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Description
Flashcards by Emma Lloyd, updated more than 1 year ago
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Created by Emma Lloyd
about 8 years ago
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| Question | Answer |
| What are the four main aspects psychologists are interested in regarding out Biology? | -Genetics -The Central Nervous System -The Brain Structure and Function -Hormones |
| What are genes? | Genes are sections or strands of a chemical called DNA found in our cells and they interact with one another to produce effects on our behaviour. |
| What do physiological psychologists believe our genes are responsible for? | Our personality, intelligence and even the tenancy to develop mental illness |
| Why do psychologists think that we inherited certain behaviours? | They believe it has an evolutionary or adaptive purpose. For example, tests show that in the weeks immediately after the birth of a child, men's testosterone levels drop by 30%. This has an evolutionary effect as men are less likely to find new mates ans are less aggressive. |
| What does the Central Nervous System consist of? | The brain, spinal cord, all of the neurons involved and neurotransmitters. |
| Label a diagram of a neuron | |
| What are the different kinds of neurons? | Inter-neuron or 'relay' neuron: Joins information from the sensory neuron to the motor neuron Motor Neuron: Takes information from the CNS to the effecter Sensory Neuron: Takes information from the receptor to the CNS |
| What is a synapse? | A synapse is a gap between the dendrites of one neuron and the axon terminals of the next. Electrical messages are transferred to chemical messengers to pass this gap. These chemicals are called neurotransmitters. |
| What is the general structure of the brain? | It's divided into two halves, the left and right hemispheres, and is joined by the corpus callosum. Both hemispheres are looked at separately and this is called brain lateralisation. |
| What are the findings with brain lateralisation regarding sex? | Women have an equal balance of usage from the right and left hemispheres but men use their right hemispheres more than their left. |
| Why are psychologists involved in the structure of the brain? | They want to test whether brain damage can result in mental illnesses. For example, they want to know if schizophrenia is caused by a certain type of brain trauma. |
| What invasive techniques are there for looking at the brain? | Lesioning, ablation (surgical removal of body tissue), electrical brain simulation involving electrodes. |
| What non-invasive techniques do psychologists have for looking at the brain? | Electroencephalogram (EEG), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scans |
| What does the Limbic System consist of? | Hypothalamus, Hippocampus and Amygdala. It is agreed that the Limbic System controls emotional and motivational behaviours. |
| What is it believed each part of the Limbic System is responsible for? | Hypothalamus: Appetite, thirst, emotions, motivation. Pituitary Gland: Releases hormones Amygdala: Aggression and sex Hippocampus: Creating memories |
| What are hormones? | They are chemical messengers made in the endocrine system. However, as they travel in the blood they are must slower than neurotransmitters. Some of the glands that secrete hormones are the pituity, pineal, thyroid and adrenal gland. |
| What are some of the male and female hormones? | Male Hormones: Androgens and Testosterone Female Hormones: Oestrogen and progesterone |
| What is the psychological effect of fluctuating levels of hormones? | Only a small change in hormones can cause changes to cells and too many or too little of certain hormones can cause changes in behaviour. |
| Did early humans have an understanding of psychology? | Fossil evidence shows that people from 10,000 BC used a process called 'trephanning' which involved drilling a hole into a patients head to cure migraine and epilepsy. In 460BC, Hippocrates theorised that each side of the brain had a distinct function and he understood brain injury. |
| How does Darwin's theory of evolution apply to psychology? | Natural selection: A mutation will cause a random change in the appearance or behaviour of an organism. This mutation will aid their survival and the mutated organism survives for longer than those without it. Hence, it passes its desirable genes on to offspring. Hence, a desired behaviour can be genetic and pass from generation to generation. |
| What was one of the first cases that suggested behaviour was influenced by the brain and damage to it? | In 1861, Paul Broca examined a man who was unable to speak coherently due to head injury. Upon post-mortem they found that he had brain damage had occured. This was one of the first times brain damage was linked to behaviour. |
| What is 'phrenology'? | Phrenology is a so-called science that involves mapping out the lumps on a persons head to deduce their character. It was introduced in the 19th century. Despite sounding like a fake practice, this shows that people in the 19th century believed there was a connection between the brain and character of an individual. |
| What happened to Phineas Gage? | He obtained a brain injury where an iron rod was shot through his cheek, through his brain and out his skull. He survived. However, he seemed unable to distinguish between intellectual and animalistic characteristics. He struggled to concentrate and had no filter on his speech. He was moral and friendly before his injury and after he grew spiteful and offensive. |
| What does the biological approach explain overall? | It's important not to speculate only about the mechanisms inside the mind but also we need to speculate about the true structures within and their functions. |
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