Psychology Summative Study Guide PDF

Psychology Summative Study Guide Unit 0 + 1 Unit 0 The Biopsychological Approach Why do people behave the way they do? Many view behavior in purely psychological terms, but others view it as biopsychological (nerve cells, chemicals, muscular responses + psychological) An exa...

Psychology Summative Study Guide Unit 0 + 1 Unit 0 The Biopsychological Approach Why do people behave the way they do? Many view behavior in purely psychological terms, but others view it as biopsychological (nerve cells, chemicals, muscular responses + psychological) An example would be studying depression; we know that one of the causes of depression is stress, but biopsychologists also look at changes in the brain chemistry.  The Behavioral Approach The behavioral approach states that we are products of learning and associations. We are the end result of all the different events we have been exposed to throughout life, the types of responses made tot hem, and the consequences of making those responses. Whether or not you do things you’re not supposed to depends on the type of punishments or rewards that have been part of your life. If the praise/reward for NOT doing forbidden things have been great enough, you are less likely to do forbidden things. If you have gotten attention over the years for doing things you are not allowed to do, then the reward for doing them can be greater than the reward for not doing them. B.F Skinner (1904 – 1990) is one of the most famous behaviorists. Skinner believed that we are controlled by our environments and that we will become whatever the environment forces us to be (good or bad). The Psychoanalytic Approach The Psychoanalytic Approach focuses on our unconscious thoughts. Sigmund Freud was the one who developed the theory that our unconscious thoughts influence our daily behavior. Today, psychologists try to understand what kinds of perception, thinking, and memory go on below our level of awareness and without our conscious control. The Humanistic Approach The humanistic approach believes that people are good, and our nature is that we should reach perfection – if it all went right. To humanists each of us is like the perfect seed; if we get the right amount of water, nutrients, and sunlight from the environment, we will become a perfect flower. Personal growth is internal and individual, we are in control of our destinies and all of us can make our lives worthwhile, Unlike behaviorsists, humanists believe that the environment does not force us to become anything. Carl Rodgers (1902 – 1987) is the most famous humanist. He believed every human has the potential to become great in his or her own way, something he called actualizing. The Sociocultural Approach The sociocultural approach studies the impact of specific social, ethnic, racial, and religious groups on behavior. For example an girl in America lives a very different life to a girl in rural Africa. They have different experiences and opportunities, activities and values, dreams and goals. They also follow different rules and have different expectations. It also looks at how we counsel people from different cultures. Unit 1 Cerebral Cortex The outermost layer of the brain Controls high level mental processes like thought. Consists of two hemispheres connected by a structure called the corpus callosum. The left-hemisphere controls the right side of the body and vice versa. The lobes of the brain The brain can also be divided into 4 major sections, called the lobes. Frontal lobe Parietal lobe Occipital lobe Temporal lobe Frontal lobe Executive Functions: Planning, decision-making, problem-solving, and regulating emotions. Motor Control: The primary motor cortex is responsible for voluntary movements. Speech Production: Broca’s area (located in the left frontal lobe) is crucial for language production. Personality and Behavior: Involved in regulating social behavior, impulse control, and personality traits. Working Memory: Key role in short-term memory and maintaining focus.  Parietal lobe Sensory Integration: Processes and interprets sensory information from touch, pressure, pain, and temperature. Spatial Awareness and Perception: Responsible for understanding spatial orientation and body awareness. Mathematical and Logical Reasoning: Linked to abilities in numerical understanding and logical thinking.Visuospatial Processing: Involved in mapping objects in the environment and hand-eye coordination.  Occipital lobe Visual Processing: The primary visual cortex interprets visual information from the eyes. Recognition of Shapes and Colors: Involved in recognizing objects, colors, and motion. Visual Perception: Helps in making sense of visual stimuli, depth perception, and understanding visual space.  Temporal lobe Auditory Processing: The primary auditory cortex processes sound, enabling hearing and language comprehension. Memory and Learning: The hippocampus, located within the temporal lobe, plays a key role in forming long-term memories. Language Understanding: Wernicke’s area (located in the left temporal lobe) is essential for language comprehension. Emotional Regulation: Linked to the limbic system, which is involved in emotions and responses to stimuli. Medulla oblongata/brain stem The medulla oblongata controls all essential autonomic functions like breathing, heart rate etc. Any damage to the medulla oblongata can result in life- threatening conditions which can have a psychological effect as well. Pons Helps to send signals between the cerebellum and cerebrum Plays important roles in: Balance Sleep regulation Motor control Thalamus Important for communication within the brain Affects consciousness, sleep and alertness. Brain-controlled Video Games Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs) allows direct communication between the brain and external devices like computers and robots. BCIs detect electrical activity in the brain and then processes them into signals and commands that a machine can understand. Brain-controlled video games Video games are being created where you would control the game with your thoughts instead of using a physical controller. Other uses of BCIs Medical use: Control wheelchairs, prosthetic limbs and prevent and treat epilepsy. Mental health: Can monitor attention, stress and relaxation, which can be used to treat ADHD or anxiety. Military and defense: Could be used to control drones, enhance soldier performance and detect stress or fatigue. Thoughts, feelings and actions As we have seen in the previous lessons, your brain is very important when it comes to things like thinking, learning and problem solving. Your brain contains special substances, called neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters allow the cells in the brain to communicate with each other. Different neurotransmitters have different functions. How do neurotransmitters influence our behavior? Having too much or too little of a certain neurotransmitter can influence your behavior. For example, low levels of serotonin has been linked to depression.  Dopamine: The pleasure and reward hormone Dopamine is known as the pleasure and reward hormone because it reinforces our behavior. When you scroll through Instagram, eat a slice of pizza or go shopping, your brain releases large amounts of dopamine. This dopamine release makes you feel happy and because we want to feel this joy again we repeat the actions. This explains we go back to Instagram, keep going back to the mall to shop and keep playing video games. Dopamine and exercise During exercise, high levels of dopamine is released This leads to feelings or happiness and satisfaction that we often associate with exercise Higher levels of dopamine is also known to naturally decrease stress, which is why exercise is such a good remedy for stress relief. Serotonin: The mood stabilizer Serotonin carries messages between your brain and your body. Mood Called the “feel good hormone” Normal levels of serotonin makes you feel more focused, emotionally stable, happier and calmer. Low levels of serotonin is associated with depression. Appetite Serotonin helps to reduce your appetite while eating. Sleep Controls quality of sleep (how long and well you sleep) Serotonin also helps with the production of melatonin, which controls the sleep-wake cycle. GABA: The brain’s calming agent Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid (GABA) is in inhibitory neurotransmitter that reduces the activity of the neurons (brain cells). Stress and Anxiety Reduction Plays important role in calming the brain Inducing relaxation and sleep Slows down brain activity, which helps to induce sleep Mood stabilization Calming effect contributes to overall emotional stability and well-being Preventing seizures Low levels of GABA can cause excessive firing of neurons. GABA medication can help to prevent seizures. Left brain, right brain Lateralization of brain function: The view that distinct brain regions perform certain functions This means that each hemisphere of the brain has different functions and therefore is responsible for different things For example the left brain is associated with language, while the right brain is associated with more visuospatial functions It is also known that opposite sides of the brain control opposite sides of the body e.g. the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body Brain imaging Modern brain imaging techniques has helped researchers to build a more accurate understanding of how the human brain functions. Different examples of brain imaging techniques we will be looking at include: MRI fMRI PET PET scanning Currently the most accurate way of studying brain activity It can be used to study functions like blood flow, oxygen use and sugar metabolism, to identify activity in different parts of the brain It can also be used to diagnose Alzheimer’s Disease early What makes PET scan’s special is that they show the brain in “action” meaning you can see how it functions MRI scanning MRI scans produces static images of the brain using magnetic fields and radioactivity It can be used to find problems like tumors, bleeding, injuries and blood vessels diseases or infections. MRI scans provide a lot of details, compared to something like a CT scan. fMRI scan Like a combination of MRI and PET scan Shows a lot of detail (like MRI) but also shows the brain live as it functions (PET scan) Can also detect the change in blood flow to certain parts of the brain, this is how brain activity is measured. These scans can be used to investigate the relationship between behavior and brain activity in certain areas.  Less invasive than exploratory surgery Advantages of Helps us to understand the relationship between biological factors and behavior using brain imaging Can help with early diagnosis and technology treatment of disorders like Alzheimer’s disease or schizophrenia. Can help to identify areas of the brain that are involved with problems like phantom limb pain  It often doesn’t Lack of precision – the capture the complex imaging is only as interactions within the accurate as the brain software that runs it Disadvantages Errors can occur of using brain without the researcher’s Stressful for participants imaging knowledge, which (claustrophobia) reduces validity. technology Can you think of 3 others? What is neuroplasticity? The brain’s ability to reorganize itself by forming new connections between neurons (brain cells)  Types of neuroplasticity Experience dependent plasticity: The formation of new neural connections when we learn new skills or experience new things. E.g. someone who regularly practice to pay the piano have more connections between neurons in the motor cortex. Injury-induced plasticity: The brain’s ability to adapt after injury by allowing other parts of the brain to take over the function of the injured part. E.g. Patients recovering from a stroke use other parts of their brain to recover their speech and motor skills. Synaptic pruning: Neural connections that are no longer necessary die off, while ones we use often will strengthen. Can you think of an example? Phineas Gage Case Study Use formative questions and answers to study.