavior and mental processes.

  • 1.2A: Differentiate among the subsystems of the human nervous system and their functions.

  • 1.3A: Explain how the structures and functions of typical neurons in the central nervous system affect behavior and mental processes.

  • 1.3B: Explain how the basic process of neural transmission is related to behavior and mental processes.

  • 1.3C: Explain how psychoactive drugs affect behavior and mental processes.

  • 1.4A: Explain how the structures and functions of the brain apply to behavior and mental processes.

  • 1.5A: Explain how the sleep/wake cycle affects behavior and mental processes throughout the day and night.

  • 1.6A: Explain how the process of sensation is related to behavior and mental processes.

  • 1.6B: Explain how the structures and functions of the visual sensory system relate to behavior and mental processes.

  • 1.6C: Explain how the structures and functions of the auditory sensory system relate to behavior and mental processes.

  • 1.6D: Explain how the structures and functions of the chemical sensory systems relate to behavior and mental processes.

  • 1.6E: Explain how the structures and functions of the touch sensory system relate to behavior and mental processes.

  • 1.6F: Explain how the structures and functions of the pain sensory system relate to behavior and mental processes.

  • 1.6G: Explain how the structures and functions that maintain balance (vestibular) and body movement (kinesthetic) relate to behavior and mental processes.