biopsych key terms

• Biopsychology


  The study of the biological bases of psychology and behaviour
• Plasticity


  The brain's ability to change and adapt (e.g. Functional recovery of the brain after damage or trauma)
• ACTH


  Hormone released by the pituitary gland. Stimulates the adrenal glands to release adrenaline into the bloodstream
• Action potential


  A spike in electric charge in an axon caused by sodium ions crossing the cell membrane
• Adrenal glands


  Small glands on top of each kidney that produce hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol
• Adrenaline


  Key hormone in the stress response that is produced by the adrenal glands and increases heart rate, breathing rate etc.
• Autonomic nervous system


  Sub-division of the peripheral nervous system that controls involuntary responses like breathing and heart rate
• Axon


  A single long slender fiber that carries the nerve impulse away from the cell body
• Axon terminal


  The very end of the axon that contains neurotransmitters and makes synaptic contact with the next neuron in the chain
• Behaviourism


  The theory that human and animal behaviour can be explained in terms of conditioning, without considering thoughts or feelings
• Central nervous system


  Sub-system of the nervous system that consists of the brain and spinal cord
• Chromosome


  Hold the genetic material that is passed between parents and offspring. Humans have 23 pairs
• Classical conditioning


  Learning through association when two stimuli are repeatedly paired together
• Cognitive neuroscience


  An academic field that studies the influence of brain structures on mental processes using techniques such as brain scans
• Computer models


  Software simulations of internal mental processes that are created in collaboration with computer scientists
• Concordance rate


  The extent to which both twins share the same characteristic
• Dendrites


  Root like structures protruding from the cell body that receive signals from other neurons
• DZ twins


  Non-identical twins who share 50% of their genes
• Empirical


  Based on scientific testing or personal experience rather than theory or logic
• Endocrine system


  A collection of organs that secrete hormones into the blood stream
• Evolution


  Gradual changes in an inherited characteristic of a species over many generations
• Excitation


  Occurs when a link between a neurotransmitter and receptor site in a synapse makes the receptor site's cell more likely to act
• Fight or flight response


  The way an animal (including humans) responds to stress as it becomes physiologically aroused to fight an aggressor or to run away
• Genotype


  A person's unique genetic make-up that is coded in their chromosomes and fixed at conception
• Hormones


  Biochemical substances that circulate in the bloodstream in order to target specific organs
• Hypothalamus


  Part of the brain that links the nervous system to the endocrine system. Releases hormones that stimulate the pituitary gland
• Identification


  Associating with a role model's and adopting their behaviour because you want to be like them
• Imitation


  Copying or reproducing behaviour that has been learned through observation
• Inference


  Process of drawing conclusions about general patterns of behaviour
• Information processing model


  The idea that information flows through the cognitive system in a sequence of stages
• Inhibition


  Occurs when a link between a neurotransmitter and receptor site in a synapse makes the receptor site's cell less likely to act
• Internal mental processes


  The operations both conscious and unconscious that occur during thinking. For example, perception and memory
• Introspection


  Observing and examining your own conscious thoughts and emotions
• Learning


  A relatively lasting change in behavior that is the result of experience
• Mediating cognitive factors


  Internal mental processes that lie between the stimulus and the response
• Modelling


  Imitating a role model or producing a specific behaviour that may then be imitated by the observer
• Motor neuron


  Carries signals from the central nervous system to internal organs and muscles
• Myelin sheath


  A fatty layer that protects the exon and speeds up the electrical transmission of the nerve impulse
• MZ twins


  Identical twins who share 100% of their genes
• Natural selection


  The way that any genetically determined behaviour that enhances the ability to survive and reproduce will continue in future generations