Socio/Behavioral

• Neuropsychology


  The study of functions and behaviors associated with specific regions of the brain
• Major contributions of scientists to neuropsychology

  • Franz Gall: Developed the doctrine of phrenology, linking brain anatomy to behavior, intellect, and personality
  • Pierre Flourens: First to study the functions of major brain sections through extirpation
  • William James: Believed in studying how the mind functions to adapt to the environment, forming the basis of functionalism
  • John Dewey: Criticized the reflex arc concept and believed psychology should focus on the organism as a whole adapting to the environment
  • Paul Broca: Demonstrated specific functional impairments linked to specific brain lesions, discovering Broca's area
  • Hermann von Helmholtz: First to measure the speed of nerve impulses, transitioning psychology into a natural science
  • Sir Charles Sherrington: First inferred the existence of synapses, though incorrectly thought they were an electrical process
• Central Nervous System (CNS)


  • Composed of the brain and spinal cord
• Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)


  • Made up of nerve tissue and fibers outside the brain and spinal cord, including spinal and cranial nerves
• Afferent neurons


  Transmit sensory information from receptors to the spinal cord and brain
• Efferent neurons


  Transmit motor information from the brain and spinal cord to muscles and glands
• Somatic Nervous System


  • Consists of sensory and motor neurons distributed throughout the skin, joints, and muscles
• Autonomic Nervous System (ANS)


  • Regulates involuntary functions like heartbeat, respiration, digestion, and glandular secretions
• Sympathetic Nervous System


  Activated by stress, associated with "fight-or-flight" reactions
• Parasympathetic Nervous System


  Conserves energy, associated with "rest-and-digest" functions
• Functions of the Parasympathetic Nervous System

  • Reduces heart rate
  • Increases digestion and peristalsis
  • Increases exocrine secretions
  • Constricts bronchi
• Functions of the Sympathetic Nervous System

  • Increases heart rate
  • Redistributes blood to muscles
  • Increases blood glucose
  • Relaxes bronchi
  • Decreases digestion and peristalsis
  • Dilates eyes
  • Releases epinephrine

  
• Meninges


  • Thick sheath of connective tissue covering and protecting the brain, composed of dura mater, arachnoid mater, and pia mater
• Cerebrospinal Fluid


  • Aqueous solution in which the brain and spinal cord rest, produced by specialized cells lining the brain's ventricles
• Major Divisions of the Brain

  • Hindbrain
  • Midbrain
  • Forebrain
• Structures and Functions of the Hindbrain

  • Medulla oblongata: Regulates vital functions like breathing, heart rate, blood pressure
  • Pons: Contains sensory and motor pathways between cortex and medulla
  • Cerebellum: Maintains posture, balance, and coordinates movements
• Midbrain


  • Receives sensory and motor information, associated with involuntary reflex responses to visual and auditory stimuli
• Structures of the Midbrain

  • Superior colliculus: Receives visual input
  • Inferior colliculus: Receives auditory input, involved in reflexive reactions to sudden loud noises
• Forebrain


  • Associated with complex perceptual, cognitive, and behavioral processes, including emotion and memory
• Structures of the Forebrain

  • Cerebral cortex
  • Basal ganglia
  • Limbic system
  • Thalamus
  • Hypothalamus
• The brain develops from the neural tube, which starts with three swellings that correspond to the hindbrain, midbrain, and forebrain
• Hindbrain


  Receives sensory information from the visual and auditory systems, involved in reflexive reactions to sudden loud noises
• Midbrain


  Receives sensory information, involved in reflexive reactions
• Forebrain


  Associated with complex perceptual, cognitive, and behavioral processes, including emotion and memory, has the greatest influence on human behavior
• Mapping the brain

  1. Studying brain lesions in humans

  2. Studying brain lesions in lab animals

  3. Electrically stimulating and recording brain activity

  4. Recording electrical activity produced by the brain

  5. Measuring regional cerebral blood flow
• Brain imaging techniques

  • CT (computed tomography)
  • PET (positron emission tomography) scan
  • MRI (magnetic resonance imaging)
  • fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging)
• Thalamus


  Relay station for incoming sensory information, except smell
• Hypothalamus


  Serves homeostatic functions, controls endocrine functions and autonomic nervous system, involved in emotional experiences, aggressive behavior, and sexual behavior
• Lateral hypothalamus


  Hunger center, triggers eating and drinking
• Ventromedial hypothalamus


  Satiety center, provides signals to stop eating
• Anterior hypothalamus


  Controls sexual behavior, regulates sleep and body temperature
• Posterior pituitary


  Site of release for hypothalamic hormones like antidiuretic hormone and oxytocin
• Pineal gland


  Part of the diencephalon
• Sham rage


  Lashing of the tail, arching of the back, clawing, and biting - displayed by cats when the cerebral cortex was removed but the hypothalamus was left in place
• Posterior pituitary gland


  • Comprised of axonal projections from the hypothalamus and is the site of release for the hypothalamic hormones antidiuretic hormone (ADH, also called vasopressin) and oxytocin
• Pineal gland


  Secretes a hormone called melatonin, which regulates circadian rhythms
• Basal ganglia


  • Coordinate muscle movement as they receive information from the cortex and relay this information (via the extrapyramidal motor system) to the brain and the spinal cord
• Parkinson's disease is associated with destruction of portions of the basal ganglia, characterized by jerky movements and uncontrolled resting tremors
• Limbic system


  • Primarily associated with emotion and memory, its primary components include the septal nuclei, amygdala, and hippocampus
• Septal nuclei


  Contain one of the primary pleasure centers in the brain, mild stimulation is reported to be intensely pleasurable and associated with addictive behavior