Psychology paper 1

social cognitive theory

- Bandura o Developed SCT based on the principles that we learn through observation • paying attention to modelled activities • retaining this info in our memory • reproducing the observed action • and all this is underpinned by the learner's motivation In SCT cognition comes into play Whether or not the behavior is reproduced and displayed depends on the expected outcome of doing so, through a process of vicarious reinforcement. We exhibit behavior when we expect it to be rewarded, or at least not be punished The fact that Social cognition mediates between btwn the observed action and the learning of it raises this from a simple stimulus response approach to something more complex. One study of Social Cognitive Theory was carried out by Bandura. This study had the aim to determine whether children would learn aggressive behaviour by imitating an adult model. Social Learning Theory - also called "observational learning" - is the idea that people learn by imitating the actions of others. The theory argues that we are more likely to imitate someone who is like us, that we identify with, if we have a sense of self-efficacy. Self-efficacy is the belief that we are able to imitate the behaviour. In addition, we also imitate those who receive vicarious reinforcement. Bandura found that when a model was rewarded or at least was not punished, the children were more likely to imitate a behaviour. The study was made up of 3 - 5-year-old children. They were first evaluated to determine their level of aggression. Bandura then used a matched-pairs design to make sure that the different levels of aggression were evenly distributed in the groups. There were three independent variables in this study: whether the children were exposed to violence or not, the gender of the child, and the gender of the model. The children then watched either a male or a female model either act aggressively (bashing the Bobo with a baseball bat and yelling at the Bobo), act passively (assembling toys), or they had no model. This served as the control group to see what children would do when simply but with the Bobo. The children were then individually invited into a room full of toys. After they saw all the toys, they were told that they were not allowed to play with them since they were for other children. This caused all of the children to feel frustrated. This was important because Bandura wanted to make sure that they all had the same level of arousal. The results were that all of the children showed some level of aggression against the Bobo. However, the group that saw the aggressive model were the most aggressive. Those that saw the control were second, and those who saw the passive model showed the least aggression. In addition, the boys were the most violent. They tended to imitate both the male and the female models, though they commented that the woman's behaviour was not acceptable, saying "Ladies should not behave that way." Girls tended to imitate the verbal aggression of the male - and imitated the female model more directly. This shows that it each gender identified more with the same sex model. This study demonstrates SCT. First, the children appear to have learned the behaviour by watching the models. Secondly, since there was no punishment for the models' actions (and it actually looked like they enjoyed it), the children imitated it. They had been vicariously reinforced. Lastly, the fact that they imitated the same gender makes sense. Since the children would identify with the same gender and they would feel that if he (or she) can do it, so can I (self-efficacy), then they are more likely to imitate them. Along with vicarious reinforcement, another key concept in SCT is that of self-efficacy: our perception of our own ability to reproduce an action affects our motivation. Finally, reciprocal determinism is the interaction between behaviour, internal personal factors such as biology and cognition, and the environment. Self-efficacy and reciprocal determinism also introduced. Van Zundert et al. (2009) investigated if SCT could be used to explain why some adolescents could successfully give up smoking while others failed. They measured the participants' perceptions of the pros and cons of smoking, of their self-efficacy to resist smoking, how many cigarettes a day they smoked and the number of lapses they had. The final measure was applied to abstinence two months later. Relevant study referred to, and briefly outlined. Those who rated the pros of smoking as high and who also smoked many cigarettes daily had the lowest self-efficacy, which seems logical, and this was also predictive of relapse. As an example of reciprocal determinism, however, even those with a high self-efficacy who smoked many daily failed to abstain from smoking two months later, showing that it took more than self-efficacy to give up smoking when the environmental and biological factors against abstinence were strong. This study illustrates how SCT can be used to explain behaviour.

Formation of stereotypes

- Define stereotypes o Fixed beliefs about a particular group of people that are also applied to any one member of that group o use of stereotypes one way in which we categorise and simplify our social world however can also be negative and led to prejudice against individuals and groups. - Hamilton and Gifford (1976) o Use the theory of illusory correlation To explain how stereotypes develop o Illusory correlation When 2 relatively unusual events occur simultaneously , and incorrect inference is drawn from this co-occurrence. o They argued that negative beh is relatively rare, so when sees a minority person performing a neg act, it is more memorable than when one sees from a majority group performing the same act o This connection was illustrated in their experiment Presented ppl with brief statements describing the beh of individuals from one of 2 groups • Group A o Twice as many member • Proportion of desirable and undesirable behaviors presented in the statements was the same within each group o However, ppts significantly overestimated the frequency of undesirable minority beh, judging Group B more negatively, demonstrating illusory correlation - Illusory correlations contribute to racial stereotypes o Since we notice the neg beh by any1 whos a member of a minority, we build our view of that group from the neg beh o With ppl from the maj Their beh don't reflect on the group as a whole - Example of this is media o If a minority individual commits a shooting, the ethnicity of the criminal is mentioned; if its ethnic maj then their ethn isn't commented upon - In this way, the theory of illusory correlation provides a valid explanation of the formation of stereotypes

value of animal models BRAIN AND BEHAVIOUR

- Lashley used animal research to investigate the theory of localization. He did this by removing various portions of the rat's cortex to investigate where the memory of the maze is localized. Lashley's experiments with the brain removal in rats cannot be replicated with humans for ethical reasons. research conducted by Lashley holds value as it refuted an accepted theory with a larger sample, a controlled environment (allowing for a cause and effect relationship to be established) to create a new and refined idea. However, the human brain is more complex in terms of its specific neural pathways between more evolved parts of the brain that may not be present in rats. For example, the pre-frontal cortex may have been localized, which is why Lashley's research on simple mammals may not be relevant to humans. However, the study was insightful because it suggested that some functions can be widely distributed in the brain, thus refining and developing the theory of strict localization. Despite the potential flaws in Lashley's use of animal models for the human brain, the findings can be used to explain findings from human studies such as that by Rogers, Sperry and Gazzaniga who furthered Lashley's research by conducting split-brain research to show that both production and comprehension of language are weakly localized in the left hemisphere rather than strictly localized as suggested by the theory of localization. - WEISKRANTZ - Key Study: Lesioning of the amygdala in rhesus monkeys (Weiskrantz, 1956): In this study, the researchers wanted to study the relationship between the amygdala and emotion. Earlier research (in the late 1800s) had found connections between the temporal lobe and emotion. This experiment went one step further by isolating the amygdala as the particular part of the temporal lobe that might be connected with emotion. There were two conditions in the experiment: one group of monkeys had their amygdalae lesioned and the other condition had a different part of the temporal lobe lesioned. The results showed that it was damage to the amygdalae specifically that led to a lack of fear in the monkeys. The use of monkeys in this experiment helped to develop the understanding of the amygdala's role in emotion and fear.FEINSTEINKey Study: Lesioning of the amygdala in rhesus monkeys (Weiskrantz, 1956): In this study, the researchers wanted to study the relationship between the amygdala and emotion. Earlier research (in the late 1800s) had found connections between the temporal lobe and emotion. This experiment went one step further by isolating the amygdala as the particular part of the temporal lobe that might be connected with emotion. There were two conditions in the experiment: one group of monkeys had their amygdalae lesioned and the other condition had a different part of the temporal lobe lesioned. The results showed that it was damage to the amygdalae specifically that led to a lack of fear in the monkeys. The use of monkeys in this experiment helped to develop the understanding of the amygdala's role in emotion and fear. Human Study: SM's case study (Feinstein et al. 2012): The above study provides insight into the role of the amygdala in experiencing emotions, like fear. More modern human studies have supported this connection, like the case study on SM. SM has bilateral amygdala damage and cannot feel fear. Researchers have tested this by observing her behaviour in places like haunted houses, exotic pet stores and when watching scary films (see localization of brain function in the biological approach for more details). Merzenich : Investigated cortical representation of the hand in adult owl monkeys ( amputation of fingers) and foundhat the senosry cortex of adult owl monkeys adapts to injury by coritcal remapping ( post amputation, the now unused area of the sensory cortex was occuppied by adjacent intact fingers). Neuroplasticity in response to structural damage is observed in the human brain too but a direct experiment would not be ethiccaly practical. Therefore, human research in this area is limited to case studies of people with injury. Cause and effect inferences cannot be made from case studies. research with animal models helps test cause and effect hypotheses and in this sense provides further insight into human behaviour. The general principle is insightful in terms of research with human subjects and practical applications : sense substitution and brain machine interfaces ( artificial sensory organs and bionic limbs that can be controlled by thought.

value of animal models

An animal model is a living non‐human animal used in research for the purpose of better understanding behaviour without the added risk of causing harm to a human during the process. Animals have been used in research since psychology moved towards studying behaviour, rather than consciousness. The main value of animal models is that they can provide insight into humans. There are several advantages of using animal models. More subjects are available, as animals, especially rodents, are bred especially for lab research and are in easy supply. Because animals live for a shorter period, in the case of mice for maybe two or three years, they allow longitudinal study across a whole lifespan. It is easier to control variables with non‐human animals, and therefore isolate cause and effect: mice and rats are often inbred to 'switch on' or 'switch off' the action of one or more genes. There is similarity of brain function and also similarity of genetics between humans and many non‐human animals. (RESEARCH) This is an example of an animal study that seems to show a benefit for understanding the role of ACh in human learning. However, other animal studies have shown less benefit, and indeed have been found to be irrelevant, or even harmful when researchers have tried to replicate the results with humans. This has been especially true in the field of medicine, when, for example, although the mouse is genetically almost identical to the human, it seems that investigating mouse disease responses has given little insight into human disorders. For example, certain genetic mouse models of Alzheimer's disease looked promising until scientists examined the animals' brains and found that the brain damage (amyloid plaques or neurofibrillary tangles) that characterise the disease was missing. Other mice had the neuronal damage, but not significant memory deficits. It may be that amyloid proteins are deposited over years or decades but only begin to have an effect when someone reaches their seventh or eighth decade, and mice only live for about two years (Sasaguri et al., 2017). While those two years were seen as corresponding to the full life span of a human, perhaps this is not the case. Whatever the reason, the findings of animal studies like this one lack external validity and cannot be generalised to humans. (RESEARCH) Archibald and Coleman (2012) stated that in 92% of cases, treatments that worked with animals failed clinical trials, and the Guardian newspaper revealed in 2015 that 95% of the drugs thought to be promising after experiments using mice actually failed when tested on humans, with some proving positively harmful. Therefore, while animal studies do have value for understanding human behaviour, assuming that disease always progresses in the same way as it does for humans is a mistake and the results of animal studies are often not relevant.

evolutionary explanation

An evolutionary argument that can explain human mating behaviour, is sexual selection. Evolution is the change over time in living organisms of heritable characteristics of a species. The theory of evolution states that by natural selection, organisms that adapt better to environmental changes are more likely to survive, reproduce, and thus pass on their genes. Sexual selection, a particular aspect of natural selection, states that in order to produce and protect the most healthy offspring, the perfect mating partner is found. Because the evolutionary argument states this, the way humans find mating partners must be beneficial to human survival and reproduction, and thus an adaptive behaviour. Three studies that looked at the human mating behaviour were Wedekind, and Buss. Another study that looks at the evolutionary argument for the human mating behaviour is by Wedekind (1995). The aim of this study was to see if women are attracted to men based on his MHC (major histocompatibility complex). The MHC is a group of proteins that let the immune system recognize different pathogens. It is argued that when the MHC genes of parents are diverse, the offspring will have a stronger immune system and that the way we smell is a sign of our MHC. The researchers took a sample of female and male students, and each of their MHC was found. The men were asked to wear a T-shirt for two nights, have their everyday clothes and bed sheets washed in perfume free detergents and shower with perfume-free soap. After the two days, the women in the study were asked to rank the smell of 7 t-shirts, three of which contained t-shirts from men with similar MHC as the woman, three that were different, and one that was unworn. They ranked the smell for intensity, and 'sexiness' (on a scale of 0-10). The researchers found that the women scored the t-shirt of a male with a different MHC than their own higher than when the MHC was similar. The study shows that MHC may influence human mate choice, which can support the argument of sexual selection as we are looking to produce the most healthy offspring. A strength of this study is that the variable of MHC was isolated completely. There were extensive measures taken to ensure that the only the only variable tested was the smell of the MHC on the t-shirt. This means that the study has high internal validity. A limitation would be that while the variable was isolated, it is not a good representation of how a mate is found - women do not go around smelling shirts in boxes. Evolutionary explanations of relationships suffer from evolutionary reductionism, as they argue that strategies for choosing a mate are the result of genetic inheritance and a striving for reproductive success. However, this is not always as straightforward as in real life, where individual differences in partner's choice play a big role. For example, evolutionary explanations fail to account for homosexual relationships where choice of partner doesn't result in reproductive success and so doesn't have an evolutionary advantage. Therefore, this is another limitation to evolutionary explanation, as they overlook relationships where partner preferences don't depend on reproductive abilities. The aim of Buss (1989) was to support the idea that men look for fertile women, and women look for men that can support their offspring. To do this, the researchers had a sample of 10,000 participants from 37 different cultures and gave them a questionnaire. They found that men thought youth was highly important in a mate, and for women, maturity and higher social status was important. This can show that men want to maximize the potential for fertilization, which can come from younger women. And women want to ensure the likelihood of reproduction and having a healthy offspring through financial help and resources that can come from a higher social status. The results of this study explain the human mating behaviour as looking for the most optimal mating partner to reproduce a healthy offspring, which can be argued to be sexual selection. A strength of this study is the huge sample size of 10,000, this can ensure more reliability in the findings. In addition, the study was cross-cultural. A limitation would be that it was in the form of a questionnaire, meaning that the participants could have displayed demand characteristics in order to look better in front of the researchers. o Investigated choosiness In males and females when approached by a stranger offering sex o Florida uni in 2 different years - 1978 and 1982 o Opportunity sample of 48 female and 48 male o 9 confedertaes; male and female o Each confederate approached the opposite sex lone ppt who was attravted to them and invited him or her out, or to their home or to bed. o Request for a date met with 50% agreement for both men and women o Request to go to apartment 69% yes from men 0-6% yes from women o Have sex 72% of males said yes 0% of females said yes o Therefore women appear to operate by a system of increased choosiness when it comes to sexual behavior, whereas men seem to be less bothered by a possibly risky sexual encounter with a stranger. o Research therefore supports female choosiness as evidence for the evolutionary explanation for mate selection The argument of sexual selection for the human mating behaviour can be supported through the studies by Ronay and von Hipper, Wedekind, and Buss. This evolutionary argument, however, does have its limitations. The evolutionary theory of sexual selection is based on the assumption that behaviours are genetically inherited. In actuality, it is not yet know to what extent human behaviours are actually inherited. Research in this theory also lacks ecological validity. As mentioned before with the study by Wedekind, it is highly unlikely a woman will find a mate through the act of smelling shirts and rating their smell. Also, the study by Buss can be seen as lacking ecological validity as the participants were given questionnaires which may be more what the person "thinks" they would do, rather than their actual behaviour. Furthermore, evolutionary explanations downplay the role of social and cultural influences. For the past 100 years, Western societies have experienced significant changes in terms of gender equality and women's independence. These changes mean that women in modern Western societies may no longer be looking for a man to provide them with resources. For example, Kasser and Sharma (1999) found, in their analysis of 37 cultures, that females mostly valued a mate with resources in societies where women's acess to education and workplace was severely limited. This makes evolutionary explanations limited, as they only explain human mates' choice in terms of evolutionary adaptiveness, thus overlooking other important factors, such as culture and social norms. Likewise, evolutionary explanations of relationships also suffer from determinism, as they seem to claim that choice strategies are determined by a person's gender, and that humans are attracted to people who will have, provide and/or care for offspring. support some very controversial and seemingly old-fashioned ideas about, for example, the role of womenPossessing traits does not mean that you are forced to exhibit specific behaviours. This means that we cannot use findings such as Buss (1990) to support unethical and incorrect ideas about women being better suited to having children than having a career, for example.

Neurotransmission SAQ

Antonova et al (2011) Neurotransmitters are chemical messengeres that allow communication between nerve cells. They travel form pre-synaptic neurons through the synapses to post-synaptic neurones. One effect of neurotransmitters on a behaviour is the effect of acetylcholine on memory. - acetylcholine seems to play a role in the encoding of spatial memories - shown by Kesner in rats , Antonova wanted to show the effect in humans in a similar spatial task The sample was made up of only males. It was a double blind study and the participants were either injected with scopolamine - a drug that blocks acetylcholine receptor sites - or a placebo. They were then asked to play a virtual reality game in which they had to remember how to get to a certain place in the game. Once they found where the "pole" was that they were looking for, they would be "put" at a new starting point and asked to find the pole again. They were in an fMRI while carrying out the task so that brain activity could be observed. The researchers found that when the participants were injected with scopolamine, they took longer to find the "pole" than did the group that received the placebo. In addition, the fMRI showed more activity in the hippocampus in the placebo group than in the scopolamine group. The hippocampus is where STM is transferred to long-term memory; it is also where there are many acetylcholine receptor sites in the brain. This study seems to show that acetylcholine plays a key role in the encoding of spatial memory.

Research methods in genetics

ERQ Research in psychology is important as it can be used to support or refute psychological theories. In research concerning genetics and behaviour, the aim is for the research to support or refute proposed genetic theories that may influence a behaviours such as depression. The research methods used are therefore important to discuss as this choice will affect the validity of the study. Psychologists aim for research to be valid so that the findings will allow for extrapolation to the target population. This is especially true in research into genetic explanations due to the potential for intervention if explanations for abnormal behaviour or health impairing behaviours can be supported. Obesity affected 650 million adults (aged 18 or over) in 2016. This statistic highlights the importance of valid research into health problems, because being able to provide accurate explanations for obesity, which can be treated and prevented, is crucial when determining intervention plans. Correlational research can be used to study genetic inheritance in humans more easily. Correlational studies are different from experiments in that no variable is manipulated by the researcher, meaning causation cannot be inferred. In correlational studies, two or more variables are measured and the relationship between them is mathematically quantified. Hormones such as testosterone have been correlated with antisocial behaviour and aggression. One example of such correlational research was that conducted by Caspi et al. Caspi found that having two short alleles for the 5-HTT gene made one more vulnerable to depression than someone with the longer allele Here the two variables were the inheritance of the serotonin transporter gene and depressive behaviour, where a positive correlation was found. Conducting correlational research is useful due to it being more ethically practical for the participants and having higher ecological validity than lab experiments as the subjects are being investigated in their natural environments. Therefore, conducting correlational research to study hormones has advantages in terms of its practicality and the generalizability of the findings. One significant advantage of correlational research is that it can usually be carried out on humans instead of animals (unlike laboratory experiments), providing psychologists with human data. This provides a practical value as the findings can be more easily extrapolated to the target populations. Correlations are very useful as a preliminary research technique, allowing researchers to identify a link that can be further investigated through more controlled research (such as a lab experiment). Additionally, correlations can be used to research topics which are sensitive such as explanations for health problems. In this sense, correlational research is considered to be more ethical as no deliberate manipulation of variables is required. However, correlations only identify a link, such as that between the levels of plasma testosterone and aggression. Therefore, they do not identify which variable causes which, and there may even be a third variable present which is not being considered but is influencing one of the co-variables. Using experiments as a research method into genetics and behaviour can negate the disadvantages of correlational research. The advantage of experimental research is that it provides insight into possible genetic explanations into behaviour, however this is usually done on non-human animals. While the use of animals in laboratory experiments is useful as it allows for a cause and effect relationship to be more clearly established (instead of a correlational one), the use of animals makes it difficult to extrapolate the findings to humans. Lab experiments are usually conducted on animals as this is more ethical and so the findings are harder to generalise to the target population. Nevertheless, the findings can point psychologists in the right direction, and explanations can be more clearly developed with follow-up research on humans. Therefore, while the findings of laboratory experiments usually have low generalisability, other research methods such as correlations which are more ethically viable for humans can be used to complement the lab experiment and improve the validity of the explanation for the health problem. Consequently, laboratory experiments and correlational studies can complement each other to provide increase validity of genetic explanations for behaviour. This highlights the importance of method triangulation before developing theories for socially sensitive aspects of psychology such as health problems. The use of the different research methods in combination can compensate for their individual limitations and reinforce their strength. For example, the inability of correlational research to provide a causal relationship can be negated by combining this with laboratory experiments which can. Similarly, the low generalisability of lab experiments due to their low ecological validity and frequent use of non-human animals can also be negated by combining this research method with correlational studies which have higher generalisability due to the higher ecological validity and because they are more ethically applicable to humans. If the same conclusions are made after conducting both laboratory and correlational research, then credibility is increased, and psychologists can be more confident in their conclusions.

Ethics in genetics

Informed consent - Caspi

Ethics: hormones and pheromones

Informed consent - zhou / mcgaugh and cahill

Ethical considerations in animal research - add in research as appropriate from other animal essays

If non-human animals are to be used in an investigation, researchers can only use species that are considered scientifically suitable according to ethical guidelines. Procedures that could cause physical or mental harm should be avoided where possible, and it is encouraged that investigations take place in their natural environment. Animals must be properly cared for if the study requires them to kept captive. There are some instances where it is deemed that the costs do not override the benefits of conducting some research. However, it should be appreciated that these ethical guidelines should always be carefully considered when scrutinising whether a study is ethically acceptable to be carried out. Clearly guidelines for human research, such as the giving of informed consent and right to withdraw, cannot be applied to animals. There are several sets of ethical guidelines especially for psychological non‐human animal research. The USA, UK and Australia, for example, publish extensive instructions, enforceable by law, into how animal research should be conducted. These guidelines all include the following provisions: research should be undertaken with a clear scientific purpose and on the smallest number of animals sufficient to accomplish the research goals. The costs to the animals and the benefits to our understanding of human behaviour must be carefully evaluated for each and every study. The welfare of the animal must be taken into account and researchers must minimise any pain, suffering or distress that might arise from any experiment. Finally, researchers should use alternatives to animal research whenever possible, including data collected by other researchers, data from lower species (leeches, cell cultures, etc.) or, increasingly, computer simulations Underpinning the guidelines are the principles of animal research that were developed over 50 years ago to provide a framework for performing humane research using animals. These main principles are: to replace animals with other alternatives; to reduce the number of individual animals used; to refine procedures to minimise suffering. The UK National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research has a website dedicated to examples of research using these principles Replacement involves developing alternatives, such as computer simulations, or using the tissue and cells of human volunteers (which is still highly controversial), or replacing mammals with lesser species, such as single‐cell amoebae and nematode worms to prevent the suffering of more developed animals. Reduction means using the minimum number of animals possible by maximising the data gained from any one animal, for example by micro‐sampling with repeated tiny samples. Refinement requires providing the animals with adequate housing that allows the expression of species‐specific behaviours, using appropriate anaesthetics and pain killers, and training animals to cooperate with procedures to minimize any distress. However, the benefits of animal research should not only be looked at in relation to medical treatment; in psychology we are looking at the benefit for understanding human behaviour. In this respect, many areas have benefitted from earlier animal research. Domjan and Purdy (1995) give a comprehensive list of areas of psychology that have benefitted considerably from animal research, including developmental psychology, the biological bases of behaviour, sensation and perception, motivation and emotion, memory, abnormal psychology (including psychoactive drugs and drug abuse), health, stress and coping. Bearing this in mind, it seems that ethical considerations should also consider whether animals could be used in natural circumstances as well as, or maybe instead of, in experiments. Observations of primates in their natural habitats, and of the effects of changing environment and family disruption on the treatment of young animals may yield richer data. Xu et al. (2015) argued that using lab rats and mice in experiments to investigate depression that occurs naturally in a social context is not realistic. Instead, they used macaque monkeys in order to describe and model a naturally‐occurring depressive state amongst monkeys raised in socially‐stable groups at Zhongke Feeding Centre in Suzhou, China, where they are provided with environmental conditions and surroundings approximating those found in the wild. Animal research is unethical to a great extent in that we often cannot make the utilitarian argument of the benefits outweighing the costs until after many animals have undergone research. In order to accept it as ethical, we have to believe that it is better to use an animal (preferably one of the lesser species, such as a one‐celled animal) to potentially understand human behaviour and to develop cures for human disorders (when and where we can) than it is to use a human, even if that human is a volunteer. Minimising the animals' distress, using as few as necessary, and housing them as well as possible makes the research ethical to a greater extent than it was before these measures were introduced, but the lack of generalizability of the results of much animal research to humans means that it remains unethical; although this was not anticipated, it was for no purpose. Where researchers have reasonable doubt in the ability of animal research to benefit humans, then alternatives, such as computer modelling or tissue samples, should be used. Not to do so is unethical.

Neuroplasticity

Intro: Definition: Neuroplasticity is the ability of the brain to change through the making and braking of synaptic connections between neurons; causing factors that are both genetic and environmental. Plasticity occurs at different levels within the brain. At one extreme, it could involve the wholescale re-mapping of the cortical structures in the brain in response to major brain trauma. At the other extreme (and more usually), it happens at the level of individual neurons and synapses. How neuroplasticity works - Information takes a pathway through the brain, travelling from one neuron to the next via synapses - When we're presented with new information, new neural pathways begin to form - Using a neural pathway strengthens it - the more a pathway is used, the stronger the connections between the neurons become. - If a neural pathway is not used, it becomes weaker The constant rewiring and reorganisation of the brain is the basis of how we learn and adapt to changes in our environment. Plasticity was previously thought to only occur in babies and children. Although, plasticity is greatest in the developing brain, it is now widely accepted that plasticity occurs throughout adult life too. P1; maguire Maguire et al (2000) studied the brains of London taxi-drivers and found significantly more volume of grey matter in the posterior hippocampus than in the matched control group. This part of the brain is associated with the development of spatial and navigational skills in humans and other animals. As part of their training, the taxi drivers must take a complex test called 'the knowledge', which assesses the recall of the city streets and possible routes. It appears that the result of this learning experience is to alter the structure of the taxi drivers' brains. It is also noteworthy that the longer they had been in the job, the more pronounced was the structural difference (a positive correlation). P2: strengths and limitations A similar finding was observed by Draganski et al (2006) who imaged the brains of medical students 3 months before and after their final exams. Learning-induced changes were seen to have occurred in the posterior hippocampus and the parietal cortex presumably as a result of the exam. Finally, Mechelli et al (2004) also found a larger parietal cortex in the brains of people who were bilingual compared to matched monolingual controls. However, some psychologists suggest that research investigating the plasticity of the brain is limited. For example, Maguire's research is biologically reductionist and only examines a single biological factor (the size of the hippocampus) in relation to spatial memory. This approach is limited and fails to take into account all of the different biological/cognitive processes involved in spatial navigation which may limit our understanding. Therefore, while Maguire's research shows that the brain an cange in response to frequent exposure to a particular task, some psychologists suggest that holistic approach to understanding complex human behaviour may be more appropriate p2.5 linking paragraph -besides memory, other area of interes is cognitive developmetn in childhood - observed cogn differences btwn children from poor families and those from a wealthier bckgrnd -showed that brain strongly affected by environment from a very early age. the results also show that changes in the brain in response to poverty can be mediaed by nurturing. p3 luby et al description - whether poverty impacted brain dev in early childhood and mediators of this effect -145 children cognitively and socially assessed annually n psychosocial, behavioural and other developmental dimensions for 3-6 years. - support or hostility of caregivers and stressful life events - 2 mri scans - 1 measuring volumes of white and grey matter of the whole brain and one of the amygdala and hipp. - summary of findings and applications of these findings to policy - poverty associated with less white and grey brain matter and with smaller vols of hipp and amgd -caregigver supportive or hostile mediated effect of pov on both hipp, but stressult life events affected left hipp only. - the findings that exposure to pov in early childhood impacts brain develop at school age shows that neuropl takes place in response to physical and social deprivation as well as learning, - real life application : the fact that these effects on hipp can be mediated should be focused on p4 + & - - lubys extends earlier animal studies into the role of nurturing in hipp development, and earlier child studies showing that this nurturing effect is independent of income. -gives complex pic of mediating effecs of stress and nurturing needed to be further investigated -limitation; reliability of the findings, could actually have been a response of the child to the caregiver that effected the changes in the hipp, not purely the effect of nurturing. \ -study merely shows + corr, not uni-directional cause and effect - however, researcher makes it more clear that an understanding of neuroplasticity is important for prevention of the LT effects of poverty in childhood on cognition p5 applications - social policy - can be used to counteract now outdated arguments that intelligence is genetic+ arguments stating a simplistic an unmediated effect of pov on the brain in childhood . - knowledge on neuroplasticity could be used to look at environmentally-triggered disorders like depression and anxiety to look at how these changes can be interrupted - given lubys findings, maybe social support of those with mental disorders would be enough to mediate the brain changes associated with them, as an alternative to medication. The functional recovery that may occur in the brain after trauma is an example of neural plasticity. This happens when brain function is rewired around a damaged area, usually following rehabilitation. Unaffected areas are usually able to compensate for those areas that are damaged, and take over the function of the unaffected brain area. Neuroscientists suggest that this process can occur quickly after trauma (spontaneous recovery) and then slow down after several weeks or months. At this point the individual may require rehabilitative therapy to further their recovery. Understanding the processes involved in plasticity has contributed to the field of neurorehabilitation. Following illness or injury to the brain, spontaneous recovery tends to slow down after a number of weeks so forms of physical therapy may be required to maintain improvements in functioning. Techniques may include movement therapy and electrical stimulation of the brain to counter the deficits in motor and/or cognitive functioning that may be experienced following a stroke, for instance. This shows that, although the brain may have the capacity to 'fix itself' to a point, this process requires further intervention if it is to be completely successful. conclusion

Theory of localization

Intro: define, bio approach, what is used, counter-argument summar - distribution through neural networks or reorganisation to other areas 1. Evaluate research on localization of function - Intro: Explain the theory of localizations - P2. Support for theory of localization - Maguire - P3. Reductionism/ methodological issues of supporting research Point Research into the strict localization of brain function has been argued to be biologically reductionist. Explain This refers to the way that biological psychologists attempt to explain complex human behaviour by reducing it down to its basic physical level and explain it in terms of brain structure. Evidence For example, Maguire suggesting that the posterior hippocampus is responsible for spatial memory is a reductionist approach to explaining memory. Elaborate Whilst the practice may be considered useful as it can aid understanding of the complex through more simplistic explanations, biological psychology has been criticized for over-simplifying many complex human behaviours by attributing it to specific areas of the brain alone whilst ignoring other contributory factors. Link This matters because such focus may neglect to consider complexities of the behaviour and result in a very simple, basic explanation at the expense of a more holistic account - P4. Contrasting theory - law of equipotentiality - Not all researchers agree with the view that cognitive functions are localized in the brain. An influential, conflicting view is the Law of Equipotentiality Theory proposed my Karl Lashley (1950). Lashley claimed that intact areas of the cortex could take over responsibility for specific cognitive functions following injury to the area normally responsible for the function. Lashley believed that whilst basic motor and sensory functions may be localized in the brain, higher cognitive functions are not. This suggests that the effects of damage to the brain are better determined by the extent rather than the location of the damage, thus challenging the theory of strict localization. P5. Research to support contrasting theory - Karl Lashley However, despite the evidence supporting localization of brain function, there are classical studies that lend support to the opposing theory - that of distribution of brain function. The psychologist Karl Lashley conducted research in the 1920s and onwards attempting to find the part or parts of the brain where learning and memory were localized, a structure he and others called the engram. He trained rats to perform specific maze‐running tasks, and then lesioned varying portions of the rat cortex, either before or after the animals received the training, depending upon the experiment. The amount of cortical tissue removed had specific effects on acquisition and retention of knowledge, but the actual location of the removed brain tissue had no significant effect. This led him to conclude that memory and learning are not localized but are widely distributed across the cortex. - P6. Issues with distribution of function. - Weak localization nevertheless exists Point Some functions are nevertheless localized weakly; that is, several brain areas may be responsible for a function but some areas are dominant. Evidence There were many examples of weakly localized (lateralized) functions in Sperry and Gazzaniga's research. Explanation Although the left hemisphere was consistently shown to be dominant for language, the right hemisphere was also shown to be capable of understanding some simple language. Link Scientists have been generally more successful in establishing strict localization for sensory and motor functions than for higher-order cognitive functions such as memory, thinking and learning. - Conclusion : while human behaviour can be localised in one area, which makes the theory, it does not necessarily have to be. 2. Discuss limitations of the theory of localization of function. - Define theory of localization - There are individual differences in language areas - Language predictions bay not be confined to Broca's area alone - Support for theory of localization - Challenges to the theory of localization - Reductionism - Determinism Point A vital criticism of the biological explanation involved in the theory of localization is its attempt to explain human behaviour purely in terms of physiological factors. Explain This is known as biological determinism, the belief that all human behaviour is caused and controlled by internal, biological mechanism such as brain structure. Evidence For example, Maguire et al (2000) suggesting that the posterior hippocampus is associated with spatial memory is an example of determinism. Elaborate Such a viewpoint suggests that one's behaviour is solely determined by internal physiology, and, as such, factors beyond one's control. This standpoint neglects to account for the idea of free will. Link This matters because it suggests that an individual has no capacity to alter their behaviour or any control as an active agent of their actions. This will then have implications for how a person is then viewed and treated by society. conclusion main strength: provides basis for development of theory of distribution, neural pathways and rec of function

RM hormones and pheromones

Lab experiment - mcgaugh and cahill

explain the use of one research method in one study of the effect of hormones and behaviour

McGaugh and Cahill 1995 - laboratory experiment

genetic inheritance and human behaviour

One biological theory of depression is genetic inheritance. Genetic inheritance is the theory that abnormal behaviour, in this case, depression, can be passed down through genes. Psychologists believe that if an individual has a specific combination of genes, they are more vulnerable to depression; life stressors - particularly aversive childhood experiences - can cause the genes to be expressed, leading to the disorder. Originally, most research on the genetics of depression was done using family and twin studies; today, since the Human Genome Project, research has focused on specific genes. A twin study was done by Kendler to investigate the rate at which both identical (MZ) twins and fraternal (DZ) twins inherit depression. Using the Swedish Twin Registry, Kendler looked at over 40.000 twins and found that the concordance rate for female MZ twins was 44% and for DZ only 16%. In males, the rates were 30% and 10%. When looking at the results of identical twins we can firstly see that the percentage is not 100%. This indicates that if depression is genetic, having the genes for depression is not enough to make someone depressed. Instead, only through interacting with the environment, resulting in gene expression, may depression occur. The fact that the MZ twins may not both have depression may have less to do with genes and more to do with the stressors that they have personally experienced. Inheriting the genes does not mean that the person will automatically develop depression. The results for the DZ twins being lower than the MZ twins supports the theory of genetic inheritance because fraternal twins are much less likely to have the same gene make ups. One issue of genetic research from clinical samples is that it often uses small numbers of participants. This can cause generalisability issues for the research used to support the theory. However, the concordance rates for AN are relatively consistent across studies. Not only does this consistency strengthen the validity of the genetic component, it also eliminates the extraneous variable of shared environment that is so often a methodological flaw in twin research. However, concordance rates are still not 100%, implying that genetics are not the only factor involved.A limitation of this study is that twins are a very small part of our global population. Although this study seems to support the theory of genetic inheritance we cannot know for sure if these results can be generalized to everybody. There is also an issue with a self-fulfilling prophecy, as identical twins may think that they are more likely to develop depression they might start to exhibit more symptoms. This also causes question into issues of undo stress or harm both because the study may contribute to the onset of depression, but that the study could also leave participants in fear that they will too develop the illness. Another weakness of twin studies is that the 'equal environments assumption' may lack validity. It assumes that MZ and DZ twins are treated with equal degrees of similarity, by parents, friends, teachers etc., and so concordance rates can be compared. Views differ, but many psychologists continue to question the equal environments assumption (e.g. Joseph 2002). It is argued that because they are identical, MZ twins are treated more similarly than DZ twins, and therefore twin studies may overestimate the extent of genetic influence and underestimate the extent of environmental influence. In addition to this, DZ twins can be different sexes. Modern research does not only look at twin research but also at specific genes. Caspi carried out a prospective longitudinal study of the effect of the mutation of the 5-HTT serotonin transport gene. Caspi argued that people with two short alleles (the mutation) of the 5-HTT gene would be more likely to develop depression. Participants were allocated to groups based on the length of the allele of their 5-HTT genes.. The first group consisted of those with one short allele and one long, the second had two short, and the third had two long. Participants were evaluated for depression and asked to fill out a questionnaire detailing major life events. Those with the mutation and with major life stressors were more likely to exhibit symptoms of depression, and suicidal ideation. Caspi found that participants with the mutation who had three or more stressful life events were the most likely to show depressive symptoms. The study shows that genes are not destiny, but that a combination of a genetic predisposition and environmental stressors may be. Modern genetics is a holistic approach - recognizing that a gene-environment interaction often leads to behaviour, and not the genes alone. There have been replications of the study, so the research has been shown to be reliable. However, when dealing with depression, there are complications with the construct. It is difficult to know if depression is the same across all cultures and if serotonin plays a role in the origins of the disorder. Wilhelm et al (2009) carried out a study to determine the effect of genetic testing for the 5-HTT gene which is believed to play a role in depression. In this study, the researchers followed up by asking participants who had received genetic testing to fill out questionnaires. When asked about the most important benefits of genetic testing, participants said that it: allowed for early intervention, provided the potential to prevent the onset of depression and helped people with the gene variation to avoid stressors that made to the onset of depression. When asked to identify the most important limitations of receiving some information, participants said that it could: lead to insurance discrimination; lead to discrimination from employers; make people with the gene variation feel more stressed or depressed. Regardless of which variation of the 5HTT gene was found, all participants reported more positive feelings than negative feelings. However, the participants with two short alleles demonstrated significantly higher distress levels after learning their result compared with the other participants. The study gives us some insight into the ethical considerations of genetic testing. However, the study has some limitations. First, the sample had a mean age of 50 years old. 42% of the participants had suffered from depression during their lifetime - and those that had not had little chance of starting at such a late age. In addition, the sample was highly educated. The sample is also made up of those that had agreed to have the testing in the first place. Obviously, it is not possible to know the effect on those that refused to have the testing. An issue with the genetic explanation is that prevalence rates vary at different times and in different cultures. For example, depression prevalence rates are increasing in developing countries and vary between western and non-western countries. This suggests that the genetic explanation may be considered reductionist as it neglects other possible contributory factors. The nature of the gene pool has remained constant over the same period, so genetics alone cannot explain the increase in rates of depression. Furthermore, AN rates vary within one culture. These differences in time and location cannot be explained by genetic factors alone and are likely to be the result of psychological factors and environmental factors, such as the economic factors leading to lifestyle change. Genetic research has helped us to understand research in the sociocultural approach. For example, in Brown & Harris's study on women and depression, they found that women who had fewer protective factors were more likely to get depression. This study is quite old and today we can hypothesize that it was most likely because of gene-environment interaction that the women developed depression. With modern technology we are able to isolate specific genes and carry out research to test the strength of the correlation with depression. This avoids the problem of early research on MZ and DZ twins that made assumptions about their genes with no way to verify them. However, genetic studies are still correlational in nature, meaning that it's difficult to establish a cause and effect relationship.

bias in thinking and decision making.

One cognitive bias in thinking and decision-making is the availability heuristic. This is based on the assumption that whatever is available in our long-term memory is remembered because it has occurred frequently in the past and so is more likely to occur in the future. There are several ways in which this heuristic can result in cognitive bias: an event attracts attention, such as a scandal involving a politician, and therefore we are likely to exaggerate the frequency of this. Or maybe a dramatic event temporarily increases its availability: a plane crash reported in the media temporarily makes us nervous of flying. Finally, personal experiences, pictures and vivid examples are more available than incidents happening to others, words or statistics, and therefore seem more likely to happen in the future. Because availability is affected by factors, such as familiarity, media reports and stereotyping, reliance on availability leads to cognitive bias. Tversky and Kahneman (1973) tested the availability heuristic by presenting four lists aurally to two different groups of participants in a study. One had 19 famous male and 20 less famous female entertainers and the second had 20 less famous male and 19 famous female entertainers. Lists 3 and 4 were the same, but this time the names were those of politicians. Participants in group 1 were asked to write down as many as they could recall after listening to each list, and group 2 was asked whether each list contained more names of males or of females. Group 1 participants recalled a mean of 12/19 of the famous names and only 8/20 of the less famous names, and over 80% of participants thought the gender of the famous names to be more frequent. This supports the availability heuristic: people judge the frequency of something by the ease with which the examples come to mind (availability). In the study, participants judged the frequency of the gender by the ease with which the famous names were recalled.

Pheromones

Pheromones are chemical substances produced and released into the environment that cause a behavioural or physiological response in other members of the species. In nature, pheromones are most commonly released by animals to signal to others; they are ready to mate, or that there is danger nearby. The impact of pheromones on human behaviour is a highly controversial topic in psychology since nobody has yet to identify a human pheromone. However, there has been much research done on the topic. Two studies intended to study the effect of pheromones on human behavior are Zhou's study of Androstadienone (AND) and Wedekind's study of the role of MHC (Major Histocompatibility Complex) on human mating behaviour. Zhou wanted to see the impact of Androstadienone (AND), a potential human pheromone found in male sweat, on human sexual behavior. In the study, four groups of participants - heterosexual males, heterosexual females, homosexual males and homosexual females - were shown images of stick figures walking on a screen. Each group did one trial where they were exposed to the smell of cloves while they watched the stick figures moving on a screen and another trial where the cloves were mixed with a high dose of AND. The researchers found that in the trial with the AND, heterosexual females and homosexual males rated the stick figures as more masculine. The researchers also carried out the same study with the female version of AND (estratetraenol) and found similar results with heterosexual males and homosexual females. The researchers concluded that AND could be a human pheromone that carry plays a role in sexual attraction. The fact that the effect of Androstadienone was only seen with heterosexual females and homosexual males does suggest that it impacts us on the basis of sexual orientation. However, even though the study is highly standardized, there are a number of issues present in the study. Firstly, the study is very artificial and therefore has a problem with ecological validity. The level of AND present in the study was at a far higher concentration than what is seen in human males. It could be argued that the levels of AND in the real world are too low to be detected. Finally, this study does nothing to show that AND or estratetraenol are used to signal mating behaviour or associated with attraction. Signalling pheromones are used to cause rapid behavioural changes leading to mating behaviour and there is no evidence for this. Additionally, Hare et al (2017) did a study attempting to replicate the findings of Zhou et al (2014) and failed to do so. For these reasons, this study cannot be said to prove the existence of a human pheromone. Although the study showed a significant difference in behaviour, there are some concerns with the study. First, the participants were exposed to very high levels of the pheromones; it is unclear that this response would happen in a naturalistic setting. Secondly, although they identified the figure as masculine or feminine, this is not a clear study of sexual odour but rather if participants perceived a person's walk as feminine or masculine. It can be debated whether this is a reliable measure of sexual behaviour. Finally, the study is done on a relatively small sample. The study would need to be replicated on a much larger sample in order to determine whether the results are reliable. A more promising study was carried out by Doucet et al (2009) on the role of secretion of the areolar glands in suckling behaviour in 3-day-old infants. The areolar glands are located near the nipple. The researchers administered the different secretions to the infants nasally and then measured their behaviour and breathing rate. The researchers compared the infants' reaction to seven different stimuli - including, secretions of areolar glands, human milk, cow milk, formula milk, and vanilla. They found that the infants began sucking only when exposed to the secretions of the areoloar glands. In addition, there was a significant increase in their breathing rate. The researchers argue that this stimulus of the aerolar odor may initiate a chain of behavioural and physiological events that lead to the progressive establishment of attachment between the mother and the infant. However, more research is necessary to definitively draw these conclusions. Those who argue that human pheromones do not exist, and therefore cannot affect human behaviour point to the fact that the detection of pheromones in mammals usually relies on the vomeronasal sensory organ (VNO), which is a collection of neurons deep in the nose that transmits signals via the accessory olfactory bulb to the hypothalamus in the brain, and so far neither the VNO or the accessory olfactory bulb has been shown to exist in humans, though both exist in the foetus up to about 18 weeks. Trotier et al used endoscope observation of 2031 adults and followed up with CT scan of the nasal cavity of 7 adults to conclude that there are only pits which are remnants of where the VNO used to be. VNO not connected to any receptor neurons and doesnt operate as sensory organ, though it may function in the foetus. The question remains as to whether the VNO is the only means of detection of pheromones. If it isnt, and humans may be able to detect them in a different way, then the possibility of their existence may resurface The research surrounding pheromones has been very controversial and the fact remains that no researcher has yet to definitively identify a human pheromone. Both studies above illustrate how smell can play an important role in human decision-making. Psychologists will likely continue to debate the existence of human pheromones but if there are human pheromones, it is highly likely that their effects are far subtler than what we see in the animal kingdom.

Ethical considerations in brain and behaviour

Psychological research is regulated by ethical principles and procedures that need to be followed in all aspects of the research. These ethical principles are developed by national and international psychological organisations. In the study of health psychology, ethical considerations, such as maintaining confidentiality or providing the right to withdraw, need to be made in order to minimise the ethical implications such as psychological harm. Very often, ethical decisions rely on a cost-benefit analysis to assess how severe the ethical implications are in relation to the validity of the research. While research may cause discomfort in participants of the study initially, the finding of this research may benefit the participants themselves as well as the general public. Ethical guidelines to protect participants in psychological research are laid out by national organizations, such as the American Psychological Association and the British Psychological Society. These guidelines require that all psychological research is passed by an ethics committee to ensure that it does no psychological nor physical harm. Obtaining informed consent is an ethical consideration of many studies into the study of brain and behaviour. Informed consent means that before participants agree to participate in a study, the researcher must explan the purpose and procedure of the study. Additionally, the researcher must explain the participants' rights - including the right to withdraw and that all data will maintain anonymity. Any potential negative effects of participation must be fully explained. The biological approach has some special problems with regard to informed consent. In addition, biological researchers often do studies of people who have mental illness or brain damage. It could be argued that these participants may not be able to understand what they are agreeing to. biological research is rather complex and may not be understood by the average person, making "informed consent" difficult. For example, in the study of retrogade and anterograde amnesia in HM by Milner, not only was consent presumptive, but HM may not have been able to take advantage of his right to withdraw because he may have not understood or forgotten due to the brain damage he had encountered. Informed consent is important so that researchers don't take advantage of participants. However, because much research into brain behaviour looks into brain damage, this make obtaining informed consent difficult. Additionally, obtaining informed consent may result in demand characteristics, which would invalidate the research. This can be overcome through debriefing. However, in many cases in the bioligical approach, such as HM, the participants suffer from brain damage and are unlikely to exhibit demand characteristics, therefore informed consetn should be obtained. However this may also be difficult as the ppts may not understand. This can be overcome using presumptive consent - HMs mum. Research into brain and behaviour should be ethical in terms of confidentiality and anonymity in order to minimise the consequences of labelling individuals and reduce psychological harm. Maintaining anonymity is crucial when researching health problems as the data is socially sensitive and if the individual can be identified by the public, this can lead to discrimination and therefore psychological harm. An issue with this labelling of individuals is that it can lead to discrimination. The findings of the study by Raine (1997) suggest a biological correlation between impulsive behaviour and lack of pre-frontal cortex. This labelling can cause psychological harm because it suggests that it is their own cognitive process that is causing the addictive behaviours. However, when conducting a cost-benefit analysis, it becomes clear that this labelling is for the greater good because if the research was valid then the findings can be generalised, allowing for greater intervention through education programmes to reduce behaviours that may lead to violence. Therefore, while research into brain and behaviour is likely to result in psychological harm, the ends justify the means if appropriate intervention techniques are implemented for both the participants in the study and the population to which the findings apply. Additionally, labelling can be self-fulfilling, causing an individual to believe that their behaviur is out of their control and therefore labelling individuals in the study of brain and behaviour can be deterministic. However, this labelling is important as it allows for medical intervention because the individuals with the biological predispositions can be identified. This means that upon a cost-benefit analysis, confidentiality may be breached because if the researcher holds possession over the participants' data but doesn't share it, then the participant can be helped by the researcher without discrimination by society. Raine can ensure that anonymity and confidentiality are maintained through careful reporting of the results after the research has been conducted as well as reflexivity. This research demonstrates the importance of a cost-benefit analysis when making ethical considerations in research concerning the brain and.behaviour; as it was concluded that confidentiality may be breached however anonymity needs to be maintained, ensuring that the research is deemed ethical in terms of the socially sensitive data it is reporting. Consequently, research into the brain and behaviour is alike in that the aim is to minimise ethical implications. This ethical implication is most likely psychological harm, so the ethical considerations made are complementary to minimise this implication. Wherever ethical guidelines have been breached, it is as a result of the ends justifying the means. Nevertheless, every ethical decision made needs to be after a cost-benefit analysis has been conducted.

Discuss whether animal research can provide insight into human behaviour

The assumption that animal research can give insight into human behaviour rests on the similarity of brain structure and function, and genetic similarity. Darwin (1871) posits that the difference between the minds of humans and other species is of degree, not kind. But Hauser (2009) puts forward a theory of humaniqueness, arguing that a profound gap separates our intellect from that of animals. Nowadays, with the development of genetic research, the use of animals to explain human behaviour has moved on from the behavioural experiments using pigeons and rats. As often stated, mice are about 97% the same as humans genetically, and chimpanzees a little less than that. Therefore, they seem prime examples of animal models for research. Genetics research often analyses simpler systems in order to gradually develop an understanding of more complex ones. Caspi and Moffitt (2006) list reasons for using animal models: In non‐human animals, exposure to an environmental pathogen can be manipulated under experimental control. They can be assigned to detrimental conditions that are not permitted in human studies (for example, deprivation of maternal rearing). (RESEARCH) However, there have been some examples of animal research that have been much less successful in giving us insight into human behaviour. While the mouse is genetically almost identical to the human, it seems that investigating mouse disease responses has given little insight into human disorders. For example, certain genetic mouse models of Alzheimer's disease looked promising until scientists examined the animals' brains and found missing there the brain damage (amyloid plaques or neurofibrillary tangles) that characterizes the disease. Other models would have the neuronal damage, but not significant memory deficits. The findings of animal studies like this lack external validity and cannot be generalised to humans. Research using mice has been criticized. Drawing attention to the differences between mice and humans: paracetamol and aspirin are both deadly to mice; thalidomide, prescribed for pregnant women in the late 1950s to alleviate morning sickness, resulted in many thousands of congenital malformations, despite having been successfully tested on mice; 95% of the drugs thought to be promising after experiments on mice fail when subjected to clinical trials. This suggests that maybe the focus should be on the differences between mice and humans in our research, not on their similarities, and should be careful not to confuse similarity with equivalence Some methodological flaws that affect the internal validity of the animal research are outlined by a series of critics. They include the following: lack of random assignment to groups, no single‐blind design, lack of same environment, unreliability of baseline measurements, inbreeding of samples, and finally, unnatural surroundings producing sedentary, obese mice who should only be compared with sedentary, obese humans. Publication Bias: While this is not a reason why animal studies fail to inform us, it is a reason why we are surprised when their promise is not upheld in clinical trials. Sena et al. (2010) carried out a meta‐analysis of animal research into ischaemic stroke (sudden loss of blood to one area of the brain) and point out that publication bias is prevalent in reports of laboratory‐based research in animal models of stroke, so much so that data from as many as one in seven experiments remain unpublished. The result of this bias is that systematic reviews of the published results of interventions in animal models of stroke overstate their success by around one third. It has been suggested that since some parts of our brain are very similar to the brain structures of animals, on some level our psychological functions should be equivalent. However, some researchers claim that the similarity can be deceitful, and the new additions have changed our psychological functions fundamentally. An example is the use of chunking in short-term memory. Although some separate brain structures in animals and humans may be similar, it is the way these structures are connected to the rest of the brain that makes a difference. Some theories have suggested that the human brain is a reflection of the evolution of the species and that genuinely "human" brain structures were added in the process of evolution on top of the more primitive structures that can be found in lower animals. This suggests that the human brain is very similar to that of animals. However, evolution of the brain may have been more complex than simply building newer structures on top of the older ones. Premack (2007) suggested that researchers should compare psychological functions as well as brain structure. He also claimed that we should focus on finding dissimilarities between animals and humans so that we better understand the limitations of generalizing from animal studies. An example of comparing psychological functions in animals and humans (Premack 2007) is short-term memory in humans and chimpanzees. A chimpanzee has the same limit for the number of units it can remember without rehearsing (about seven units). However, unlike primates, humans are able to "chunk". You can train a chimpanzee to recognize letters such as B, M, W, X, B, O and X. However, although the capacity of short-term memory is the same, the sequence BMW XBOX will represent seven units of information for a chimpanzee and only two units for a human being. Arguably, chunking makes a qualitative difference to how memory works. Hence, short-term memory in humans and chimpanzees may be similar, but it is not equivalent. A suggestion put forward by Archibald and Coleman is to use human tissue from people with the relevant disease (dubbed 'patient in a dish'). Or alternatively, to use 'body on a chip' devices, where human tissue samples on a silicon chip are linked by a circulating blood substitute. Totally artificial methods include many computer‐modelling approaches, such as virtual organs, virtual patients and virtual clinical trials. Finally, micro dosing studies could be conducted, where tiny doses of drugs given to volunteers allow scientists to study their metabolism in humans, safely and accurately (2012). It seems that animal studies may be able to inform us about human behaviour to some extent, but the use for which most people accept them is the one for which they are least fit - finding cures for disease. The studies seem to suggest that animal research conducted properly, published responsibly and used carefully can give some insight into human behaviour. However, Archibald and Coleman (2012) note that '92% of new drugs fail clinical trials, even though they have successfully passed animal tests. This is mostly because of toxicity, which can be serious and even fatal for the people taking part in the trials.

Ethics hormones and pheromones

Zhou - protection from harm

Genetic similarities

When researchers study the potential genetic origins of behaviour, one of the places to start it by looking at families because families share similar DNA. It is often said that certain behaviours "run in families." Finding evidence of this is the first step in figuring out if a behaviour might be genetic. To do this, researchers use three different types of research: family studies, twin studies, and adoption studies. Family studies look at trends in behaviour over several generations in order to see if the behaviour "runs in the family." Weissman did a 20-year study to see if major depression might be genetic. The study collected data on depressed patients and non-depressed participants. All had children at the beginning of the study. In the study, the original participants, their children and then their grandchildren were all assessed for major depressive disorder by a clinician. The evaluation was blind to the child's family history. The study found that by 12 years old, almost 60% of the grandchildren in families with the disorder were showing signs of a disorder. Children had an increased risk of any disorder if depression was observed in both the grandparents and the parents, compared to children where their parents were not depressed. This study seems to indicate a potential genetic link to depression. Weissman's study is longitudinal, demonstrating change over time. They were able to gather prospective data, rather than relying on family history. Family studies are limited in that they can only look at around three living generations. In order to go further back, they are reliant on family memory. In the study of mental illness, often there are stories about older generations, but they lack an official diagnosis - or the diagnostic criteria have changed. Family stories are also anecdotal in nature and may be open to memory distortions. Although family studies indicate a potential genetic link to behaviour, there is no genotype studied - so it is not possible to determine if a specific gene might be responsible. In addition, family studies do not control for environmental factors. Twin studies attempt to solve the problem of not identifying the genotype by using identical (MZ) and fraternal (DZ) twins. Although the genotype is still not identified, MZ twins have the same DNA and DZ twins do not. Kendler carried out a study of over 15.000 twins. If MZ twins had a higher concordance rate for depression than DZ twins, it could be argued that depression might be genetic. In addition to filling in questionnaires about their mental health, the twins were also asked questions about their personal life experiences. Kendler found that MZ twins had a significantly higher concordance rate than DZ twins. Life experiences had no significant effect on the data, meaning that environmental factors did not play a significant role. Like family studies, twin studies are correlational and do not establish a cause and effect relationship. In addition, no specific genes were identified in this study. There have been many twin studies that have similar results, so the findings are reliable. However, there are some limitations. As no physiological measurement is taken, all data is self-reported. In addition, the interviewers did not officially diagnose the twins but instead accepted previous diagnoses. That assumes that the diagnoses were valid and that those who were not diagnosed, actually do not have the disorder. However, the fact that the sample size is large helps to increase the reliability of the data. Although this study attempted to rule out environmental factors, they were also self-reported. Adoption studies are a natural experiment that allows researchers to more directly investigate the role of environment vs genetics. Another weakness of twin studies is that the 'equal environments assumption' may lack validity. It assumes that MZ and DZ twins are treated with equal degrees of similarity, by parents, friends, teachers etc., and so concordance rates can be compared. Views differ, but many psychologists continue to question the equal environments assumption (e.g. Joseph 2002). It is argued that because they are identical, MZ twins are treated more similarly than DZ twins, and therefore twin studies may overestimate the extent of genetic influence and underestimate the extent of environmental influence. In addition to this, DZ twins can be different sexes. This is relevant to AN, especially because of the greater prevalence of AN in females. Although AN is not an inevitable outcome of genetic risk because environmental and cognitive factors play an essential role (as indicated by the diathesis-stress model), the contribution of genes to AN is clear. Adoption studies compare the behaviour of a child to both the biological and adoptive parents. The idea is that if the behaviour is genetic, then the child's behaviour should be more similar to the biological parent than the adoptive parent. This assumes that the environment is different from the environment of the birth parents. If the behaviour is more similar to the adoptive parents, who are not genetically similar to the child, then the assumption is that the behaviour is the result of environmental factors. Sorensen carried out a study on Danish adoptees to see if obesity might have a genetic origin. This was a longitudinal study that looked at children's height and weight over a six-year period, as well as their adult weight. The BMI was calculated and compared to the BMI of both the birth family (parents and siblings) and the adoptive family. Sorensen found that there was a significantly higher correlation between the BMI of the adopted participants and their birth family than the adoptive family. This study was reliant on school records for childhood data. In addition, parents and adoptive parents were contacted for information about their weight by questionnaire. This may mean that the data is open to inaccuracies and demand characteristics. However, a large sample was used to increase the reliability of the data. Adoption studies also assume that the environment will be different in the adoptive home, but there is often a policy of selective placement in which a family is chosen that is similar to the birth family. This may mean that the environment is not as well controlled as believed. Finally, there is that problem that adoptive children are not representative of a larger population. Knowing that one is adopted may have an effect on one's self of self. This means that it may be difficult to generalize the findings. Prior to the Human Genome Project, psychologists were dependent on an indirect approach to studying the heritability of behaviour. If the participants were genetically similar and had the same behaviour - whereas those that were not genetically similar did not have the same behaviour - then it was assumed that genes must be playing a significant role. These methods help to build a hypothesis, but they are limited in their explanation. Being able to map genes and their mutations has helped psychologists get a better understanding of the actual role of genes in behaviour.

Ethical considerations in genetics

Within the biological approach it is assumed that research into genetic influence on behaviour can eventually reveal the causes of psychological disorders such as depression or negative behaviours such as criminal activity. The diathesis-stress theory suggests that genes may lead to a predisposition to a behaviour or disorder, but there must be an environmental or physiological trigger for the genes to be expressed. Today our knowledge about the exact role of specific genes is still incomplete. As with all research, genetic research must meet ethical standards. There are several ethical considerations such as informed consent and the risk of undue stress or harm. One consideration is informed consent. To obtain informed consent, the aim and the procedure of the research - as well as any possible negative outcomes - must be explained to the participant in language that the participant can understand. It could be argued that many people do not understand genetic research and its implications, and therefore informed consent cannot be easily obtained. A participant could find out that they have an unexpected genetic disposition for a particular mental illness. Although this could be considered a good thing because it could lead to changes in behavoiur that would prevent the onset of the disorder, it could also cause undue stress. Another ethical consideration in genetic research is undue stress or harm. Undue stress is when a participant experiences more stress than should be expected through the normal day to day activities. In research on the role of genetics on depression, Caspi found that having two short alleles for the 5-HTT gene made one more vulnerable to depression than someone with the longer alleles. The question is whether testing someone for the genetic mutation and informing them that this may make them more vulnerable for depression is undue stress. One could argue that it is not, but instead is a way to help people cope with the potential onset of depression. Knowing that you may develop it may help people to take more precautions like watching their diet or exercising on a regular basis. Wilhelm et al (2009) found that in a study of the 5-HTT gene, participants felt more positive than negative about getting the information. They felt that it was important to know. However, this was self-reported and may be the result of social desirability effect. Wilhelm et al also found that the participants with two short alleles showed much higher levels of stress after the learning the results than the participants with two long alleles. There is a danger that having this knowledge could lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy, where individuals start to show signs of the disorder simply because they expect to get it. Finally, if the participants were to share this information with a doctor, it may lead to confirmation bias and a false diagnosis of depression, leading to drug treatments that could be bad for the individual. It is important that psychologists consider the potential harm that could come to their participants from such research. By explaining clearly the meaning of the results in the debriefing, the negative outcomes may be avoided. One of the ethical concerns in the study of genetics is how important pre-symptom screening could be in the prevention of mental illness or in negative behaviours. For example, in a large twin study carried out by Christiansen, he found a higher concordance rate for criminal activity in MZ twins than in DZ twins. Although no specific genes were isolated, what if there is a genetic predisposition to criminal behaviour? Could we potentially prevent crime by helping people with this genetic predisposition? The argument is problematic and ethically unsound. Genetic research is generally correlational, which means that it is not possible to state a clear cause-effect relationship between genes and criminal behaviour. In the case of Christiansen's study, we also have to be careful of how we define "criminal activity" and the question of what environmental factors may have played a role in the development of the behaviour. We have to be careful not to believe in genetic determinism. The interaction between genes and the environment is very complex and oversimplifying the origins of complex behaviours like criminal activity can lead to labeling, prejudice and the denial of an individual to choose his or her own path in life. Although genetic research is helping us to better understanding the origins of behaviour, researchers must always address ethical considerations. Failure to do so will make people less likely to participate in research. In addition, the failure to meet standards may lead to behaviours which look like they support the findings, but may be due to confounding variables, like self-fulfilling prophecies, misdiagnosis due to confirmation bias or anxiety and depression due to stress about the findings.

Ethics: cultural origins of beh/cogn

deception/psychological harm - Asch

RM in emotion and cognition

experiment - mcgaugh and cahill

RM in cognitive processing

glanzer and cunitz - 2 labs

ethics in emotion and cognition

informed consent - mcgaugh and cahill

Localization of function ERQ

intro : define p1 hippocampi and spatial memory + evidence from Maguire 2000 and Broca and Wernicke's aphasia p2 reductionism p3 Brcoca's : language predictions may not be conformed to Brocas areas alone p4 Wernicke : communication may be more important than localisation p5 sperry and gazanigga - weak localization p6 - bavelier - There are individual differences in language areas p7 - challenge to the theory Karl Lashley and the Law of Equipotentiality

quantitative research methods

laboratory experiments hypotheses field experiments quasi and natural experiments

Neuroplasticity ERQ

intro p1 - Kuhn as evidence maguire as evidence neuroplasticity is useful for learning p2 : maguires study is limited p3 : functional recovery description , use of stem cells The brain also appears to show evidence of functional recovery: the transfer of functions from a damaged area of the brain after trauma to other undamaged areas. It can do this through a process termed neuronal unmasking where 'dormant' synapses (which have not received enough input to be active) open connections to compensate for a nearby damaged area of the brain. This allows new connections in the brain to be activated, thus recovering any damage occurring in specific regions. Stem cells are also used as a way of recovering functions of the brain. These are unspecialised cells that can take on the characteristics of nerve cells, allowing the brain to create new neural pathways and recover any damage to existing cells that may otherwise prevent effective neurotransmission. p4 : taijiri + There is research to support the claim for functional recovery. Taijiri et al. (2013) found that stem cells provided to rats after brain trauma showed a clear development of neuron-like cells in the area of injury. This demonstrates the ability of the brain to create new connections using neurons manufactured by stem cells. An issue with these findings however is the research was based on rats which have drastically different biology than humans and the findings may lack external validity when generalizing to humans. Therefore we should be careful when generalizing the findings of this study to the whole population. p5 : elbert et al While there is evidence for functional recovery, it is possible that this ability can deteriorate with age. This may explain why adults find change more demanding than do young people. Elbert et al. concluded that the capacity for neural reorganisation is much greater in children than in adults, meaning that neural regeneration is less effective in older brains. This may explain why adults find change more demanding than do young people. Therefore, we must consider individual differences when assessing the likelihood of functional recovery in the brain after trauma. p6 - neurorehabilitation A final strength of research examining plasticity and functional recovery is the application of the findings to the field of neurorehabilitation. Understanding the processes of plasticity and functional recovery led to the development of neurorehabilitation which uses motor therapy and electrical stimulation of the brain to counter the negative effects and deficits in motor and cognitive functions following accidents, injuries and/or strokes. This demonstrates the positive application of research in this area to help improve the cognitive functions of people suffering from injuries. p7 - reductionism

Neurotransmission

intro: - Neurotransmission is the process by which neurons transmit information and signals in order for certain bodily functions, either psychical or psychological to occur. - - Communication between this neurons begins when an action potential travels to the axon terminal of a presynaptic neuron. This electrical impulse causes vesicles to fuse with the membrane of the presynaptic neuron and release certain molecules; neurotransmitters, which bind to the receptors on the postsynaptic neuron to carry on this action potential to the next neuron. - These neurotransmitters are then released from the receptors, and either return to the presynaptic neuron, or are dissolved by enzymes. - Often the role of neurotransmitters is studied indirectly. ----> using an antagonist - that is, a drug that blocks the receptor site on a neuron and does not allow a neurotransmitter to do its job. Roger & Kesner's study aimed to determine the role of acetylcholine in the formation of spatial memory. There is a high concentration of acetylcholine receptors found in the hippocampus, an area of the brain responsible for the formation of memories. The study looked at the formation of spatial memory in 30 rats. The rats were randomly allocated into 2 groups. The treatment group was injected with scopolamine, which blocks acetylcholine receptor sites. The control group was injected with a placebo saline solution, as there was a possibility that the injection itself changed the rat's behaviour through adrenaline or stress. They were then put into a maze. The results showed that the treatment group made more mistakes, which suggested they took longer to learn the maze. 1: Troster - ach and encoding of memories - acetylcholine plays a role in the encoding of memories, but not the retrieval of LTM. - there were three conditions. Each subject was injected with either a saline solution, a .5 or a .8 mg solution of scopolamine, an acetylcholine antagonist. -carried out three tests. In the first test, they were asked to recall a list of 14 words. Recall was tested immediately after reading the list and then after 45 minutes. - The high scopolamine group recalled the least in both conditions. In the second test, participants were given a map of a fake state and asked to memorize the location of the cities. After one minute they were given a blank map and a list of cities and asked to place them on the map. - Once again, the high scopolamine group did poorly. - Finally, participants were given a test of memories of famous people and events. - They found no significant difference in the scores of the three conditions. - acetylcholine may play a role in the encoding of memory, but not its retrieval. + highly standardized which allows other researchers to replicate the findings. (-)scopolamine has strong side effects, so the researcher and the participant would know whether it was the placebo or not. - task artificial, may not reflect how memories are usually created. P2 : correlational - There is a great deal of controversy over whether biological factors are the cause of a behaviour or whether they are the result of it. - For example, is the encoding of memories caused by an imbalance of the neurotransmitters or is the process of encoding memories causing ach levels to become depleted. Since a lot of research in biological psychology deals with people who are already exhibiting particular behaviours, it is almost impossible to know whether the neurotransmitter causes the behaviour or if the behaviour causes a change in the levels of the neurotransmitter. - it is extremely difficult to establish a cause and effect relationship, less scientifically sure as to the causes of certain behaviours. P3: Antonova - Antonova wanted to see if scopolamine affected activity in the hippocampus, particularly in the creation of spatial memories. - sample: 20 healthy adult males. - double-blind procedure, with participants randomly allocated to one of two conditions, one in which participants would receive a scopolamine injection, and the other group would receive a placebo. - At the beginning of the experiment, participants were put into an fMRI while playing a virtual reality game that was designed to test the participants' abilities to create spatial memories. The objective of the game was to navigate through an arena to reach a pole. Once they reached the pole, the screen would go blank for 30 seconds and the participants were told to rehearse how they got to the pole, then they would appear in a different location in the arena to find the pole again. - fMRI: brain activity. - ppts injected with scopolamine demonstrated a significant reduction in the activation of the hippocampus when compared with the placebo group. - This suggests that acetylcholine plays an important role in the encoding of spatial memories in humans. P4: evaluation - Although there was a higher rate of error in the scopolamine group, it wasn't a significant difference between the two. However, there was a significant difference in the activity of the hippocampus between the two groups. This implies that the design of the task itself was not ideal to show performance difference, and without the use of technology, there would be no way of knowing of the biological effects between the two groups. - The study was a repeated measures design, which allowed the researchers to eliminate participant variability. The study was also counterbalanced, with some doing the scopolamine condition first and some doing the placebo condition first to control for practice effect. + Double-Blind Experiment, preventing researcher bias in the results. - In order for the results to be considered reliable, the study would need to be replicated, due to the small sample size. P5: reductionism Research into the influence of neurotransmitters has been argued to be biologically reductionist. This refers to the way that biological psychologists attempt to explain complex human behaviour by reducing it down to its basic physical level. Whilst the research may be considered useful as it can aid understanding of the complex through more simplistic explanations, biological psychology has been criticized for over-simplifying many complex human behaviours and ignoring other contributory factors. An advantage of reductionism is that it allows for the operationalisation of variable. This makes it possible to conduct experiments in a way that is meaningful and reliable. Therefore, the reductionist approach gives research greater credibility. However, reductionist approaches have been accused of oversimplifying complex phenomena leading to a loss of validity. Explanations that operated at the level of a neurotransmitter do not include an analysis of the social context within which the behaiour occurs - and this is where the behaviour in question may derive its meaning. This means that reductionist explanations can only ever form part of an explanation. Although these studies provide good insight into aspects of how neurotransmission affects behaviour, they cannot provide a full scope on the impacts it has. Neurotransmission cannot be directly observed in the brain, so researchers use indirect measures such as animal research, fMRIs showing brain activity or the use of antagonists. This means that the research is based on assumptions that may prove in the future not to be accurate.

Hormones

intro; define hormones, cortisol, oxytocin McGaugh and Cahill (1995) and Newcomer et al (1999) examined the roles of adrenaline and cortisol on human memory. Hormones are chemicals that affect human behaviour. They are secreted by glands in the endocrine system and are released into the bloodstream, meaning they take longer to produce changes in human behaviour than neurotransmitters. Hormones can only produce reactions in certain target cells, that have appropriate receptor sites for these specific hormones. The hormone adrenaline secreted by the adrenal gland and is responsible for arousal and the "fight or flight" response, it increases the heart rate, blood pressure and respiration. Cortisol is also secreted by the adrenal gland and is responsible for controlling blood sugar levels, metabolic regulation and its levels rise during periods of stress. In an experiment conducted by Newcomer et al, the effect of levels of cortisol on verbal declarative memory was tested. The participants were matched to one of three conditions based on age and gender. In the first condition, the participants were given a 160 mg tablet of cortisol daily during the four-day experiment. These tablets produced a level of cortisol that one would experience during a major stress event. The second condition had the participants take a 40 mg tablet of cortisol per day. This level of cortisol replicates the levels of cortisol experienced by someone during a low-stress event. The last condition had participants take placebo tablets. The function of this was to provide a control group that eliminated the effect of taking a pill in itself. Each participant had to listen to a prose paragraph and then recall it in over a period of four days. This was done in order to test their verbal declarative memory. The participants in the high-cortisol condition performed the worst in the verbal declarative memory task. This suggests significant negative effects on verbal declarative memory. On the other hand, the low levels cortisol condition showed better recall than the placebo group. These findings suggest that low levels of cortisol actually may enhance verbal declarative memory. As the researchers manipulate the independent variable, a cause and effect relationship was established. Particularly the effect of cortisol levels on one's verbal declarative memory. This experiment was highly standardised, therefore easily replicable. Replicability suggests high reliability of the experiment's findings. This was a double-blind laboratory experiment. This meant that neither the experimenter nor the participant knew which group was receiving the cortisol pills or placebo pills. This eliminated demand characteristics such as the expectancy effect in which the participant acts the way they think they should act in order to produce data that aligns with the hypothesis. The participants weren't aware of the dose of cortisol they were given, therefore couldn't try to produce any desirable results However, given that the experiment was conducted over a period of four days, extraneous variables from the participants' daily lives were not controlled, suggesting low internal validity. Depending on the events of the participants' day, the levels of cortisol could have fluctuated and influenced the findings. Ackermann et al. (2013) investigated whether individual differences in cortisol levels could predict picture encoding (learning) and recall. Over a thousand healthy young male and female participants between 18 and 35 years old viewed different sets of pictures on two consecutive days. The pictures comprised two sets (Set 1 and Set 2) of 24 positive, 24 negative, and 24 neutral pictures interleaved with 24 scrambled pictures. Both sets were recalled after a short delay (10 min). Also, on Day 2, the pictures seen on Day 1 were additionally recalled, resulting in a long‐delay (20 hr.) recall condition. Cortisol levels were measured three times on Days 1 and 2 via saliva samples before encoding the memories (to get a basal measurement), between encoding and recall and after recall testing. Stronger decreases in cortisol levels during retrieval testing were associated with better recall of pictures, regardless of emotional value of the pictures or length of the retention interval (i.e., 10 min vs. 20 hrs). The results support previous findings indicating that higher cortisol levels during retrieval testing lowers recall of episodic memories. This study demonstrated how the hormone cortisol affects the human behaviour of memory. psychologists believe that the stress hormone adrenaline plays a role in the creation of emotional memories. Adrenaline is responsible for stimulating the sympathetic nervous system. Cahill and McGaugh conducted a lab experiment in which there were two groups of participants. The first group was shown 12 slides accompanied by a rather boring story about a boy that was visiting his father in a hospital. The second group was shown the same 12 slides but told a traumatic story about a boy that was in a car accident in which his legs were severed. After the story, the participants were asked to rate their level of emotion. Two weeks later, the participants were asked to come back to answer a set of questions regarding the stories they were told. They had three options for each question to choose as an answer. The researchers did a follow-up study in which they repeated the procedure but injected the group exposed to the "traumatic" story with a beta-blocker, propranolol. Propranolol interferes with the release of adrenaline and prevents the activation of the amygdala to prevent the formation of emotional memories. In this first study, the group exposed to the "traumatic" story had better accuracy in terms of remembering details. They were also more capable of remembering details from the slides compared to the group exposed to the uninteresting story. In the follow-up study, the group that was injected with beta-blockers and exposed to the "traumatic" story performed no better than the group exposed to the non-emotional story. This suggests that the prevention of the release of adrenaline caused the inability to recall the "emotional" story. By carrying out a highly controlled lab experiment Cahill and McGaugh were able to establish a cause and effect relationship between adrenaline's interaction within the amygdala and the formation of emotional memories. As well this experiment was highly standardised, therefore it is easy to replicate. As it is easy to replicate, similar results would increase the reliability of the results.But as the study was well controlled and rather simplistic, can we apply the findings to the "real world?" The research has been applied to the treatment of accident victims with the goal of preventing PTSD. Pitman et al (2002) carried out an experimental study where patients coming into emergency rooms after a traumatic injury were given either beta-blockers (propranolol) or a placebo. One month after the traumatic event, people who had received the beta-blockers showed fewer symptoms of PTSD than those that had received no beta-blockers or a placebo. It appears that Cahill & McGaugh's findings may prove helpful in preventing the onset of PTSD in some patients following a trauma. One limitation of this experiment was its artificiality. The experiment was highly-controlled and took place in a lab setting, questioning its ecological validity. Instead of experiencing the event themselves they were told a story accompanied by 12 images in a lab environment. In addition, the participants self-reported their emotional state, there was no objective measure. reductionism - explain and link to eg Elaborate Whilst this practice may be considered useful as it can aid understanding of the complex through more simplistic explanation, it can likewise be criticized for over-simplifying many complex human behaviours by attributing it to levels of specific hormones alone whilst ignoring other contributory factors. Link This matters because such focus may neglect to consider the complexities of the behaviour and result in a very simple, basic explanation at the expense of a more holistic account. Both Cahill & McGaugh's, as well as Newcomer et al's research, suggests that a strong relationship is present between the release of hormones and the consolidation and recall of memoryy

ethics in individual and the group

psychological harm - bandura One limitation of Bandura's Bobo Doll experiment is that it's unethical it has ethical issues because it used very young children as subjects. Bandura hypothesized that learning could happen through observation, and the results supported this. But who's to say that the learned aggressive behaviour did not continue after the study? The experiment might have caused lasting beliefs in the children about aggression, which raises some concerns about ethics. It would be interesting to know if the parents signed informed consent forms, or if this study happened before this was a requirement.

stereotype formation

stereotypes are fixed beliefs about a particular group of ppl that are also applied to any one member of the group. use of stereotypes in one way in which we categorise and simplify our social world. However can also be negative and led to prejudice against individuals and groups - Hamilton and Gifford (1976)

Contrast two techniques used to study the brain

- Brain imaging technology enables researchers to examine the structure, function and activity of the brain, the relationship between biological factors and behaviour. Such methods include PET (positron emission tomography) and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) P1: MRI description - older method : MRI - powerful magnetic field placed around the brain, temporarily holds the nuclei of the brain's atoms in one direction. When released, the atoms "wobble" back to their original positions and emit a weak radioactive frequency signal that can be picked up by a sensitive receiving device. - shows structural changes in brain matter and is used to investigate tumors or any other possible brain damage. - However, MRI scans are limited to only showing structural changed and need careful interpretation to prevent false positives. - cautious when interpreting MRI scans to ensure validity - claustrophobics have issue due to nature of MRI ---> affects n. of people that can participate = less representative. - limits the effectiveness of this technique for measuring the relationship between biological factors and behaviour in people with claustrophobia. P2: Maguire describe - compare the volume of grey matter in the brains of London taxi drivers compared to a pre-existing sample of matched controls. - - Maguire hypothesized that taxi drivers would show significantly higher volumes of grey matter in their hippocampus, a structure associated with navigational skills. - MRI: increased grey matter in the brains of taxi drivers compared to controls in both the left and right hippocampi. - increased volume was found in the posterior hippocampi. LINK: The results of the MRI allowed Maguire to investigate relationships between biological factors (the size of the hippocampi) and the behaviour (spatial navigation) - lacking ecological validity. However, until a procedure is developed whereby brain scanning can take place during an everyday activity in the real world, then it must essentially remain lab-bound. - MRI image can take several minutes to form, and slightest movement can affect the validity of the findings. - Consequently, while an MRI is useful for establishing a relationship between biological factors and behaviour, its inability to show causation, low ecological validity and susceptibility to distortion via movement, make this scanning technique limited in demonstrating a causal relationship with any certainty. P2.5 MRI evaluation P3: PET scans description - type of nuclear medicine imaging, use a small amount of radioactive material to diagnose and determine the severity of brain diseases, including cancers and neurological disorders. - PET scans involve the injection of a radioactive tracer, appears as a bright color on the scan, areas of the brain are most active in metabolizing glucose during a task. - brighter color, = more activity. - cant be used on everyone: some allergic to tracers, not used on children or pregnant women -----> therefore unable to measure relationships between brain and behaviour in these group -- limitation P4: study that made use of PET - Raine 1997 - to demonstrate a biological correlation between impulsive behaviour and lack of pre-frontal cortex (PFC) activity. - sample of 41 murderers (39 men and 2 women) who had pleaded NGRI (not guilty by reason of insanity) and 41 age and sex-matched controls. - Raine found that the NGRI participants had lower glucose metabolism in their PFC in comparison to the controls. - It might be inferred from the findings that NGRI murderers do not use their PFC to interpret and respond to non-emotional stimuli (in this case the continuous cognitive task), reacting instead in an emotional manner. - PET scans: allowed Raine to investigate the link between a biological factor (lack of pre-frontal cortex activity) and behaviour (impulsive behaviour). - findings wouldnt be possible without PET scans which could be used in clinical and forensic settings to inform rehabilitation programs and to prevent crimes to some extent -by establishing a biological correlate for behaviour- easier for researchers to understand reasons behind specific behaviours e.g. unpremeditated murder. P2.5: Limitations of PET scans -does not provide a full explanation of all possible influences on the behaviour in question. - correlational --> researchers are only able to conclude that the two factors (pre-frontal cortex activity and impulsive behaviour) are linked. = no real evidence to show conclusively that NGRI murderers' crimes are caused by a lack of PFC activity; there could be a huge range of other influences that produced the behaviour e.g. alcohol abuse, upbringing, etc. - Therefore, PET scans are limited as they can only reduce a complex behaviour when highlighting a link between biological factors and behaviour. Conclusion: revolutionary research using MRI and PET & criticisms The use of brain imaging technologies can shed light on phenomena that could otherwise remain a mystery: the under-functioning of the PFC in impulsive murderers has led to further research in this area (e.g. Pardini, Raine et al., 2014); Maguire's research has indicated that the brain may be plastic, leading to therapeutic measures being put in place for post-brain surgery patients. - However, both are criticized for inability to demonstrate causal relationships and their low ecological validity. However, while these technologies lack in explaining why specific activity occurs, is made up for in the glimpses they provide as to the structure and activity in the brain; insight can enable researchers to point with increasing certainty to the relationship between the brain's structure and function and the subsequent behaviour.

value of animal models genetics

- Weaver Investigated the epigenetic mechanism of how nurturing received by rats from their mothers affects the way their brain responds to stress later in life This research is insightful because it gives birth to many interesting hypotheses about human behaviour. Potentially it is also very useful. It suggests that effects of bad parenting may be epigenetic. By analogy, one can suggest that effects of poverty on cognitive development, for example, may also be epigenetic. If this is so, potentially we can invent drugs that will reverse these effects (imagine an "anti-bad-mother pill"). This has led researchers to construct many ingenious research studies to test similar hypotheses with human subjects. - MCGOWAN : post mortem examination of 24 individuals who had committed suiide and had a history of abuse in childhood. This hypotheses was generated through the insight that research by Weaver provided beforehand. ferguson investigated the role of oxytocin ins social memory by studying oxytocin gene knockout mice models. When the oxytocin gene in mice is switched off, it prevents them from recognising familiar social stimuli. As a knockout study it provides a very direct test to the role of oxytocin in behaviour. In humans, we can only temporarily increase the level of oxytocin, so research is limited to ST effects. With animal models these effects can be studied over the lifespan of the animal. In terms of insight into humans, reseach ould be useful for the development of new autism treatments. Although not directly about autism, the study suggests that oxytocin levels may be responsible for reacting to social cues, which is one of the deficits in people suffering from disorders on the autism spectrum ( Modi, Young 2012) .

explain the use of one research method in one study of the effect of genes on behaviour

Caspi 2003 - correlation

techniques used to study brain and behaviour ERQ

Intro : brain imaging technology is one method relevant to research in biological psychology as it enables researchers to examine the structure, function and activity in the brain and potentially deduct a relationship between biological factors and behaviour. Such methods include PET (positron emission tomography) and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging). - PET scans description - cant be used on everyone - children and pregnant women , therefore unable to measure relationship between biological factors and behaviour - Raine study 1997 - Pet scans positives + allowed raine to investigate + real life - forensics + allows to establish a biological correlate for behaviour - pet scans negatives - doesnt provide full explanation - only correlational - other possible influences - pet scans limited as they only explain fragment of complex behaviour when highlighting a link between biological factors and behaviour - MRI description + negatives - only show structural changes and need careful interpretation to prevent false positives - cautious = valid - not good for claustrophobia - limits effectiveness - maguire - evaluate mri - lacking ecological validity + essentially must remain lab bound - several minutes, slightest movement can affect validity conclusion : + brain imaging technologies can shed a light on phenomena that would otherwise remain a mystery + such as Raine and Pardini - both criticised for their inability to demonstarte causal relationships +provide insight - enabling researchers to establish with increasing certainty the relationship between the brains structure and function and subsequent behaviour

RM in reliability of cognitive processing

Lab experiments - loftus and palmer One research method used at the cognitive approach is experiments. Experiments are used to establish a cause and effect relationship between two or more variables. In an experiment, the research manipulates an independent variable and measures its effect on a dependent variable while all other variables are held constant. Participants are randomly allocated to conditions and the environment in which the study is done is controlled to make sure that extraneous variables do not have an effect on the results of the study. One example of an experiment is Loftus & Palmer's study on how leading questions may affect one's memory of an automobile crash. Participants watched a movie in which two cars hit one another. The participants were given a questionnaire with several questions about the accident, but only one question was actually important. One question asked the participants how fast the car was going when the accident occurred. For some participants, the question ended with "when the two cars smashed into each other." For other participants, the word smashed was replaced with bumped, hit, collided or contacted. The IV was the intensity of the verb in the leading question. The DV was the speed that the participants estimated. The researchers used an independent samples design, so the participants experienced only one condition. Otherwise, they would not have been able to carry out the experiment because the participants would have figured out the actual goal of the study. Therefore, deception is sometimes used in experiments to avoid the participants demonstrating demand characteristics, where they do what they think that the researcher wants them to do. As part of the experiment, when the task is completed, the researcher must debrief the participant and reveal any deception. The results of the experiment showed that the stronger the intensity of the verb, the higher the estimate of the speed of the car when the accident happened. As the data was quantitative, statistics could be calculated to see if the results were significant or due to chance. This showed that the wording of the question had a direct cause and effect relationship on the estimation of speed made by participants.

Hormones SAQ

McGaugh & Cahill 1995 One hormone that affects human behaviour is adrenaline. It is produced by the adrenal glands and plays an important role in what is called the "flight or fight response." When we are afraid, the brain signals the release of adrenaline, which then stimulates the sympathetic nervous system, resulting in increased blood flow to muscles, increased heart rate and increased breathing rate. This prepares an organism to either fight against a threat, or to run away from it. Since we often create strong memories of things that have frightened us, McGaugh & Cahill wanted to study the effect of adrenaline on the creation of emotional memories. They had participants watch a series of slides while listening to a story. In one group, the story was uninteresting. The second group heard a story that was very traumatic about a young boy who was in an accident and his feet were severed. After two weeks, the participants came back and were asked to answer a series of questions about the slides. Those that were in the more emotionally arousing condition remembered more than in the boring condition. To test the role of adrenaline, they repeated this procedure but gave the participants beta-blockers that interfere with the release of adrenaline. It was hypothesized that if adrenaline is blocked, then the amygdala would not be able to produce emotional memories. It appears that this was the case. The group that took beta-blockers remembered no more detail about the slides than the group that heard the boring story. It appears that by interacting with the amygdala, adrenaline plays a key role in the creation of emotional memories.

Research methods in brain and behaviour

The biological approach argues that human behaviour has physiological origins and that 'biology' should be taken into account when studying human beings. Psychologists use multiple research methods to investigate how environmental factors interact with biological systems in both animals and humans. Two research methods that are used in this approach are laboratory experiments and case studies. P1: lab experiment The purpose of using laboratory experiments in the biological approach is for the researchers to establish a causal relationship between two variables - the independent and the dependent variable. Experiments are based on hypothesis testing - that is, making a measurable and testable hypothesis and then seeing if the results of the study are statistically significant so that they can reject the null hypothesis. In addition, an experiment must contain at least one group that receives a treatment (the manipulation of an independent variable), and a control group does not receive the treatment. In a true experiment, participants are randomly allocated to conditions. Rogers & Kesner conducted a laboratory experiment with the aim to determine the role of a neurotransmitter acetylcholine in spatial memory formation; there are multiple acetylcholine receptors in the hippocampus that play a role in the consolidation of memory. Firstly, the researchers had mice run a simple maze to find food that was placed in one of the two corners. After having run the maze, but before memory could be consolidated, the mice were injected with one of two chemicals into their hippocampal region. The first group was injected with scopolamine, which blocks the acetylcholine receptors and thus inhibits the response. The second group was a control one, given a placebo injection of saline solution to make sure that getting an injection does not cause any change in memory. Thereafter, the two groups were placed again into the maze to see how long it would take them to find the food they had previously located. The results show that the scopolamine group took longer and made more mistakes in finding the food, whereas the control group learned faster and made fewer mistakes. -neurotransmitter acetylcholine may play an important role in the consolidation of spatial memory and retrieval. P2; eval labs + highly standardized procedure so the study can be replicated by other researchers, and the reliability of the results can be further tested. + try to control extraneous variables and randomly allocate participants to conditions, which increases the internal validity, allowing for a cause and effect relationship to be established. - low ecological validity due to the highly controlled environments, meaning that the results may not reflect behaviour under normal conditions. It is also not always clear to what extent the results of animal research may be applicable to human beings such as from rats to humans in the Rogers & Kesner study. Another research method in the biological approach is a case study. Case studies are comprehensive investigations of one individual with particular brain abnormality or damage; case studies provide situations that cannot be ethically reproduced by researchers in a laboratory under controlled conditions. They are also often carried out longitudinally to observe short-term and long-term effects, where the same variables are investigated in repeated and different types of observations over long periods of time. An independent variable is not manipulated in this type of research and hence, no causal relationship can be established. In addition, psychologists study the brain-damaged patient by using triangulation - for example, more than one method, researcher, and different sources of data. Milner carried out a classic case study on HM on the role of the hippocampus in memory formation; HM sustained a serious head injury when he fell off his bicycle at the age of 7, and beginning from three years after his accident, suffered from repeating epileptic seizures. With the approval of HM and his family, a tissue from the medial temporal lobe, including the hippocampus, was removed in an experimental surgery on both sides of his brain. Although HM remembered his childhood very well and his personality seemed relatively unchanged after the surgery, he had suffered from anterograde amnesia—not being able to transfer new information from short-term memory to long-term memory. Milner longitudinally studied HM through different methods such as psychometric testing, direct observations, interviews, MRI scans, and cognitive testing. The researchers have found that HM could not acquire new episodic memories [memories of autobiographical events] and semantic knowledge [general world knowledge], however, procedural memories were not impacted; they have concluded that hippocampal region plays a significant role in memory formation. One of the strengths of case studies is that they collect rich data. Case studies collect data over a long period of time, accounting for both short-term and long-term effects on the patient's behaviour; they also use a more holistic approach as opposed to experiments by looking at a range of behaviours, rather than measuring a single dependent variable. In addition, the use of method triangulation increases the validity of the results. Nevertheless, generalizability is one of the most critical limitations of this type of research method; case studies often study brain abnormality or damage that is unique to an individual and for that reason, the observed results cannot be generalized to the behaviour of all human beings. In addition, a causal relationship cannot be established as an independent variable is not manipulated in this type of research. Lastly, it might also be difficult for the researcher to acquire and verify information about the patient prior to his/her accident, that may otherwise be of some use when drawing conclusions. While laboratory experiments may be helpful for researchers to determine cause and effect relationships that can be tested for reliability through replication by other researchers, case studies may provide more unique and in-depth research into individual human behaviour that could not be otherwise ethically reproduced. All in all, despite some of the methods' weaknesses, psychologists generally attempt to use them together to investigate human beings in terms of the roots of physical processes and physiological origins.

Genetic similarities SAQ

When researchers study the potential genetic origins of behaviour, one of the places to staris by looking at familoes because families share similar DNA. Its often said tha t certain behaviours "run in families". Finding evidence of this is the first step of figuring out if a behaviour may be genetic. To do this, researchers use 2 different types of research: one is twin studies. One study of the role of genetics in depression is the study by Kendler of monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twins. Researchers study MZ twins because they have identical DNA, having come from a single fertilized egg (zygote). DZ twins are from two different fertilized eggs. They are born at the same time but their DNA is as different as any other set of siblings. Psychologists argue that if the concordance rate of MZ twins for a behaviour is significantly higher than the concordance rate for DZ twins, then there is a genetic component to the behaviour. Psychologists also know that although one may have a certain genetic makeup (genotype), not all of the genes that are inherited may be expressed. The idea of gene expression is that sometimes an individual may have a predisposition to a behaviour as a result of inheriting the gene from a parent, but until a stressor from the environment causes the gene to be expressed, the person will not show that behaviour. Hence, genes alone cannot cause a behaviour - but it is the interaction of genes and the environment that leads to behaviour. Kendler carried out a study of 42000 MZ and DZ twins to find out whether depression might be inherited. He predicted that the MZ twins would have a greater concordance rate for depression than DZ twins. The researchers found that the MZ had a concordance rate of 0.44, whereas the concordance rate for the DZ twins was only about 0.17. However, what was interesting to the researchers was that even though MZ twins shared the same genotype, their concordance rate was not 100%. The difference in concordance rates indicates that depression may be inherited. The study also supports the theory of gene expression. Even though the MZ twins had exactly the same genes, they had different life experiences and so would have a different epigenome - that is, different genes would be expressed. This could potentially explain why the concordance rate is not 100%.

Pheromones SAQ

Zhou et al 2014 A pheromone is a chemical substance produced and released into the environment by an animal affecting the behaviour of others of its own species. Most commonly, pheromones affect sexual and mating behaviours. Although psychologists have not found actual pheromones in humans, there is research showing that some chemicals under controlled conditions may lead humans to show behaviours similar to what we see in animals. One potential human pheromone is androstadienone - found in male semen and sweat. Zhou et al (2014) wanted to see if androstadienone influenced human sexual behaviour. To do this he carried out an experiment with a sample of heterosexual men and women and gays and lesbians. Participants watched stick figures walking on a screen and then were asked to guess the gender of the stick figure. While watching the screen, the participants were exposed to the smell of cloves. In the experimental condition, the cloves were mixed with androstadienone and in the control condition, only cloves were used. The findings showed that when heterosexual females and gay men were exposed to androstadienone, they had a higher rate of identifying the stick figures as "masculine" than the control group. In addition, Androstadienone had no significant effect on men or lesbian women. The researchers concluded that Androstadienone could be a pheromone which influences mating behaviour in humans.

ethics: cultural influences on attitudes, identity and behaviours

deception - fagot deceiving participants. This is a serious ethical consideration. The sociocultural approach studies group behaviour. In order to make this as natural as possible, often people are observed "in the field." In order to do this without having them change their behaviour, deception may be used. Deception carries ethical concerns due to the fact that the people in the study are not aware of what is really going on; they are being tricked. They will feel that their trust was violated and they may experience extreme stress as a result. In spite of the deception, covert observations are highly effective in achieving obtaining data with high ecological validity and low demand characteristics. Furthermore, such as in this case with the cult, sometimes it is very difficult to obtain consent to observe a certain group or situation openly, so deception may be used to study the behaviour. The question is - to what extent is this research necessary? Is the harm caused by the deception worth the value of the findings? In the case of Festinger's classic study, this is rather debatable.

Ethics in cognitive processing

informed consent - shallice and warrington on KF - A Shallice and Warrington (1974) case study reported that brain-damaged patient KF could recall verbal but not visual information immediately after its presentation, which supports the WMM's claim that separate short-term stores manage short-term phonological and visual memories.Warrington and Shallice (1970) carried out a series of tests on patient KF, who had suffered brain damage as a result of a motorcycle accident. KF's LTM was in tact, but he showed impairment of his short-term memory.KF's impairment was mainly for verbal information - his memory for visual information was largely unaffected. This supports Baddeley's theory that there are separate STM components for visual information and verbal information (the phonological loop).

qualitative research methods

interviews observations surveys case studies

emotion on cognition thinking and decision making

- DM is one cognitive process affected by emotion - Ration S2 thinking is important in some DM, it carries a heavy cognitive load, and reliance on emotion (involved in S1 heur thinking) is a quicker and easier and occasionally more efficient way to act under conditions of uncertainty. So much of our DM is based on our memory of past experiences, so its unsurprising that its affected by emotion - Many studies have focused on the ability of emotion to overcome rationality and logic to persuade a person to act against their own self-interest. o An emotional decision is often a biased decision that is irration, especially if made under pressure, which encourages heur - Denes-raj and Epstein 1994 o Conflict btwn emotional-intuitive and rational DM o Ppts took oart in a game of chance with option of drawing from one of two platters Small platter 9W and 1R Large platter 100 beans with 5-9R Platters clearly labelled with percentage of R o Rational decision was to ick from small platter to wi 1 $ for picking R o However in 5 trials, 82% made one or more faulty deciisons, and 8% in all o They felt that they had a higher chance when picking from more attractive platter with more red beans o Using sweets and money (both desirable) increased emotional load of decios, and this emotion resulted in heur, and faulty DM

Pheromones ERQ

- define pheromone - mcclintock - pheromones and menstrual cycle - no physiological data - two potential pheromones : androstadienone (male semen and sweat) and estratetranol (female urine) - Zhou - stick figures - Limitations of Zhou - 1. First, the participants were exposed to very high levels of the pheromones; it is unclear that this response would happen in a naturalistic setting. 2. Secondly, although they identified the figure as masculine or feminine, this is not a clear study of sexual odour but rather if participants perceived a person's walk as feminine or masculine. It can be debated whether this is a reliable measure of sexual behaviour. 3. Finally, the study is done on a relatively small sample. The study would need to be replicated on a much larger sample in order to determine whether the results are reliable. - more promising study - doucet et al (2009) - A more promising study was carried out by Doucet et al (2009) on the role of secretion of the areolar glands in suckling behaviour in 3-day-old infants The areolar glands are located near the nipple. The researchers administered the different secretions to the infants nasally and then measured their behaviour and breathing rate. The researchers compared the infants' reaction to seven different stimuli - including, secretions of areolar glands, human milk, cow milk, formula milk, and vanilla. They found that the infants began sucking only when exposed to the secretions of the areoloar glands. In addition, there was a significant increase in their breathing rate. The researchers argue that this stimulus of the aerolar odor may initiate a chain of behavioural and physiological events that lead to the progressive establishment of attachment between the mother and the infant. However, more research is necessary to definitively draw these conclusions. This is relevant because the study provides evidence for pheromones playing a role in attachment between mother and infant. - evaluation There are several problems with the pheromone argument in general. Firstly, the human sense of smell is very complex. Richard Axel and Linda Buck shared the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2004 for their discoveries of odour receptors and how the olfactory system is organized. They found that we have about 400 different kinds of odour receptors - and each of the 400 receptors has genetic variations. This makes it very difficult to see how pheromones would work in humans. Another problem is that many body odours are actually not caused by secretions, but by bacteria that mix with our secretions For example, in the armpits However, about 20% of the population does not have this bacteria and thus does not create the same scent. This makes a universal finding of pheromones a bit less likely.

Culture and its influence on cognition

- flashbulb memory is considered to be a highly detailed and exceptionally vivid 'snapshot' of the moment and circumstances in which emotionally arousing news was heard. - Kulkofsky et al (2011)

HM

27 years old and suffered severe epilepsy. cut out hippocampus. episodic and semantic memory damaged. couldn't remember anything after operation. could still learn procedural things like star task

Stereotypes on behaviour

A stereotype is when you have a schema about a group and you apply the characteristics associated with that schema to a single member of that group. One theory of stereotyping is called Stereotype Threat. Stereotypes can have a negative effect on members of the group to which the stereotype is applied, even if the members of the group do not believe the stereotype. Stereotype threat is a theory that says that when a person is made aware of a stereotype about his group, it can have a negative effect on his performance. According to Steele and Aronson, this is because the stereotype threat increases "spotlight anxiety" or the feeling that you are being judged. This anxiety then harms performance. Steele and Aronson (1995) carried out an experiment to see if stereotype threat would affect the performance of African Americans on a test of verbal abilities. All of the students in the sample were from Stanford University, so it can be assumed that they were of similar verbal ability. In one condition the group was told that the test was a test of their verbal abilities. In the second test, they were not told this. When the group was told it was a measure of their verbal abilities, the African Americans scored lower than the white Americans. When they were not told it was a test of their verbal abilities, African American students performed as well as the white Americans. In a final version of the experiment, they had a third group indicate their race on the test before beginning. In this case, the African Americans did worse than the white Americans. Stereotypes about the academic ability of African Americans led to spotlight anxiety which meant that they performed worse on the test. This shows that stereotypes can have a negative effect on performance even if the individual does not believe in the stereotype himself. This effect is strongest when the person is made aware of his group membership or of the stereotype.

acculturation

Acculturation is the cultural and psychological change that takes place as a result of contact between two or more cultural groups. When moving to another culture, individuals make choices, both consciously and unconsciously, to what extent they will maintain their own culture versus adopting the culture of their new home country. Berry argued that there are different acculturation strategies. One is assimilation - when a person adopts the cultural behaviours and values of the new culture. If they do this while maintaining their original culture as well, this is called integration. If a person fails to integrate into their new culture and maintains their own culture, this is a form of isolation in society. If the person fails to integrate into the new culture and also loses contact with their home culture, they can experience what Berry called marginalization. Psychologists recognize that the process of acculturation can be stressful for people. This is referred to as acculturative stress - the psychological, physiological, and social difficulties of acculturation, often resulting in anxiety or depression. The result is a decrease in one's mental health. This is often experienced by immigrants when they move to a new country and they try to balance the culture in which they were enculturated and the new culture into which they are trying to acculturate. Miranda and Matheny (2000) carried out a study to see which factors most affect acculturative stress in Latino immigrants in the USA. They used a sample of 200 immigrants and had them complete a questionnaire to test their level of acculturative stress and several factors that might influence it. The study found that immigrants with effective coping strategies, good proficiency in English and a strong family structure were less likely to experience acculturative stress. The study shows that there are many protective factors that influence the extent to which a person acculturates effectively. This would then have a positive effect on their mental health.

culture on cognition

An example of the role of culture on cognition is a study by Kulkofsky et al (2011). The researchers studied five countries - China, Germany, Turkey, the UK and the USA - to see if there was any difference in the rate of flashbulb memories in collectivistic and individualistic cultures. There were 274 adults from the five different countries. Participants were given five minutes to recall as many memories as they could of public events in their lifetime. They were then given a memory question which was similar to the one used by Brown & Kulik (1977). These questions included where they had learned of the event, what time of day it was and what they were doing when they heard about it. They were then asked questions about the importance of the event - including how personally important it was, how surprised they were and how often they had spoken about it since it happened. All questionnaires were provided in the native language of the participants. The researchers found that in a collectivistic culture like China, personal importance and intensity of emotion played less of a role in predicting flashbulb memories, compared with more individualistic cultures that place greater emphasis on an individual's personal involvement and emotional experiences. Because focusing on the individual's own experiences is often de-emphasized in the Chinese context, there would be less rehearsal of the triggering event compared with participants from other cultures - and thus a lower chance of developing a flashbulb memory. However, it was found that if the event was of national importance, then there was no significant difference in the creation of flashbulb memories.

Research methods: brain and behaviour SAQ

Case study - HM by Milner One research method used to investigate the relationship between brain and behaviour is the case study method. A case study is an indepth investigation of an event, an institution, a social group or an individual. Characteristics of case studies are that they are often longitudinal, comparing the situation of the person or group over a period of time. They also often use triangulation of methods, or researchers and of data. Common methods used for investigating individuals are interviews, brain scans and observations. These generate different types of data: the brain scans will generate quantitative data about changes in the brain; interviews and observations can generate both qualitative data, but also, if the interviews and observations are structured, quantitative data. By using triangulation of researchers as well, then inter‐researcher agreement can lead to greater reliability of the case study. While, because of their uniqueness, the results cannot always be generalised, they can often be used to generate theory that can then be tested by alternative methods. The case study conducted into the behaviour of Henry Molaison (Scoville and Milner 1957; Corkin, 1997) was a very long case study into an individual's amnesia. It lasted 55 years, from his original surgery in 1953 until his death in 2008. It had many characteristics of a case study: triangulation of methods and data - cognitive interviews, MRI scans and observations; triangulation of researchers - the psychologists Brenda Milner and Suzanne Corkin and their students; a longitudinal approach - data was collected over a long period of time. In this case study, theory was generated regarding the relationship between episodic memory and the medial temporal lobe region of the brain, including the hippocampus and amygdala. Therefore the case study method is effective in demonstrating a relationship between the brain and behaviour.

Genetic Inheritance SAQ

Caspi (2003) As a result of the Human Genome Project, psychologists have moved beyond simple twin studies and now can look at the role of a specific gene in a behaviour. Often look at how different genetic mutations may play a role in a behaviour. Caspi et al (2003) examined the role of the 5-HTT gene in depression, a gene known as a "serotonin transporter" gene, it regulates the level of serotonin in the synapse. Psychologists believe that serotonin plays a role in mood and therefore plays a role in human depression. The long allele is the "normal" allele; the short allele is the mutation. Caspi wanted to test if people who inherit two short versions of the 5-HTT gene are more likely to develop major depression after a stressful life event than people with two long alleles. Caspi used a sample of over 800 New Zealand 26-year-olds. The study was a prospective, longitudinal study. Participants were divided into three groups: Group 1 had two short alleles; Group 2 had one short and one long allele; Group 3 had two long alleles. The participants were asked to fill in a "Stressful life events" questionnaire. They were also assessed for depression. People who had the two short versions of the allele and had three or more stressful life events were the most likely to have depression. Simply inheriting the gene was not enough to lead to depression, but the genes' interaction with stressful life events increased one's likelihood of developing depression. It appears that by inheriting the mutation of the 5 HTT serotonin transporter gene, one is more vulnerable to the disorder.

cultural dimensions

Cultural dimensions are the differences in values or beliefs between cultures. These are reflective of a society's culture, showing what it is they view as the most important. One such cultural dimension is a culture's tendency towards individualism vs collectivism. As the name suggests, collectivistic cultures are focused more on group success and interdependence within a community. There is less need for privacy and less importance is placed on individual freedom. This is in contrast to individualistic cultures which focus on personal success, freedom, independence and privacy. The theory of cultural dimensions is that these cultural values impact behaviour. One study showing the impact of cultural dimensions on memory was done by Kulkoffsky et al in their study of flashbulb memory. The researchers wanted to see if there was a difference between flashbulb memories in collectivistic and individualistic cultures. To carry out the study, Kulkoffsky gave a flashbulb memory questionnaire, based on the original questionnaire used by Brown & Kulik, to people from individualistic cultures like the US and collectivistic cultures like China. The participants were asked to recall a personal event - like the death of a family member - and a national event - like 9-11. The researchers found that there were fewer examples of flashbulb memories in collectivistic cultures for personal events. In collectivistic cultures, there is less importance given to personal experience and the display of personal emotional responses is frowned on. This means that they spend less time talking to others about their personal experiences and therefore do not carry out the rehearsal that is important for the development of such vivid memories. On the other hand, events of national importance appeared to be equally important in the creation of flashbulb memories across cultures. This study supports the idea that our culture can impact our behaviour and cognition.

culture on behaviour

Cultural dimensions are the differences in values or beliefs between cultures. These are reflective of a society's culture, showing what it is they view as the most important. One such cultural dimension is a culture's tendency towards individualism vs collectivism. As the name suggests, collectivistic cultures are focused more on group success and interdependence within a community. There is less need for privacy and less importance is placed on individual freedom. This is in contrast to individualistic cultures which focus on personal success, freedom, independence and privacy. The theory of cultural dimensions is that these cultural values impact behaviour. One study showing the impact of cultural dimensions on memory was done by Kulkoffsky et al in their study of flashbulb memory. The researchers wanted to see if there was a difference between flashbulb memories in collectivistic and individualistic cultures. To carry out the study, Kulkoffsky gave a flashbulb memory questionnaire, based on the original questionnaire used by Brown & Kulik, to people from individualistic cultures like the US and collectivistic cultures like China. The participants were asked to recall a personal event - like the death of a family member - and a national event - like 9-11. The researchers found that there were fewer examples of flashbulb memories in collectivistic cultures for personal events. In collectivistic cultures, there is less importance given to personal experience and the display of personal emotional responses is frowned on. This means that they spend less time talking to others about their personal experiences and therefore do not carry out the rehearsal that is important for the development of such vivid memories. On the other hand, events of national importance appeared to be equally important in the creation of flashbulb memories across cultures. This study supports the idea that our culture can impact our behaviour and cognition.

Ethics: Brain and Behaviour SAQ

HM by Milner One ethical consideration in the biological approach is informed consent. Informed consent means that before someone agrees to participate in a study, the researcher must explain the purpose and procedure of the study. In addition, the researcher must explain the person's rights - including the right to withdraw and that all data will be kept anonymous. Any potential negative effects of participation must be explained. The biological approach has some special problems with regard to informed consent. First, the biological approach uses animals which cannot actually give consent. In addition, biological researchers often do studies of people who have mental illness or brain damage. It could be argued that these participants may not be able to understand what they are agreeing to. Finally, often biological research is rather complex and may not be understood by the average person, making "informed consent" difficult. One study that raises questions about informed consent is the study of HM by Milner. HM had severe amnesia as a result of an operation which was done to stop epileptic seizures. HM had both retrograde amnesia (he couldn't remember what happened before the operation) and he had anterograde amnesia (he couldn't create new memories). Milner carried out a case study and found that the hippocampus plays a key role in the transfer of episodic and semantic memories from short-term to long-term memory. As HM could not remember giving consent, this study is ethically problematic. HM was asked to give consent throughout the experiment, but it is not clear that he really understood what was happening or who Milner actually was. Originally consent was given by HM's mother and then later by his caretakers. However, there is a concern that HM may not have been able to take advantage of his right to withdraw either because he did not understand or he forgot. Informed consent is important so that researchers do not take advantage of participants. Many of the types of participants used in biological research make obtaining informed consent difficult.

enculturation

Enculturation is when we learn the shared behaviours and values of our culture. We learn cultural norms through our parents, school, or the media. One way in which we learn these "rules" of behaviour is through direct instruction - that is, rewards and punishments from our parents or other "gatekeepers" in our society. One major form of enculturation is the formation of our gender identity within a culture. One study into enculturation is Fagot (1978). This study looked at how parents directly influence gender identity, which is although dependent on biological sex, is shaped by cultural norms. The aim of this study was to observe parental reactions to behaviour that wasn't deemed appropriate for the child's gender, at least according to American culture at the time. Fagot carried out naturalistic observations among 24 families, 12 families with boys and 12 with girls. They found that parents acted more favourably towards their child when they acted according to their gender norms and expectations. Boys were encouraged to play with toys that build strength while girls were encouraged to play with dolls or dress up. This study demonstrates enculturation as it shows parents directly teaching and instructing children about what is and isn't appropriate behaviour according to their culture's gender norms. Parents were reinforcing culturally appropriate behaviours by influencing such things as choice of toys or ways of playing for their children. Parents further supported these norms by encouraging boys to be independent and active while girls were encouraged to be dependent and passive. These types of experiences and direct instruction shape our ways of thinking, or schemas as well as our personal identity. Parents have a direct influence on our adoption of culturally appropriate behaviour and identity and therefore play an important role in enculturation as seen in Fagot's study.

Value of animal models: PHEROMONES AND HORMONES

Ferguson and Modi, Young 2012 F: investigated the role of oxytocin ins social memory by studying oxytocin gene knockout mice models. As a knockout study it provides a very direct test to the role of oxytocin in behaviour. In humans, we can only temporarily increase the level of oxytocin, so research is limited to ST effects. With animal models these effects can be studied over the lifespan of the animal. In terms of insight into humans, reseach ould be useful for the development of new autism treatments. Although not directly about autism, the study suggests that oxytocin levels may be responsible for reacting to social cues, which is one of the deficits in people suffering from disorders on the autism spectrum ( Modi, Young 2012) Romero investigated the role of oxytocin in promoting social bonds in mammals in non-reproductive contexts. Dogs were placed in a room with their owner and another dog. Dogs sprayed with oxytocin showed higher affiliation toward their owner. This has been replicated in humans to suggest that oxytocin specifically is linked to interpersonal trust (Kosfeld 2005). However in human subjects the effects are subtle becasue human behaviour is also affected by social norms (which in this context functions as confounding variables)

explain the use of one research method in one study using the biological approach to understanding human behaviour/ explain the use of one research method in one study of the brain and behaviour

HM - case study One research method used to investigate the relationship between brain and behaviour is the case study method. A case study is an in depth investigation of an event, an institution, a social group or an individual. Characteristics of case studies are that they are often longitudinal, comparing the situation of the person or group over a period of time. They also often use triangulation of methods, or researchers and of data. Common methods used for investigating individuals are interviews, brain scans and observations. These generate different types of data: the brain scans will generate quantitative data about changes in the brain; interviews and observations can generate both qualitative data, but also, if the interviews and observations are structured, quantitative data. By using triangulation of researchers as well, then inter‐researcher agreement can lead to greater reliability of the case study. While, because of their uniqueness, the results cannot always be generalised, they can often be used to generate theory that can then be tested by alternative methods. The case study conducted into the behaviour of Henry Molaison (Scoville and Milner 1957; Corkin, 1997) was a very long case study into an individual's amnesia. It lasted 55 years, from his original surgery in 1953 until his death in 2008. It had many characteristics of a case study: triangulation of methods and data - cognitive interviews, MRI scans and observations; triangulation of researchers - the psychologists Brenda Milner and Suzanne Corkin and their students; a longitudinal approach - data was collected over a long period of time. In this case study, theory was generated regarding the relationship between episodic memory and the medial temporal lobe region of the brain, including the hippocampus and amygdala. Therefore the case study method is effective in demonstrating a relationship between the brain and behaviour.

ethics brain and behaviour

HM - informed consent One ethical consideration in the biological approach is informed consent. Informed consent means that before someone agrees to participate in a study, the researcher must explain the purpose and procedure of the study. In addition, the researcher must explain the person's rights - including the right to withdraw and that all data will be kept anonymous. Any potential negative effects of participation must be explained. The biological approach has some special problems with regard to informed consent. First, the biological approach uses animals which cannot actually give consent. In addition, biological researchers often do studies of people who have mental illness or brain damage. It could be argued that these participants may not be able to understand what they are agreeing to. Finally, often biological research is rather complex and may not be understood by the average person, making "informed consent" difficult. One study that raises questions about informed consent is the study of HM by Milner. HM had severe amnesia as a result of an operation which was done to stop epileptic seizures. HM had both retrograde amnesia (he couldn't remember what happened before the operation) and he had anterograde amnesia (he couldn't create new memories). Milner carried out a case study and found that the hippocampus plays a key role in the transfer of episodic and semantic memories from short-term to long-term memory. As HM could not remember giving consent, this study is ethically problematic. HM was asked to give consent throughout the experiment, but it is not clear that he really understood what was happening or who Milner actually was. Originally consent was given by HM's mother and then later by his caretakers. However, there is a concern that HM may not have been able to take advantage of his right to withdraw either because he did not understand or he forgot. Informed consent is important so that researchers do not take advantage of participants. Many of the types of participants used in biological research make obtaining informed consent difficult.

localization SAQ

Maguire (2000) Intro: - Define theory of localization o The theory of localization stems from the idea that a particular part of the brain is associated with a particular function or behaviour, such as the frontal lobe being responsible for reasoning. - Linking sentence o Another example of localization of function is the role of the hippocampus in association with spatial memory as a behaviour, as seen in the Maguire et al study. Paragraph 1 - Aim o to decipher the role of the posterior hippocampus with regards to spatial memory in London Taxi drivers. Taxi drivers undergo extensive training, known as 'The Knowledge' and therefore make an ideal group for the study of spatial navigation. Paragraph 2 - Procedure o Structural MRI scans were obtained of 16 right-handed male London taxi drivers who have all been driving for more than 1.5 years. Scans of 50 healthy right-handed males who had no taxi driving experience were included for comparison. The mean age between the two groups was the same. Paragraph 3 - Results o The MRI scans showed increased grey matter (contains most of the brain's neuronal cell body) in the posterior hippocampi in the brains of the London taxi drivers compared to the control group. Paragraph 4 - Implications (so what?) o The taxi drivers, who made use of their spatial memory more frequently than the control group, had a larger posterior hippocampal volume, which gives the indication that the posterior hippocampus is associated with spatial memory. Thus, supporting the theory of localization of function as it indicates a specific part of the brain being associated with a particular function. o Through this study, support for the theory of localization is evident.

Explain one technique used to study the brain in relation to behaviour

Maguire (2000) Intro : Outline MRI scans and how they work - One technique used to study the brain is the MRI. Its purpose is to produce a high resolution three-dimensional image of brain structure. MRI is based on the principle that some atomic nuclei - in particular those of hydrogen atoms - can emit energy when placed in an external magnetic field. When these pulses of energy are detected by the scanner, the relative distribution of hydrogen atoms in the brain can be mapped. Hydrogen atoms exist naturally in the body, but their concentration in different types of tissue is different. The highest concentration of hydrogen atoms is found in water and fat. Analyzing the pattern of emission of energy in response to magnetic fields, allows us to see inside the brain. After excitation by the magnetic field each tissue returns to its equilibrium state - and the time required to do so differs in different types of tissue. This is what is analyzed in an MRI scan P1 : Describe one study that uses MRI - One study that used an MRI to study the brain was done by Maguire (2001). - Aim o to decipher the role of the posterior hippocampus with regards to spatial memory in London Taxi drivers. Taxi drivers undergo extensive training, known as 'The Knowledge' and therefore make an ideal group for the study of spatial navigation. - Procedure o Structural MRI scans were obtained of 16 right-handed male London taxi drivers who have all been driving for more than 1.5 years. Scans of 50 healthy right-handed males who had no taxi driving experience were included for comparison. The mean age between the two groups was the same. - Results o The MRI scans showed increased grey matter (contains most of the brain's neuronal cell body) in the posterior hippocampi in the brains of the London taxi drivers compared to the control group. P2: Explain why the technique was used in the study. - The MRI allowed for Maguire to study the volume of grey matter in the hippocampus in order to deduce if there would be a relationship between the volume of the hippocampus and spatial memory.

Neuroplasticity SAQ

Maguire 2000 Intro : define neuroplasticity Brain plasticity refers to the brain's ability to change and adapt because of experience. Research has demonstrated that the brain continues to create new neural pathways and alter existing ones in response to changing experiences Background information: According to Maguire, the role of the hippocampus is to facilitate spatial memory, in the form of navigation. From previous studies (pre-Maguire) it was impossible to know whether differences in brain anatomy are predetermined, or whether the brain is susceptible to plastic changes, in response to environmental stimulation - in this case driving a taxi. Taxi drivers undergo extensive training, known as 'The Knowledge' and therefore make an ideal group for the study of spatial navigation. Aim: To examine whether structural changes could be detected in the brain of people with extensive experience of spatial navigation. Method: Structural MRI scans were obtained. 16 right-handed male London taxi drivers participated; all had been driving for more than 1.5 years. Scans of 50 healthy right-handed males who did not drive taxis were included for comparison. The mean age did not differ between the two groups. Results: 1) Increased grey matter was found in the brains of taxi drivers compared with controls in two brain regions, the right and left hippocampi. The increased volume was found in the posterior (rear) hippocampus. 2) Changes with navigation experience - A correlation was found between the amount of time spent as a taxi driver and volume in the right posterior hippocampus. Conclusion: The results provide evidence for structural differences between the hippocampi of London taxi drivers and control participants, therefore suggesting that extensive practice with spatial navigation affects the hippocampus.

Research methods: Hormones and pheromones

McGaugh and Cahill 1995 - laboratory experimentPsychologists in the biological approach often use experiments to establish cause-and-effect relationships. An experiment allows researchers to manipulate an independent variable and measure its effect on a dependent variable while keeping other variables constant. In addition, participants are randomly allocated to conditions. Finally, in biological research, a placebo is often given as a way of preventing demand characteristics. A placebo is when participants believe that they are getting a treatment, but they are not. An example of this was a study by Newcomer who wanted to see the effect of stress on verbal declarative memory. When we are stressed we secrete a hormone called cortisol. Newcomer's hypothesis was that high levels of cortisol would prevent memory formation. To test the hypothesis, participants were randomly allocated to one of three conditions: a low dose of cortisol, a high dose of cortisol or a placebo - a pill that they thought was cortisol but was not. The experiment took place over 10 days with four different measures of the participants' ability to immediately recall a piece of prose that was read to them. The experiment was a double-blind study- the participants did not know which group they were in and the researcher also did not know which participants had been assigned to each group. The results showed that the group that received the high does of cortisol had the lowest recall of details from the prose passage. From the manipulation of the IV, the researchers may conclude that it was the level of cortisol that actually affected their ability to form verbal declarative memories.

Ethics in reliability of cognitive processing

One ethical consideration is the use of deception. Deception is when a participant is not made fully aware of the purpose of a study or is intentionally misinformed. Deception is often used by researchers to hide the true aim of an experiment. Often if the participants knew the aim of the experiment they would demonstrate demand characteristics - either trying to give the researchers what they wanted or trying to behave in a way that made them look their best, something known as social desirability effect. Deception is problematic because it undermines the concept of "informed consent." It violates the trust between a researcher and a participant. In addition, it increases the chance that a participant will withdraw his/her data after the experiment. Therefore, debriefing is an important part of any experiment with deception. It is important that the deception is justified and that the participant is allowed to withdraw data. In addition, debriefing is a chance for the researcher to make sure that there was no harm done as a result of the deception. A classic study that used deception was Loftus & Pickrel's Lost in the Mall study. The aim of the study was to see if participants would "create memories" of a biographical event that never happened to them. Participants were given four short stories describing childhood events, all supposedly provided by family members, and asked them to try to recall them. Relatives had provided the stories. One of the stories, describing a time when the participant was lost in a mall when he/she as a child, was false. In the study, 25% of the participants said that they remembered this event even though it never actually occurred. They often described the event in great detail. Loftus concluded that being asked to recall something that didn't happen, but that they thought their parents said happened, can lead to the creation of false memories. Upon revealing the deception, participants may have felt like they looked foolish. However, Loftus could not do a study on false memory by first revealing the actual aim of the study. Although the deception was justified, the experiment is still problematic from an ethical standpoint.

Models of memory

One model of memory is the "Multi-Store Model." This model was the first to separate memory into sensory, short-term and long-term memory. The model argues that we are bombarded with sensory stimuli. When we pay attention to the stimuli they pass through sensory memory and into short-term memory. There the information is held until either other information displaces it or, if we rehearse it, it is moved to long-term memory. When we remember something, we are moving that information from long-term memory back into short-term memory so that it can be used. This simple model was supported by a study by Glanzer and Cunitz. The researchers read a list of 15 words to participants and asked them to recall the words in any order. Before they did this, the researchers randomly allocated participants to one of three conditions. The words were read one at a time and then the participants were either asked to recall the words immediately after the list was finished, with a 10-second delay or with a 30-second delay. During the delays, the participants were asked to count backwards from 100. When there was no delay, they found that participants remembered the first few words and the last few words on the list. This indicates that the words earlier on the list were most likely rehearsed and moved into LTM - what is known as primacy effect. The words at the end of the list were still in STM - what is known as recency effect. However, when they were asked to count backwards, they only remembered the first few words on the list. This shows that through rehearsal some of the words had been placed in LTM, but counting backwards had displaced the information in STM. This study is evidence that the Multi-store model is correct - and that long-term and short-term memories may be stored in different places and that information in STM may be displaced.

Emotion on cognition memory

One theory about how emotion may affect one cognitive process is Flashbulb Memory Theory by Brown & Kulik (1977). Brown & Kulik believed that strong emotional experiences led to memories that are detailed, accurate, vivid, and resistant to forgetting. They argued that there were two key components to the creation of a flashbulb memory. First, there is the element of surprise. The researchers proposed the "special mechanism" hypothesis that suggested that there were biological factors that led to the creation of these memories, although they did not know what those mechanisms were. Secondly, the researchers argued that the event had to have "personal meaning" for the person. If there was the combination of a strong emotional response based on surprise and personal meaning, then the result is a flashbulb memory. Researchers now know that when adrenaline reaches the brain it activates the amygdala in the limbic system to send a message that something important or dangerous has happened. The amygdala plays a key role in creating emotional memories. McGaugh & Cahill (1995) did an experiment to study the role of emotional arousal on memory. The participants were divided into two groups. Each group saw 12 slides and heard a different story. In the first condition, the participant heard a boring story about a woman and her son who paid a visit to the son's father in a hospital where they watched the staff in a disaster preparation drill. In the second condition, the participant heard a story where the boy was involved in a car accident where his feet were severed. He was quickly brought to the hospital where the surgeons reattached the injured limbs. Then he stayed in the hospital for a few weeks and then went home with his mother. A third group heard the same story as the second group, but they were given beta-blockers. Beta-blockers block the receptor sites for adrenaline in the amygdala. Two weeks later the participants were asked to come back and have their memory tested. Two weeks later the participants were asked to come back and have their memory tested. The researchers found that the participants who had heard the more emotional story had a better recall of specific details of the story. They could also recall more details from the slides. However, if they heard the emotional story and had received beta-blockers, they had no better recall than the first group that did not hear the emotional story. This may be evidence to support Brown & Kulik's original theory of the "special mechanism". It appears that emotion may have an effect on the accuracy of one's memories.

Thinking and Decision Making

One theory of thinking and decision-making is the Dual Processing Model. In this model of thinking, people use two types of thinking to handle information and complex tasks - system 1 and system 2 thinking. In system 1 thinking, the thinking process is fast, automatic and based on previous experience. As we practice something, it moves from requiring system 2 thinking to system 1 thinking. For example, this would be how one ties a shoe after repeated practice; the process has become automatic. System 2 thinking is slower, more deliberate and effortful, but also less prone to mistakes. We tend to use this system in unfamiliar situations when our system 1 thinking is not working. However, we prefer to use system 1 thinking as we are cognitive misers. System 1 thinking uses mental shortcuts called heuristics - such as anchoring bias - where we fail to think logically about a decision using System 2 thinking and base our decisions on information that is immediately available to us. One study done on the Dual Processing Model was done by Wason. He asked participants to carry out a logical puzzle involving four cards. This puzzle was abstract, but if thought through correctly, could be relatively easy to solve. He found participants repeatedly chose the wrong answers and afterwards could not explain why they chose the cards that they did. This suggests that they used their automatic system 1 thinking as opposed to the logic based system 2 thinking. A follow-up study by a different researcher later found that with the same card task, if the task was not abstract, people were less prone to making mistakes. It appears that our system 1 thinking is less prone to errors in concrete situations. This study by Wason supports the Dual Processing Model as participants jumped to an incorrect decision without being able to explain their thinking process.

Ethical considerations in hormones and pheromones

Psychological research is regulated by ethical principles and procedures that need to be followed in all aspects of the research. These ethical principles are developed by national and international psychological organisations. In the study of health psychology, ethical considerations, such as maintaining confidentiality or providing the right to withdraw, need to be made in order to minimise the ethical implications such as psychological harm. Very often, ethical decisions rely on a cost-benefit analysis to assess how severe the ethical implications are in relation to the validity of the research. While research may cause discomfort in participants of the study initially, the finding of this research may benefit the participants themselves as well as the general public. Ethical guidelines to protect participants in psychological research are laid out by national organizations, such as the American Psychological Association and the British Psychological Society. These guidelines require that all psychological research is passed by an ethics committee to ensure that it does no psychological nor physical harm. Obtaining informed consent is an ethical consideration of many studies into the study of brain and behaviour. Informed consent means that before participants agree to participate in a study, the researcher must explan the purpose and procedure of the study. Additionally, the researcher must explain the participants' rights - including the right to withdraw and that all data will maintain anonymity. Any potential negative effects of participation must be fully explained. The biological approach has some special problems with regard to informed consent. Study of hormones and pheromones - injections --- e.g mcgaugh and cahill injected scopolamine etc.., need to obtain informed consent Informed consent is important so that researchers don't take advantage of participants. However, because much research into brain behaviour looks into brain damage, this make obtaining informed consent difficult. Additionally, obtaining informed consent may result in demand characteristics, which would invalidate the research. This can be overcome through debriefing. However, in many cases in the bioligical approach, such as HM, the participants suffer from brain damage and are unlikely to exhibit demand characteristics, therefore informed consetn should be obtained. However this may also be difficult as the ppts may not understand. This can be overcome using presumptive consent - HMs mum. Research into brain and behaviour should be ethical in terms of confidentiality and anonymity in order to minimise the consequences of labelling individuals and reduce psychological harm. Maintaining anonymity is crucial when researching health problems as the data is socially sensitive and if the individual can be identified by the public, this can lead to discrimination and therefore psychological harm. An issue with this labelling of individuals is that it can lead to discrimination. The findings of the study by ehrenkranz (1997) suggest a biological correlation between aggression and testosteron. This labelling can cause psychological harm because it suggests that it is their own cognitive process that is causing the addictive behaviours. However, when conducting a cost-benefit analysis, it becomes clear that this labelling is for the greater good because if the research was valid then the findings can be generalised, allowing for greater intervention through education programmes to reduce behaviours that may lead to violence. Therefore, while research into brain and behaviour is likely to result in psychological harm, the ends justify the means if appropriate intervention techniques are implemented for both the participants in the study and the population to which the findings apply. Additionally, labelling can be self-fulfilling, causing an individual to believe that their behaviur is out of their control and therefore labelling individuals in the study of brain and behaviour can be deterministic. However, this labelling is important as it allows for medical intervention because the individuals with the biological predispositions can be identified. This means that upon a cost-benefit analysis, confidentiality may be breached because if the researcher holds possession over the participants' data but doesn't share it, then the participant can be helped by the researcher without discrimination by society. Raine can ensure that anonymity and confidentiality are maintained through careful reporting of the results after the research has been conducted as well as reflexivity. This research demonstrates the importance of a cost-benefit analysis when making ethical considerations in research concerning the brain and.behaviour; as it was concluded that confidentiality may be breached however anonymity needs to be maintained, ensuring that the research is deemed ethical in terms of the socially sensitive data it is reporting. Consequently, research into the brain and behaviour is alike in that the aim is to minimise ethical implications. This ethical implication is most likely psychological harm, so the ethical considerations made are complementary to minimise this implication. Wherever ethical guidelines have been breached, it is as a result of the ends justifying the means. Nevertheless, every ethical decision made needs to be after a cost-benefit analysis has been conducted.

Reconstructive memory

Psychologists argue that episodic memory is not just a photographic snapshot in the brain, but instead it is reconstructed. Schema theory says that memory is based on schema. When we encode and retrieve episodic memories, we are influenced by our perceptions, past knowledge and personal beliefs. However, some argue that there is a different type of memory, called flashbulb memory. This memory is the result so of powerful emotions, so some argue that it is not reconstructed, but vivid, accurate and not open to distortion in the way that normal memories are. Although we may feel as if we retrieve memories intact from our long-term memory store, there is a lot of evidence that memory is an active process of reconstruction. Loftus and Palmer's (1974) two-experiment study into eyewitness testimony illustrates the reconstructive nature of memory, most specifically, the effects of post-event information on memory for a particular event. In the first experiment 45 participants were shown seven short film clips of traffic accidents. After each film they filled a questionnaire about what they had seen. The critical question (IV) was, 'About how fast were the cars going when they hit each other?' Different conditions were used, where the verb was changed to 'smashed', 'collided', bumped', 'hit' and 'contacted'. Participants had to estimate the speed in miles per hour. In the follow-up experiment 150 participants were divided into three groups. All watched a short film on a multiple-car accident and the critical question was, 'How fast were the cars going when they hit each other?' The verb was changed to 'smashed' in the comparison group. The control group was not asked to estimate the speed. The participants were asked to return a week later. They were not shown the film again but were asked several questions about the accident in the film. The critical question was, 'Did you see any broken glass?' They had to answer in terms of 'yes' or 'no'. The video did not have any broken glass. When the critical question had the word 'smashed', the speed estimates were higher than for the other verbs (mean 40.8 mph) and more than twice as many 'yes' responses were given to the question regarding broken glass when compared with the word 'hit' (16:7). This study demonstrates how post-event leading questions can reconstruct memory of that event.

research methods in hormones and pheromones

Psychologists in the biological approach try to find specific biological correlates of behavior. Different methods are used to investigate how biological factors such as brain structures or hormones may influence behavior. Two research methods that are used in the biological approach are experiments and the case studies. Experiments are often used by researchers within the biological approach to establish a cause and effect relationship. Experiments start with a hypothesis. To test the hypothesis, researchers manipulate an independent variable to measure the effect on a dependent variable, while attempting to keep all other variables constant.. Participants are randomly allocated to either a treatment group (where the IV is manipulated) or a control group (where the IV is not manipulated). One example of an experiment was done by McGaugh and Cahill. They wanted to see the effect of the hormone adrenaline on the creation of emotional memories. They hypothesized that adrenaline interacts with the amygdala to create emotional memories. Participants were randomly allocated to one of three groups. Each group say a series of slides, but in one group (the control), a boring story was read. In the treatment group, they heard a story about a boy who was in a car accident and had his feet severed. A very emotional story. The third group heard the traumatic story but were given beta-blockers which inhibit the release of adrenaline. Two weeks later, the participants were asked to answer a series of questions about the slides. The researchers found that the participants who had heard the traumatic story remembered more details than the unemotional story. They also found that those that had heard the traumatic story but had taken beta-blockers remembered no more than those that heard the boring story. The experiment indicates that adrenaline may play a significant role in the creation of emotional memories. Strengths of experiments include that they attempt to control extraneous variables. By doing so, they have high internal validity - that is, you can say that the IV most likely caused the change in the DV. In addition, because they are highly standardized, they can be replicated. This allows other psychologists to test the reliability of the results. However, experiments suffer from low ecological validity due to the highly controlled environment in which the behaviour is observed. The procedures are often highly artificial - such as the one by McGaugh and Cahill. It could be argued that the results do not show us how adrenaline functions under normal conditions. Often experiments have the problem of demand characteristics, where the participants figure out the goal of the experiment and then act in a way to "help out" the researcher. However, in biological research this is often not possible. Blocking adrenaline seems to make it impossible for the participants to create strong memories of the story, regardless of whether the participants know the aim of the study. Finally, experiments in the biological approach often take a reductionist approach, looking at the effect of a single IV on a DV. Correlational research can be used to study hormones and pheromones in humans more easily. Correlational studies are different from experiments in that no variable is manipulated by the researcher, meaning causation cannot be inferred. In correlational studies, two or more variables are measured and the relationship between them is mathematically quantified. Hormones such as testosterone have been correlated with antisocial behaviour and aggression. One example of such correlational research was that conducted by Ehrenkrantz et al (2003).Plasma testosterone was determined in 36 male prisoners; 12 with chronic aggressive behavior, 12 socially dominant without physical aggressiveness and 12 who were not physically aggressive or socially dominant. Here the two variables were testosterone levels and aggressive behaviour, where a positive correlation was found. Conducting correlational research is useful due to it being more ethically practical for the participants and having higher ecological validity than lab experiments as the subjects are being investigated in their natural environments. Therefore, conducting correlational research to study hormones has advantages in terms of its practicality and the generalizability of the findings. One significant advantage of correlational research is that it can usually be carried out on humans instead of animals (unlike laboratory experiments), providing psychologists with human data. This provides a practical value as the findings can be more easily extrapolated to the target populations. Correlations are very useful as a preliminary research technique, allowing researchers to identify a link that can be further investigated through more controlled research (such as a lab experiment). Additionally, correlations can be used to research topics which are sensitive such as explanations for health problems. In this sense, correlational research is considered to be more ethical as no deliberate manipulation of variables is required. However, correlations only identify a link, such as that between the levels of plasma testosterone and aggression. Therefore, they do not identify which variable causes which, and there may even be a third variable present which is not being considered but is influencing one of the co-variables. Consequently, laboratory experiments and correlational studies can complement each other to provide increase validity of research into hormones. This highlight the importance of method triangulation before developing theories for socially sensitive aspects of psychology such as health problems. The use of the different research methods in combination can compensate for their individual limitations and reinforce their strength. For example, the inability of correlational research to provide a causal relationship can be negated by combining this with laboratory experiments which can. Similarly, the low generalisability of lab experiments due to their low ecological validity and frequent use of non-human animals can also be negated by combining this research method with correlational studies which have higher generalisability due to the higher ecological validity and because they are more ethically applicable to humans. If the same conclusions are made after conducting both laboratory and correlational research, then credibility is increased, and psychologists can be more confident in their conclusions.

Schema

Schema theory is based on the idea that we are active processors of information and that our behaviour and cognitive processes can be influenced by our schema. A schema is a mental representation of the world. Schema is a way that our mind organizes information. They are expectations based on our past experiences. Since we are cognitive misers, we use schema to simplify the world and predict things with this mental framework based on what we have seen in the past. Schema are formed through a process known as assimilation where when we encounter something incongruent with our current schema we can add this to our schema so that we will be prepared in the future with this situation. However, since we are information processor, we often only notice that that are congruent with our schema, so we often see and remember what we expect to see. Schemas can affect behaviour in a variety of ways - one of which is the distortion of memories. Brewer and Treyens did a study on the impact of schemas on memory. For this experiment, they had 86 university psychology students as participants. They asked each participant individually to wait in an office for a short time while the researcher went to finish the experiment with another participant. Then, after 35 seconds the research came to get the participant and brought her into another room where they were asked to recall objects in the office. The objects in the office were either congruent or incongruent with an office schema - that is, a mental representation of an office. For example, the office had pencils and a stapler, but there were also objects like a brick and a screwdriver. The students were asked to remember these objects under three different conditions: a recall condition, a drawing condition and a recognition condition. The researchers found with the recall and drawing conditions that the participants remembered objects congruent with their schema of an office but did not recall objects that were incongruent; however in the recognition condition where they were asked to choose objects from a list, participants were able to also recognize objects that were incongruent with their schema as they were prompted by the researcher. This study supports schema theory as unless prompted by the researcher, participants were unable to remember objects incongruent with their schema. As the participants did not create a "photographic memory" of the office, they used their past experience to predict what would be in the office when asked to recall the objects. This shows that we are active processors of information and that we reconstruct our memories based on our schema.

Social identity theory

Social Identity Theory is based on the assumption that we have both an individual and a social self. Social identity theory argues that one's self-esteem comes from their membership of social groups. Tajfel argued that there were three steps to Social Identity Theory: Categorization, in which an individual considers himself a member of a group. Then there is social identification when the person conforms to the behaviours and values of the group. Then, the individual achieves self-esteem by comparison with members of the out-group. By seeing the traits of one's own group as positive and the out-group as inferior, this raises a sense of self-esteem. Social Identity Theory also argues that one's group membership is made salient, it has an effect on behaviour. One study that demonstrates the role of one's Social Identity on behaviour was done by Abrams et al. Abrams wanted to see if being made aware of one's social identity would increase the level of conformity to a group. To do this, he had participants take part in the Asch paradigm. In this test, there is a group of confederates and one naive participant. The group is shown a line and then asked to match it with the line of the same length in a set of three lines. In half of the trials, the confederates gave the correct answer; in half they did not. To test the role of social identity, one group of naive participants was told that the other participants were "fellow psychology students from the university." In the other condition, they were told that they were "ancient history students from the competitor university." When they thought it was their in-group, participants conformed almost 50% of the time to the incorrect answer; when they thought it was their out-group, they conformed only 5% of the time. It appears that when the participants' social identity was made salient, conformity increased in order to be accepted by one's in-group and to maintain self-esteem, but this did not happen when the participant believed that he was with an out-group. One type of conformity is normative social influence where the need to belong influences the likelihood that one will conform. This apepars to be the case in this study, where the need to belong to one's in-group increased the level of conformity, whereas the lack of desire to belong to an out-group meant that conformity levels were low.

RM: cultural origins of beh/cogn

The research method used in this study on conformity (sociocultural approach) is a lab experiment. A lab experiment is done in a well-controlled environment. The participants are randomly allocated to a group unlike in a quasi-experiment where participants are not randomly allocated but instead assigned a group depending on a certain trait (e.g. gender). Lab experiments use a standardised procedure which makes it easy to replicate. These types of experiments make it easy for researchers to manipulate their independent and control variables, helping them to establish a cause and effect relationship which is essentially what experiments are trying to do - to establish a relationship/lack of a relationship between the independent variable and the dependent variable. In order to see a cause and effect relationship, extraneous variables must be controlled. Asch used a sample of American male students. He deceived the participants by telling them that they are being tested on their vision, not conformity. His independent variable was "social pressure". His dependent variable was whether the naive participant agreed with the incorrect response given by the confederates. Asch wanted to see whether or not the participants would conform by giving an incorrect response to a simple task such as matching lines of the same length. To make sure the participants could differentiate between the lengths of the lines he did a control for his experiment in which the participant was alone in the room with only the researcher present. The percentage of trials in which the participants made errors was below 1%. He carried out the experiment by having the naive participant sit amongst six confederates (dressed in business attire) and a researcher. The seven students were then all shown two cards, one of which had one line on it, and another which had three lines of different lengths on it. They were asked to match the line on the second card to the line on the first card. Then they had to give their answers one by one. Asch made sure that the naive participant sat in a position in which he could hear enough confederate answers to feel group pressure. They found a mean of 36.8% of participants gave incorrect responses in 50% of the trials or more. They also found that 24% of the participants didn't conform to any of the incorrect responses given. Asch used a lab experiment in order to have full control over extraneous variables. This allowed him to determine a clear cause and effect relationship between the presence of social pressure and level of conformity. The researcher also used deception to eliminate demand characteristics as the participants didn't even know what they were being tested for their level of conformity. Finally, the study is easily replicated, making it possible to see if the results are reliable.

Explain one evolutionary explanation of one behaviour SAQ

Wedekind 1995 Intro: - Evolutionary arguments have been used to explain human mating behaviour. Evolutionary psychologists argue that our behaviours are the result of natural selection - that means that the behaviours that most improve our chances of handing down our genes and producing healthy offspring have an evolutionary advantage. P1: Aim - Wedekind (1995) carried out a study to see to what extent MHC alleles play a role in mating behaviour. MHC alleles are responsible for our immune systems. They are inherited from both of our parents - and they are codominant. That means we end up with both immune systems. He argued that our "smell" is based on our MHC and it is best for a woman to choose a mating partner who has a different smell in order to maximize the immune system of her child. P2: Procedure - Students were used in the study. The men were asked to wear a t-shirt for two nights. They were also told not to wear any perfume or perfumed soap, to avoid spicy food, smoking and alcohol. They were told not to do anything that would change their natural smell. - Two days later the women were asked to rank the smell of the t-shirts. They were tested in the second week after the beginning of menstruation when they have a better sense of smell. T-shirts were placed into boxes with a "smelling hole." 3 boxes contained t-shirts from men with the same MHC as the woman, three were different and one was unworn. Every woman rated the shirts for their "pleasantness." P3: Results and Implications - The women scored the t-shirts as more pleasant when the MHC was different than their own. This suggests that natural selection may play a role in human mate selection. If the woman's mate has a different MHC allele, then both his allele and her allele will be inherited and expressed by a child, thus increasing its immune system and chances of survival.

RM: cultural influences on attitudes, identity and beha

fagot - natural observation One research method used in the sociocultural approach is an observation. Unlike an experiment, observations do not have an independent variable. The goal of an observation is to see how people act in a given situation. This means that observations are often done under uncontrolled conditions. In an observation, there is a mix of quantitative and qualitative data. An observation may be overt or covert. In an overt observation, the participants know that they are being observed. In a covert observation, the participants do not know that they are being observed; in some cases, they are being deceived, and in other cases it is in a public space where consent would not be required. An observation can also be naturalistic - done in a person's natural environment - or in a lab. Finally, it may be participant or non-participant. In a participant observation, the researcher is part of the group that is being studied. In a non-participant observation, the researcher does not join the group, but observes from outside the group

RM in individual and the group

lab experiment - bandura Much of the research into relationships between the individual and the group uses the lab experiment method. This method involves the manipulation of an independent variable (IV), the measurement of the effects of this manipulation on the dependent variable (DV), and the controlling of extraneous variables that might otherwise become confounding variables and affect the DV. Allocation to groups or conditions is random or by matched pairs and, because researchers from the sociocultural approach wish to be able to generalise the results of these experiments to real-life situations, as much as possible the tasks undertaken by the participants possess mundane realism, and so at least partially reduce any questions regarding the ecological validity of the results.