Week 3 - Research Methods Part 3

Research Methods Part 3

Lecture Structure

  • The lecture covers research methods used to advance biological psychology.

  • It focuses on non-invasive imaging and psychophysiological methods for understanding the living human brain, including their limitations and strengths.

  • It also discusses behavioral methods for understanding the living human brain, including their limitations and strengths.

Learning Outcomes

  • Describe, compare, and contrast non-invasive methods of visualizing and stimulating the living human brain, including limitations and strengths.

  • Describe common behavioral concepts and techniques related to visualizing the living human brain in cognitive neuroscience, including the paired-image subtraction technique and signal averaging.

  • Describe the six methods commonly used to record human psychophysiological activity.

  • Describe the three approaches to neuropsychological testing and some common measures of neuropsychological testing in different cognitive domains (memory, language).

Six Methods to Record Human Psychophysiological Activity

  • EEG (Electroencephalography): Measures brain electrical activity.

  • MEG (Magnetoencephalography): Detects magnetic fields from neural activity.

  • EOG (Electrooculography): Tracks eye movements.

  • EMG (Electromyography): Records muscle activity.

  • Skin Conductance (GSR/EDA): Measures autonomic arousal.

  • Cardiovascular Measures (ECG, BP, HRV): Tracks heart-related responses.

Utilizing Multiple Techniques

  • Multiple techniques can be used to leverage the strengths of each method and address their limitations.

Electrooculography (EOG) and EEG

  • EOG can be measured with EEG setups.

Electromyography (EMG) and TMS

  • Electrodes are positioned on the skin over the muscle.

  • EMG amplifiers are used to record action potentials (APs) arriving at the neuromuscular junction.

Skin Conductance + EEG or fMRI

  • Skin conductance can be combined with EEG or fMRI.

Electrocardiogram (ECG) + EEG

  • ECG can be combined with EEG.

Neuropsychological Testing: Common Measures of Different Cognitive Domains

  • Neuropsychological testing involves common measures of different cognitive domains such as memory and language.

Neuropsychological Testing: A Brief History

  • Early 20th Century: Single test approach.

  • Mid 20th Century: Standardized test approach.

  • Modern Neuropsychology: Customized test battery.

Common Neuropsychological Tests for Different Aspects of Cognition

  • Intelligence: Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS).

  • Memory: Wechsler Memory Scale (WMS).

  • Language: Boston Naming Test (BNT).

  • Attention: Continuous Performance Test (CPT).

Intelligence - Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS)

  • WAIS provides scores for:

    • Verbal IQ (VIQ)

    • Performance IQ (PIQ)

    • Full-Scale IQ (FSIQ)

    • Verbal Comprehension Index (VCI)

    • Working Memory Index (WMI)

    • Perceptual Organization Index (POI)

    • Processing Speed Index (PSI)

  • Index components:

    • Vocabulary

    • Similarities

    • Information

    • Comprehension

    • Arithmetic

    • Digit Span

    • Letter-Number Sequencing

    • Picture Completion

    • Block Design

    • Matrix Reasoning

    • Digit Symbol-Coding

    • Symbol Search

Memory - Wechsler Memory Scale (WMS)

  • Wechsler Memory Scale (WMS-IV) is used to assess memory.

Language - Boston Naming Test

  • Boston Naming Test is used to assess language abilities.

Attention - Continuous Performance Test (CPT)

  • Continuous Performance Test (CPT) is used to assess attention.

Strengths and Limitations of Neuropsychological Tests

  • Strengths:

    • Comprehensive assessment of function.

    • Objective and standardized.

    • Can track changes over time.

    • Useful for both clinical and research purposes.

    • Useful for therapeutic planning.

  • Limitations:

    • Limited ecological validity.

    • Cultural and language bias.

    • Single snapshot in time.

    • Confounding factors: anxiety, fatigue, medications.

    • Time intensive to administer.

Example Research

  • Example research includes clinical assessments, computer-based assessments (e.g., CPT), psychophysiological measures (eye tracking), and MRI.

Summary of Lecture

  1. Brief introduction into acquiring a philosophical vocabulary for describing the kinds of work we do in biological psychology: Ontology, epistemology, frameworks, methodology, methods and data

  2. Common methods for visualizing and stimulating the brain: CT, MRI, PET, EEG, TMS

  3. Psychophysiological methods

  4. Neuropsychological assessments

  5. Due to their strengths/limitations, we often use a range of tests, alongside clinical interviewing, to have a complete picture for that individual or cohort that we’re studying.