Quiz 4 Psych

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Neuroscience: Brain Areas & Functions

For each brain area, know:

1. Location – Where it is in the brain

2. Function – What it does

3. Real-world example – How it applies to daily life

4. Disorders – What happens if it is damaged

1. Corpus Callosum

Location: Band of nerve fibers connecting the left and right hemispheres.

Function: Allows communication between both sides of the brain.

Example: If severed (split-brain patients), a person may struggle with tasks requiring interhemispheric communication (e.g., identifying an object seen in the left visual field).

Disorders: Split-brain syndrome (can result in impaired coordination between hemispheres).

2. Thalamus

Location: Deep in the brain, near the center.

Function: Relay center for sensory information (except smell) to the cerebral cortex.

Example: Damage may cause sensory deficits—e.g., difficulty processing touch or vision.

Disorders: Thalamic stroke can lead to sensory loss, motor impairment, or pain syndromes.

3. Amygdala

Location: Part of the limbic system, near the hippocampus.

Function: Processes emotions, especially fear and aggression.

Example: Someone with amygdala damage may struggle to recognize fear in others or control their emotional responses (like in PTSD or anxiety disorders).

Disorders: PTSD, anxiety disorders, emotional dysregulation in psychopathy.

4. Hippocampus

Location: Temporal lobe, part of the limbic system.

Function: Memory formation, learning, spatial navigation.

Example: Someone with hippocampal damage (like in Alzheimer’s disease) may struggle with forming new memories.

Disorders: Anterograde amnesia (inability to form new memories).

5. Occipital Lobe

Location: Back of the brain.

Function: Visual processing.

Example: Damage can cause partial or complete blindness.

Disorders: Visual agnosia (difficulty recognizing objects), cortical blindness.

6. Temporal Lobe

Location: Side of the brain near the ears.

Function: Hearing, language comprehension (left hemisphere), memory.

Example: Damage can lead to issues in understanding speech (Wernicke’s aphasia).

Disorders: Wernicke’s aphasia (difficulty understanding spoken/written language), auditory processing disorders.

7. Parietal Lobe

Location: Top middle of the brain.

Function: Processes sensory information (touch, spatial awareness).

Example: Damage may cause difficulty recognizing objects by touch.

Disorders: Hemispatial neglect (ignoring one side of space), Gerstmann’s syndrome (difficulty with math, writing, and spatial processing).

8. Frontal Lobe

Location: Front of the brain.

Function: Decision-making, personality, voluntary movement.

Example: Damage (e.g., Phineas Gage) can result in impulsivity and personality changes.

Disorders: ADHD, schizophrenia, frontotemporal dementia.

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Decision-Making & Learning Theories

Classical Conditioning

Definition: Learning by associating two stimuli so that one predicts the other.

Influence on Decision-Making: Creates automatic responses based on past experiences.

Example: If a dog hears a bell before being fed, it will eventually salivate when hearing the bell alone (Pavlov’s experiment). In real life, you might associate a certain smell with a happy memory, influencing decisions like buying a specific perfume.

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Operant Conditioning

Definition: Learning based on consequences of behavior (rewards/punishments).

Influence on Decision-Making: Reinforcements increase a behavior, punishments decrease it.

A. Punishment vs. Reinforcement

Punishment: Decreases behavior.

Example: A child is scolded for talking in class, making them talk less.

Reinforcement: Increases behavior.

Example: A student gets extra credit for participating, increasing participation.

Which is more effective?

Research suggests reinforcement is more effective for shaping wanted behaviors since punishment can lead to fear or avoidance rather than learning.

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B. Continuous vs. Intermittent Reinforcement

Continuous Reinforcement: Behavior is reinforced every time.

Pros: Fast learning.

Cons: Behavior may disappear quickly if reinforcement stops.

Example: Giving a dog a treat every time it sits.

Intermittent Reinforcement: Behavior is reinforced only sometimes.

Pros: Behavior lasts longer.

Cons: Slower learning.

Example: Gambling—slot machines pay out unpredictably, keeping people playing.