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Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon
What Is Biopsychology, Anyway? This multimedia product and its contents are
protected under copyright law. The following are prohibited by law:• any public performance or display, including transmission of any image over a network;• preparation of any derivative work, including the extraction, in whole or in part, of any images; • any rental, lease, or lending of the program.
Chapter 1Biopsychology as a Neuroscience
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Four Major Themes
1. Thinking about biopsychology Becoming a critical thinker Becoming a creative thinker
2. Clinical implications Study of diseased or damaged brains leads
to new knowledge New knowledge leads to new treatments
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Four Major Themes (continued)
3. The evolutionary perspective Environmental pressures on human
evolution Comparative approach (other species)
4. Neuroplasticity Brain growth and restructuring
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What Is Biopsychology? “The scientific study of the biology of
behavior” Also called psychobiology,
behavioral biology, behavioral neuroscience
Psychology: the scientific study of behavior
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What Is Biopsychology? (continued)
Hebb (1949) proposed that psychological phenomena might be produced by brain activity
Biopsychology takes an eclectic approach based on experiments, case studies, observation, and inference
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Biopsychology and Other Disciplines of Neuroscience
Knowledge from other disciplines of neuroscience is applied to the study of behavior
Each discipline studies a different aspect of the nervous system that informs our understanding of what produces and controls behavior
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Other Disciplines of Neuroscience Neuroanatomy
Structure of the nervous system Neurochemistry
Chemical bases of neural activity Neuroendocrinology
Interactions between the nervous system and the endocrine system
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Other Disciplines of Neuroscience (continued)
Neuropathology Nervous system disorders
Neuropharmacology Effects of drugs on neural activity
Neurophysiology Functions and activities of the nervous
system
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Biopsychological Research: Three Major Dimensions Human and nonhuman
subjects Experiments and
nonexperiments Pure and applied research
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Human and Nonhuman Subjects While some questions about behavior
can only be addressed using human subjects, much can be learned from studying the brains of other species
Species differences are more quantitative than qualitative
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Human and Nonhuman Subjects (continued)
Why use nonhumans? Simpler brains makes it more likely that brain-behavior
interactions will be revealed Comparative approach – gain insight by making
comparisons with other species Fewer ethical restrictions than with humans
Why use humans? They can follow instructions They can report their introspections They’re cheaper
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Experiments and Nonexperiments Experiments involve the manipulation of
variables In nonexperiments, the researcher does
not control the variables of interest Quasiexperimental studies Case studies
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Experiments and Nonexperiments (continued) Experiments involving living subjects
require that subjects be placed in various conditions Between-subjects design: Different group
of subjects tested under each condition Within-subjects design: Same group of
subjects tested under each condition
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Experiments and Nonexperiments (continued)
The difference between the conditions is the independent variable
The effect of the independent variable is the dependent variable
Must avoid confounded variables that affect the dependent variable
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Experiments and Nonexperiments (continued)
Example: control of confounded variables—the Coolidge effect The confounded variables: A female
hamster may be more receptive to a new partner due to novelty or to his vigor (compared to the fatigued former partner)
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Lester & Gorzalka (1988) solve
confounded variable problem with a clever
experimental design: a third male
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Quasiexperimental studies – studies of groups of subjects exposed to conditions in the real world
Not real experiments as potential confounded variables have not been controlled
Experiments and Nonexperiments (continued)
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Case studies focus on a single individual, such as Jimmie G.
Usually more in-depth than other approaches, but may not be generalizable
Generalizability – the degree to which results can be applied to other cases
Experiments and Nonexperiments (continued)
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Pure and Applied Research Pure research – conducted for the
purpose of acquiring knowledge Applied research – intended to bring
about some direct benefit to humankind Some research projects may have
elements of both
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Divisions of Biopsychology Six major divisions
Physiological psychology Psychopharmacology Neuropsychology Psychophysiology Cognitive neuroscience Comparative psychology
Each has a different approach, but there is much overlap
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Divisions of Biopsychology (continued)
Physiological psychology Neural mechanisms of behavior Direct manipulation of the brain
Psychopharmacology Effects of drugs on the brain and
behavior Neuropsychology
Psychological effects of brain damage in humans
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Psychophysiology Relation between physiological activity and
psychological processes Example: visual tracking in schizophrenics
Divisions of Biopsychology (continued)
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Cognitive neuroscience – the neural bases of cognition Functional brain
imaging is the major method of cognitive neuroscience
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Comparative psychology Comparing different species to understand
evolution, genetics, and adaptiveness of behavior
Divisions of Biopsychology (continued)
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Converging Operations Using multiple approaches to address a
single question Korsakoff’s syndrome – a condition
characterized by severe memory loss and most commonly seen in alcoholics Is Korsakoff’s the result of the toxic effects
of alcohol on the brain?
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Converging Operations (continued)
Jimmie G. – an alcoholic with Korsakoff’s syndrome
Korsakoff’s is also seen in malnourished persons who had little or no alcohol
Thiamine-deficient rats exhibit memory deficits
Alcohol accelerates the development of brain damage in thiamine-deficient rats
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By exploring the possible causes of Korsakoff’s using multiple approaches, or converging operations, findings are more accurate
Korsakoff’s syndrome is the result of thiamine deficiency, but the damage is accelerated by alcohol
Converging Operations (continued)
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Scientific Inference The empirical method that
biopsychologists use to study the unobservable
Scientists measure what they can observe and use these measures as a basis for inferring what they can’t observe
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Theperceptionof motion under four different
conditions
Scientific Inference (continued)
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Critical Thinking The ability to evaluate scientific
claims by identifying potential omissions or weaknesses in the evidence
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Critical Thinking (continued)
Case 1: Delgado claims that a charging bull can be tamed by stimulation of its caudate nucleus
Exciting account reported in popular press Many possible alternative explanations Morgan’s Canon – prefer the simplest
explanation
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Critical Thinking (continued)
Case 2: Moniz wins Nobel Prize for prefrontal lobotomy
Adoption for human therapy based largely on one study of a single chimpanzee
Inadequate postoperative evaluation of human patients, often by the physician who prescribed the surgery
Undesirable side effects such as amorality, lack of foresight, emotional unresponsiveness, epilepsy, and urinary incontinence
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Critical Thinking(continued)
The prefrontal lobotomy procedure developed by Moniz and Lima
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