Fight/flight

• Fight or Flight Response


  During situations that produce stress, fear or excitement, the neurons of the sympathetic nervous system stimulate the adrenal medulla (of the adrenal gland) to secrete adrenaline
• Adrenaline


  A hormone that prepares the body to deal with a fear/stress/excitement-inducing stimulus
• The "fight or flight" response is the effects of adrenaline that lead to the typical symptoms experienced during stressful situations such as increased heart rate, dry mouth, increased sweating etc.
• Adrenal medulla


  Responsible for releasing the hormone adrenaline into the bloodstream to prepare the body for the "fight or flight" response
• Adrenaline is transported around the body in the bloodstream
• Adrenaline binds to receptors on its target organs


  One of the targets is the SAN, leading to an increase in the frequency of excitations
• Increase in the frequency of excitations in the SAN

  Increases the heart rate to supply blood to the muscle cells at a faster rate
• Increased blood supply


  Means more oxygen and glucose reaches the muscle cells, which in turn increases the rate of aerobic respiration
• Increased rate of aerobic respiration

  Releases more energy that will be used during the response to the stressful or dangerous situation
• Adrenaline stimulates the cardiovascular control centre in the medulla oblongata


  Increases the impulses travelling along the sympathetic neurones affecting the heart, further speeding up the heart rate
• Blood vessels to less important organs (such as the digestive system and skin) constrict


  So that more blood can be diverted to organs that will be involved in the "fight or flight" response
• Blood flow to the brain remains constant, regardless of whether the body is in a state of stress or relaxation
• The brain is one of the most important organs in the body and needs a constant blood supply in order to function properly
• The changes experienced by the body during the "fight or flight" response are controlled by a combination of nervous and hormonal responses
• Research Methods


  • Experimental Method
  • Observational Techniques
  • Self-report Techniques
  • Correlations
  • Content Analysis
  • Case Studies
• Scientific Processes


  • Aims
  • Hypothesis
  • Sampling
  • Pilot Studies
  • Experimental design
  • Observational Design
  • Questionnaire Construction
  • Variables
  • Controls
  • Demand Characteristics
  • Ethics
  • Peer Review
  • Research & The Economy
  • Reliability & Validity
• Features of Science


  • Objectivity & The Empirical Method; Replicability and Falsifiability
  • Theory Construction & Hypothesis Testing; Paradigms & Paradigm Shift
  • Reporting Psychological Investigations
  • Sections of a Scientific Report
  • Data Handling
• Statistics


  • The Sign Test
  • Probability & Significance
  • Factors Affecting the Choice of Statistical Test
• Issues and Debates


  • Gender & Culture in Psychology
  • Free Will & Determinism
  • The Nature-Nurture Debate
  • Holism & Reductionism
  • Idiographic & Nomothetic Approaches
  • Ethical Implications of Research
• Relationships


  • Evolutionary Explanations for Partner Preferences
  • Factors Affecting Attraction in Romantic Relationships
  • Theories of Romantic Relationships
  • Virtual Relationships in Social Media
  • Parasocial Relationships
• Gender


  • Sex, Gender & Sex-role Stereotypes
  • The Role of Chromosomes & Hormones
  • Approaches & Gender Development
  • Atypical Gender Development
• Cognition & Development


  • Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development
  • Vygotsky's Theory of Cognitive Development
  • Baillargeon's Explanation of Infant Abilities
  • Social Cognition
• Schizophrenia


  • Classification & Diagnosis of Schizophrenia
  • Explanations of Schizophrenia
  • Treatments for Schizophrenia
  • Management of Schizophrenia
• Eating Behaviour


  • Explanations for Food Preferences
  • Neural & Hormonal Mechanisms in the Control of Eating Behaviour
  • Explanations for Anorexia Nervosa
  • Explanations for Obesity
• Stress


  • The Physiology of Stress
  • Sources of Stress
  • Measuring Stress
  • Individual Differences in Stress
  • Managing & Coping with Stress
• Aggression


  • Neural & Hormonal Mechanisms in Aggression
  • The Ethological Explanation of Aggression
  • Social Psychological Explanations of Human Aggression
  • Instutitional Aggression in the Context of Prisons
  • Media Influences on Aggression
• Forensic Psychology


  • Offender Profiling
  • Biological Explanations of Offending Behaviour
  • Psychological Explanations of Offending Behaviour
  • Dealing with Offending Behaviour
• Addiction


  • Describing Addiction
  • Risk Factors in the Development of Addiction
  • Explanations for Nicotine Addiction
  • Explanations for Gambling Addiction
  • Reducing Addiction
  • Applying Models of Behaviour Change