Psychology - Units 3&4 Exam

for operant conditioning: describe extinction and spontaneous recovery

* Extinction - when the conditioned response disappears over time after reinforcement has ceased. The subject has learnt a behaviour, which has later become extinct because it is no longer receiving a reinforcement - decrease in the frequency of a previously reinforced response as it is no longer followed by a reinforcer * Spontaneous recovery - might occur if the starts doing the same behaviour after a break, regardless of it not getting a positive/negative reaction * Spontaneous recovery shows that the extinction of behaviour is not 'unlearning'. Even though a behaviour or response might not occur for a time, it does not mean that the response has been forgotten

for classical conditioning: describe learned fear responses (John Watson — the 'Little Albert' experiment) (Watson & Rayner 1920)

* Fear conditioning is a simple form of associative learning in which an animal learns to associate the presence of a neutral stimulus (turned into the conditioned stimulus (CS) - usually positive/neutral), with the presence of a motivationally significant stimulus (the unconditioned stimulus (US) - usually negative/fear-inducing) The 'Little Albert' experiment: - 1920, American psychologist John B. Watson, the area of classical conditioning and behaviourism - 'Little Albert' (pseudonym), 9 months old, was 'borrowed' from a childcare facility - Little Albert was selected as he was a placid child who had never been seen to cry - He was placed in Watson's laboratory and allowed to play with a white rat where he showed no fear; however, he showed fear when a steel bar was struck with a hammer, making a loud noise just behind his back. - Watson then paired the rat (neutral stimulus) with a loud noise (unconditioned stimulus) by striking a steel bar with a hammer just behind Albert's head when he touched the rat - After seven pairings of the rat and the noise Albert finally cried; Soon afterwards, when the rat was presented but no noise sounded, Albert cried and tried to crawl away from it (unconditioned response) - Little Albert also showed fear when presented with a dog, a rabbit, a fur coat and a Santa Claus mask (stimulus generalisation), though the fear response was much reduced when he was in a different and much larger laboratory * stimulus generalisation: learned fear response/maintained the fear afterwards * showed that humans, not just animals, use classical conditioning (associative learning) Ethical considerations were neglected: - One of the most important ethical considerations in research, that no physical or psychological harm must come to participants, was undoubtedly ignored - Little Albert came away from the study psychologically damaged, with a fear of rats among other furry creatures and objects - Watson also failed to obtain informed consent from its participant, since Albert was too young to understand the terms of the experiment and permission wasn't sought from Albert's parents on his behalf - Watson also failed to properly debrief Little Albert, which in this case would involve extinguishing the conditioned response to fear white and fluffy objects (extinction) How they should have conducted the study: - graduated exposure - successive approximations of the CS until the CS itself doesn't produce the CR - can help lead to extinction, gradually 'desensitised' from not associating white rat with fear/anxiety

compare classical conditioning (Ivan Pavlov 1897/1902), operant conditioning (BF Skinner 1948) and social learning theory (Albert Bandura 1977)

* comparison of the theories of learning: - unlike classical conditioning, operant conditioning acts to alter the association between a stimulus and a behavioural response, not between a stimulus and an unconditioned response * classical conditioning = Ivan Pavlov (associative learning) - involuntary * operant conditioning = B.F. Skinner (reinforcement) - voluntary - learning: a relatively permanent change in behaviour due to experience * behaviours not dependent on learning: - reflex action: an involuntary, automatic response to a stimulus; from nervous system - single, simple response eg. ducking from a ball - fixed action pattern: inborn tendency to behave in a particular way (the same way); specific environmental stimulus (species-specific behaviour) eg. imprinting - maturation: physical growth and development of the body, brain and nervous system - occurs at different stages of the lifespan in an orderly sequence (innate) eg. crawling then walking classical conditioning: - whereby an animal/person can passively learn to show a naturally occurring reflex action (pavlovian conditioning) eg. someone saying something sour (like a lemon) then salivating * involves a response becoming associated with a neutral stimulus * stimulus predicts an event then we respond accordingly * responses are reflexes/autonomic responses * based on the repetitive association of different stimuli * important in the development of an anxiety disorder (an unpleasant experience paired with a stimulus - over time this stimulus elicits anxiety) operant conditioning: - repeating a behaviour because it was reinforced or reducing a behaviour because it was punished - learning where behaviour is controlled by its consequences - method of learning that occurs through reinforcements (rewards) and punishments for behaviour - an individual makes an association between a particular behaviour and a consequence - behaviour is modified according to its consequence - introduced a new term into the Law of Effect: reinforcement = behaviour which is reinforced tends to be repeated (i.e., strengthened); behaviour which is not reinforced tends to die out or be extinguished (i.e., weakened) - the 'reinforcer' acts to strengthen the association between a stimulus and a behavioural response - Skinner demonstrated that organisms tend to repeat responses that are followed by a favourable consequence - three-phase model (ABC) for operant conditioning * antecedent (environment) eg. prompting, modelling, goals, feedback * behaviour eg. desired or undesired * consequences eg. reinforcement (positive or negative), punishment, extinction, avoidance - the antecedent makes the conditions right for the behaviour to follow and be encouraged/discouraged by its consequences (punishment or reinforcement); this affects future behaviour and, therefore, learning has taken place social learning theory: * describes the way in which people acquire certain behaviours by watching and learning from role models; the initial focus of observational learning * observational learning: where a person learns by watching the behaviour demonstrated by another * modelling: when a person copies the behaviour or attitude demonstrated by another person eg. Bobo experiment The four principles of observational learning are as follows: 1. Learning occurs by observing the behaviour of others and the consequences of those behaviours. 2. Learning can occur without there being an immediate change in behaviour - it can remain latent. 3. Cognition plays a role in observational learning because the learner has awareness and expectations of future reinforcements or punishments and these can influence whether the learnt behaviour will be demonstrated. 4. Observational learning is a link between the behaviourist theories of learning (classical conditioning and operant conditioning) and cognitive learning theories. * Bandura suggests that there are three types of modelling stimuli: - live models - verbal instruction - symbolic Bandura suggests that a number of cognitive and behavioural processes are necessary for learning to occur, including: - attention (watch behaviour) - retention (remember how to do the behaviour) - reproduction (do the behaviour) - motivation (anticipated consequences and internal standards)

for classical conditioning: describe extinction and spontaneous recovery

* extinction: the process of removing the association between a conditioned stimulus and unconditioned stimulus - the response is extinguished after being shown several times without reinforcement - weakening of conditioned response by conditioned stimulus being present without the unconditioned stimulus * spontaneous recovery: people recover lost conditioned responses after extinction has occurred - the reappearance of an extinguished response after a rest period - Spontaneous recovery shows that extinction of behaviour is not 'unlearning' - Even though a behaviour or response might not occur for a time, it does not mean that the response has been forgotten

evaluate two models of memory, including the working model of memory (Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch 1974), including the central executive, phonological loop, visuospatial sketchpad, and episodic buffer

* the working model of memory - Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch (1974) - a cognitive system with a limited capacity that is responsible for temporarily holding information available for processing - important for reasoning and the guidance of decision-making behaviour * working memory - the mental work that is occurring at any given time, including retrieving information, problem-solving, and comprehending sounds and visions; draws on information from sensory and long-term memories to apply to the working memory - more complex theory of short term memory (multi-modal experience) four separate but interdependent aspects of the model: - phonological loop - temporary storage system for auditory information (what we hear) in working memory - role: auditory working memory - limited capacity, made up of: * phonological store ("inner ear") - auditory information enters memory (stored for 2 secs if not passed through the articulatory loop) * the articulatory loop ("inner voice") - auditory info is rehearsed silently in order to remember it - visuospatial sketchpad - the storage system for visual (and spacial arrangements/objects) information in working memory - role: processes visual information - manipulate images in the brain ("inner eye") - limited capacity - central executive - the functional component of working memory that is responsible for switching attention from task to task, deciding what material is to be retrieved from or committed to long-term memory and for performing calculations and making linkages - role: controls attention and co-ordinates 'slave systems' - the two above - determines information (organises/manages) - manager of working memory (most important) - limited capacity - episodic buffer - a theoretical component of working memory that acts as both a bridge and a filter (for auditory and visual information) between long-term memory and the central executive and storage components in working memory - interaction between working and long-term memory - helps retrieve information from LTM to associate with info in working memory/to select and encode info into LTM - limited capacity strengths of the working model of memory: - model is supported by experimental evidence - brain scans have shown that different brain areas are active for verbal tasks compared to visual (supports the idea that there are different brain "parts" for memory) - explains the ability to multi-task when different stores in working memory are independent of each other limitations: - role of central executive is unclear, although stated it is the most important (eg. suggested limited capacity but impossible to measure on its own from the 'slave systems' - only explains short term, explains little of the processes in long term memory

distinguish between excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmitters, with reference to glutamate (Glu) and gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA)

- Excitatory synapse: cause the target cell to become excited and more likely to fire and cause an action potential (excitatory neurotransmitters stimulate an action) * Glutamate is the excitatory relative of GABA that is involved in most aspects of brain functioning, including cognition, memory and learning - It is the excitatory neurotransmitter in the brain involved in learning (the main neurotransmitter in the CNS) - Found everywhere in the CNS - excites cerebral cortex, spinal cord, brainstem, hippocampus, cerebellum - It is the major mediator of the excitatory signals, regulating brain development and the elimination/formation of nerve synapses - It can excite almost every neuron in the brain and the rest of the nervous system. It is involved in many psychological processes but has an important role in learning and memory. - Inhibitory synapse: cause the target cell to become inhibited and less likely to fire and cause an action potential (inhibitory neurotransmitters inhibit an impulse) * GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) is the major inhibitory neurotransmitter found in the brain that is considered a significant mood modulator - Found everywhere in the CNS - inhibits cerebral cortex, spinal cord, brainstem, hippocampus, cerebellum and basal ganglia - When GABA levels are too low or GABA action is impaired, neurons can become overexcited, which can lead to restlessness, anxiety and irritability - An imbalance of GABA is implicated in severe anxiety disorders; also involved in arousal and sleep. It has an inhibitory effect on the brain. Approximately one-third of all neurons in the brain use GABA and it is important in regulating anxiety - used in the treatment of anxiety and rehab for drug use

for classical conditioning: recall the unconditioned stimulus (UCS), unconditioned response (UCR), neutral stimulus (NS), conditioned stimulus (CS) and conditioned response (CR)

- Neutral stimulus (NS): the stimulus that prior to conditioning elicits no relevant response (bell) - Unconditioned stimulus (UCS): the stimulus that consistently produces a physiological reflex without previous conditioning (food) - Unconditioned response (UCR): the unlearned, involuntary physiological reflex elicited by the UCS (salivation) - Conditioned stimulus (CS): before conditioning was the NS but after has required the ability to elicit a response previously elicited by the UCS (bell) - Conditioned response (CR): learned response elicited by the CS that is similar to the UCR (salivation) Three phases of classical conditioning: 1. First phase (before conditioning) - unconditioned stimulus (UCS) results in an unconditioned response (UCR) - neutral stimulus (NS) is one that causes no response 2. Second phase (during conditioning) - development of an association between NS and UCS (causes NS to become the conditioned stimulus (CS)) - acquisition: the successful pairing of a conditioned stimulus and conditioned response 3. Third phase (after conditioning) - result: CS produces a conditioned response (CR) 1. UCS --> UCR 2. NS + UCS --> UCR 3. CS --> CR

mandatory practical - use an experimental research design to investigate the effect of the learning environment on memory, replicating aspects of the 1998 investigation by Harry Grant et al.

- context dependant memory = easier to retrieve information when the context is the same for encoding (record to LTM) as it is for retrieval (pull from LTM) - methodology = study context (silent vs noisy) and test context (silence vs noisy) - producing four conditions - article information being tested (new text = memory for meaning) - ten short answer questions (recall) and sixteen multiple-choice (recognition) - key findings = there are context-dependency effects for newly learned meaningful material regardless of whether the retrieval involved recall or recognition - studying and testing in the same environment (matching conditions) produced better results Grant et al. (1998) - context-dependent memory: - background: Do people remember information if they recall/recognise it in the same context as it was learnt in? - Godden and Baddeley (1975) was referred to - deep-sea divers learned better in matching conditions (land/land) or (water/water) - context-dependent memory effects on recall show that cues are subconsciously encoded when learning, so recall in the same environment allows cues to prompt memory (matching condition = better recall) - aim: investigate context-dependent memory effects on recall AND recognition (thought originally that cues are 'outshined' by the task of recognising - it was noted that the aim was to test this on students to suggest how they could change their study habits - method: independent variable = background noise, dependent variable = ability to recall/recoginse - independent measures design - operationalisation: recall = short response, recognise = multiple choice questions - conclusions: there are context-dependent memory effects for newly learned meaningful material - the best performance is achieved when studying and testing is in the same condition

describe how information is lost from memory through encoding failure, retrieval failure and interference effects

- encoding specificity principle: the associations formed at the time of encoding new memories will be the most effective retrieval cues - encoding failure - refers to the brain's occasional failure to create a memory link * the two main conditions that assist retrieval are the learner's external environment (the context) and the internal environment (the internal state). Consequently, we refer to these conditions as context-dependent cues and state-dependent cues - retrieval failure theory: the inability to retrieve material due to an absence of the right cues or a failure to use them - it suggests that the amount of information we are able to retrieve from long-term memory depends on the type of cue or prompt we use - Interference theory refers to difficulties in retrieving information from memory, caused by other material learnt either previously (proactive interference) or subsequently (retroactive interference) * proactive interference: when previously learnt material inhibits our ability to encode and store new material * retroactive interference: when newly acquired material inhibits our ability to retrieve previously learnt material

explain how information is stored in long-term memory with reference to implicit (procedural) and explicit (episodic and semantic) memory

- long term memory is encoded semantically (through its meaning) and stored in semantic networks so it can be retrieved using cues types of long term memory: - procedural: responsible for memories of how to do things - habits that you have (performing skills, tasks and actions - motor skills) (links to implicit) eg. a dance routine - declarative: long term memory store of personal experiences (links to explicit) types of declarative memory (explicit): - episodic: autobiographical/memory of personal events (important moments in your life/personal events) eg. remembering your first kiss - semantic: memories of facts, concepts, names and general knowledge eg. remembering the 50 states - implicit (unconscious) and explicit (conscious) relate to LTM retrieval, not memory systems - info from LTM can be retrieved and expressed either implicitly or explicitly (they're not memory stores) - explicit: consciously working to remember (deliberately rehearsed), conscious, easily accessed, declarative (events/facts) - Explicit memory refers to experiences that can be intentionally and consciously remembered, and it is measured using recall, recognition, and relearning. Explicit memory includes episodic and semantic memories. - implicit: information remembered unconsciously and effortlessly (not deliberately rehearsed) - Implicit memory refers to the influence of experience on behaviour, even if the individual is not aware of those influences. The types of implicit memory are procedural memory, classical conditioning, and priming. - amygdala and hippocampus are involved with memory storage

recognise the duration and capacity of sensory memory (including iconic and echoic), and short-term and long-term memory

- memory is the mental process of encoding, storing and retrieving information - memory is a process with different memory stores, information flows between parts (different types of memory is stored in different brain sections) - Memory refers to the ability to store and retrieve information over time. - For some things, our memory is very good, but our active cognitive processing of information assures that memory is never an exact replica of what we have experienced. The Multi-Store Model of Memory: Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968) proposed this model. It describes the 3 stages of memory as sensory- short term - long term. - Information processing begins in sensory memory, moves to short-term memory, and eventually moves to long-term memory. 1. encoding (processing information - sensory memory) 2. storage (retention of encoded material - short term memory) 3. retrieval (getting information out of storage - long term memory) duration and capacity: - sensory memory (shortest memory store, transfers sensory stimuli (sight, sound, smell, taste, touch) into short term memory) - short term memory (working memory - if sensory input is considered important it is encoded and sent into short term memory which has a limited capacity (5-9 pieces of info - lasts 12-30 seconds) - Maintenance rehearsal and chunking are used to keep information in short-term memory. - long term memory (if info is rehearsed or attended to it is recorded and transferred into long term memory which has unlimited capacity and can last forever) - The capacity of long-term memory is large, and there is no known limit to what we can remember. types of sensory memory: - echoic memory: auditory sensory memory, auditory stimuli (echo) - stores for 3-4 seconds - iconic memory: the memory of visual stimuli (icon) - stores for 0.3-1 seconds

for classical conditioning: distinguish between stimulus generalisation and discrimination

- stimulus generalisation: conditioned stimulus (eg. bell) can be extended to similar stimulation (doorbell) cause the same conditioned response * in classical conditioning, when an organism responds to any stimulus that is similar to the conditioned stimulus - stimulus discrimination: the opposite of generalisation * in classical conditioning, when an organism responds to the conditioned stimulus but not to any stimulus that is similar to the conditioned stimulus

compare the physical and psychological function of acetylcholine, epinephrine, norepinephrine, dopamine and serotonin

Acetylcholine (ACH): - learning - a neurotransmitter in the brain, spinal cord and peripheral nervous system (motor neurons) involved in muscle contractions, learning and memory and REM sleep - excitatory neurotransmitter that triggers voluntary contractions, controls heartbeat and stimulates the excretion of certain hormones - critical for sleep, attentiveness, sexuality and memory - used in the treatment of Alzheimer's and dementia *Physical function: - stimulates muscle contractions (for respiratory, digestive, cardiovascular systems) - muscle movement - activates muscle action in the body - Alzheimer patients with memory deficits have less ACh * Psychological function: - a neurotransmitter in the CNS and PNS involved in muscle contractions, learning, memory and REM sleep - involved in learning and memory; assists the communication between neurons in the brain associated w/ learning (ie. hippocampus, basal ganglia & hypothalamus) - involved in thought, learning and memory - Activation of the cerebral cortex - Control of REM sleep - Control of hippocampus - Controls REM sleep - Involved in the neuroplasticity process Epinephrine (adrenaline): - fight or flight - a neurotransmitter and hormone involved in stress responses - essential to metabolism, attention, mental focus, and our innate response to stress, fear, anger, panic or excitement - abnormal levels are linked to anxiety, sleep disorders, hypertension and lowered immunity *Physical function: - also known as adrenaline - a neurotransmitter and hormone involved in stress responses - causes increased heart rate, heightened blood pressure, increased respiratory rate - increases heart rate and blood flow, leading to physical boost and heightened awareness * Psychological function: - Hormone released by the adrenal medulla that affects emotional arousal, anxiety, fear - fight-flight-freeze response Norepinephrine (noradrenaline): - concentration - a neurotransmitter and hormone involved in stress responses, alertness, arousal, emotional regulation and attention - acts as a neuromodulator that optimises brain performance (as part of the fight or flight response), to quickly provide an accurate assessment of danger during stressful situations - excessive amounts of this chemical when no stressful situations can lead to anxiousness and hyperactivity - used in the treatment of ADHD, anxiety and cardiac failure *Physical function: - It is responsible for increasing heart rate, triggering the release of glucose into our bloodstream, and increasing blood flow into the muscles - affects attention (concentration) and responding actions in the brain; contracts blood vessels, increasing blood flow - Low levels of norepinephrine are related to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), low blood pressure (hypertension) and depression * Psychological function: - a neurotransmitter and hormone involved in stress responses, alertness, arousal, sleep-wake cycle, emotional regulation and attention - regulating mood/anxiety Dopamine: - pleasure - a neurotransmitter involved in behaviour, learning, sleep, mood, focus, attention, immune health and pleasurable reward - critical for memory and motor skills) - functions as both excitatory and inhibitory *Physical function: - complex movement - cognition - motor control - emotional arousal - emotional responses such as euphoria or pleasure - associated with addiction & sensation-seeking behaviours - facilitation of movement, attention, learning, reinforcement of learning - people repeat behaviours that lead to its release * Psychological function: - a neurotransmitter involved in thoughts, feelings, motivation and behaviours - emotional arousal, pleasure and reward, voluntary movement, attention - learning to associate particular behaviours with reward - feelings of pleasure, addiction, movement and motivation - deficiency is associated with depression and slowing of thoughts & behaviours Serotonin: - mood - a neurotransmitter in the brain involved in the regulation of mood, sleep, eating, arousal and pain - present in the brain and digestive tract, it is an inhibitory neurotransmitter that plays an important role in mood, depression, anxiety, sleep quality, emotions, regulation of appetite and body temperature - imbalances are involved in depression, impulse behaviour, sleep and emotional disorders - found in the brain and brain stem (pineal gland, limbic function = emotions/mood, sex, hunger, instincts, temperature and sleep) - treatment for depression and sleep regulation *Physical function: - 'Feel-good' Mood regulation, Eating, sleeping, arousal & pain - contributes to well-being and happiness; helps sleep cycle and system regulation; affected by exercise and light exposure - Vasoconstriction (narrowing blood vessels) - gastrointestinal regulation * Psychological function: - a neurotransmitter in the brain involved in the regulation of mood, sleep, eating, arousal and pain - Mood regulation, Control of eating, sleep, arousal, pain - Low serotonin associated with aggression, suicide, impulsive eating, anxiety, depression and low mood - Regulates the general activity of CNS, particularly sleep

determine biological influences on visual perception, including physiological make-up, ageing and genetics

Biological influences on visual perception: * Physiological make-up: - related to damage or impairment of structures of the visual system - physiological structure of the eye - if cones are impaired or missing, we are unable to perceive light waves, which compromises our ability to perceive colour - colour blindness (colour vision deficiency) - a genetically inherited disorder affecting how people perceive colour - person is unable to distinguish between certain colours due to structural issues in the retina i.e. red, blue or green cones not working - inherited condition that affects more men than women (more below in genetics) - achromatopsia: - partial or total absence of colour vision - a lack of cone vision whereby you can only see black, white and grey - cerebral achromatopsia can result from damage or trauma to the cerebral cortex, for example, when a person suffers a stroke * Ageing: - influences physiological and psychological abilities - biological ageing can affect our visual perception system - presbyopia: - a condition that develops as the lens loses elasticity and causes difficulties in focusing on objects that are close - condition develops as the lens loses elasticity and causes difficulty focusing on close objects - lens loses the ability to bend and focus light rays on the retina (usually occurs around age 50) - irreversible but can be treated with glasses and contacts - symptoms: bright light needed to see clearly, difficulty seeing in the dark, headaches - glaucoma: - a disease affecting the optic nerve that interferes with the transmission of peripheral visual information to the brain - results in loss of peripheral vision (damage to the optic nerve causes disruption to transmission of visual information from the eye to the brain) - can lead to blindness, produced from increased intraocular pressure from the aqueous humour - floaters: - clumps of matter that appear as small specks or spots in central vision - tiny, gel-like clumps of matter that float in the vitreous fluid that surrounds our eyes - appearing as little specks in our vision, they usually occur as part of the natural ageing process during our mid-40s - caused when the vitreous humour around our eyes deteriorates and forms little crystals - cataracts: - cloudy spots in the lens that cause vision to become blurred when proteins in the lens break down - occurs when the eye's lens starts to become cloudy due to the breakdown of proteins, occurs naturally as we age - cataracts interrupts the process, of the lens and focusing light on the retina, which then converts and transmits light stimuli to the brain - resulting in blurred vision as well as difficulty seeing at night or in bright light - although ageing can contribute to the development of cataracts, lifestyle factors - such as smoking and poor diet, together with chronic diseases like diabetes and high blood pressure - treatment - improving health, wearing stronger eyeglasses and undergoing surgery - age-related macular degeneration: - a disease caused by the build-up of grainy deposits in the macula - located in the centre of the retina - which results in inflammation and degeneration of the macula's photoreceptor cells - this causes a blurry 'spot' in the centre of vision and makes it difficult to see finer details i.e. sharp, central, straight-ahead vision declines * Genetics: - genetic make-up, due to genetic factors - inherited visual disorders: - visual disorders passed down from parents to children due to genetic factors * childhood: - common inherited vision problems that occur in childhood include cross-eyes (strabismus), lazy eye (amblyopia), refractive errors (near-sightedness or myopia, and farsightedness or hyperopia) and astigmatism (irregular curve in cornea resulting in blurry, fuzzy or distorted vision) * adulthood: - for adults, some cases of eye disorders, such as glaucoma and age-related macular degeneration, can also be attributed to genetic factors. These conditions often lead to blindness. - many inherited visual disorders can be treated by conducting vision therapy, undergoing surgery or wearing prescription glasses or contact lenses - congenital visual disorders: - disorders of the visual system that are present at birth (quite rare) - disorders can develop from genetic factors or from diseases and deficiencies that arise during pregnancy eg. congenital cataracts, congenital glaucoma, congenital achromatopsia and optic nerve hypoplasia (underdevelopment of the optic nerve) - some of these disorders can be treated with surgery, medication or rehabilitation but microphthalmos (babies are born with small eyes with anatomic malformations), sight cannot be restored - colour vision deficiency: - a genetically inherited disorder affecting how people perceive colour * rods: sensitive to allow to see in dim light conditions * cones: specifically sensitive to long (red), medium (green) and short (blue) wavelengths of light - colour deficiency occurs if one or more of these cones is missing or functions incorrectly - three types of colour deficiency: - monochromacy: entirely blind to colours because genetic abnormalities restrict them to one type of cone that detects brightness but not colour - dichromacy: only two of the three cones are functioning - trichromacy: the most common form of colour deficiency, when any one of the three cone pigments responsible for perceiving colours is altered (impaired sense of colour, rather than total colour blindness) * men more likely to suffer as the inherited gene is a mutation on the x-chromosome - retinitis pigmentosa: - genetic degenerative disease of the retina causing night blindness and gradual loss of peripheral vision

recall that language processing occurs within Broca's area, Wernicke's area, and Geschwind's territory

Broca's area (BA): - producing coherent speech * located in the left frontal lobe; plays a crucial role in the production of coherent speech * coordinates messages to the lips, jaws, tongue and vocal cords - enables the ability to say words clearly and fluently * important in the use and understanding of grammar * links to and interacts with other areas of the cerebral cortex involved with language - Broca's aphasia (problem speaking): * damage to BA's results in Broca's aphasia * Broca's aphasia - difficulty speaking, putting grammatically correct sentences together and articulating words, but can comprehend language, therefore, BA us the motor region for language production (links to neural plasticity - how people find other brain pathways in order to speak well again) - completely understands but can't talk properly (frustration) - provides evidence for the localisation of brain function Wernicke's area (WA): - speech processing and language understanding * discovered by Carl Wernicke * located in the left temporal lobe; it is responsible for storing receptor codes that interpret language and for creating grammatically correct speech * involved in speech production but plays a crucial role in the comprehension of speech - more specifically in interpreting sounds of human speech - when you hear a word the primary auditory cortex processes the auditory sensation, but it can't be understood until the information has been processed by WA - Wernicke's aphasia (problem comprehending): * struggle to comprehend language and produces sentences that are fluent but meaningless (word salad) * evidence for localisation of function in the brain Geschwind's territory: - connection between BA and WA * located in the posterior parietal lobe * newly discovered, connects BA and WA via a bundle of nerve fibres within the region of the parietal lobe of the cortex * allows people to understand the meaning of words - develops with age; completion of maturation aligns with the ability for children to read and write (acquisition of language in children) * neurons in GT are multimodal ie. can simultaneously respond to a process a range of stimulus eg. auditory and visual * GT can process properties of words (platform for abstract thought by enabling interpretation and classification of stimuli)

recognise that the cerebral cortex can be divided into a number of discrete areas, which have specific functions, including the frontal, occipital, parietal and temporal lobes

Cortical lobes of the cerebral cortex: - cerebral cortex of each hemisphere in the brain contains 4 distinct lobes (8 lobes in total) Frontal lobe: * problem-solving, emotional traits, reasoning (judgement), speaking *Broca's area*, voluntary motor activity - largest lobe, location is at the front of both cerebral hemispheres - responsible for speech, abstract thought, planning, social skills as well as initiating voluntary body movement * primary motor cortex - situated at the rear of each frontal lobe, adjacent to central fissure - responsible for body's skeletal muscles and functions contralaterally ie. initiating and controlling voluntary movements through skeletal muscles * Broca's area - production of speech (lies next to the primary motor cortex) * prefrontal cortex - sits at front of the frontal lobe and links to other parts of the brain to perform complex functions eg. decision making, reasoning, problem-solving, motor sequences, attention, emotional regulation, symbolic thinking, personality (has an executive role - in thinking, feeling, behaving - coordinates many functions from other lobes, determines responses) - important for higher-order cognitive functions and control of voluntary movement or activity - motor areas control movements of voluntary skeletal muscles, association areas carry on higher intellectual processes such as those required for concentrating, planning, complex, problem-solving and judging the consequences of behaviour Parietal lobe: * know right from left, sensation, reading, body orientation - located behind the frontal lobe - receives bodily 'somatosensory' information eg. touch, temperature and muscle movement - enables the perception of your own body and the space around you * primary somatosensory cortex - located at the front of the lobe - receives and processes sensory information from skin/body eg. touch, pressure, pain and functions contralaterally like the primary motor cortex - temperature, taste, touch and movement - sensory areas are responsible for processing information about the sensations of temperature, touch, pressure, and pain involving the skin, association areas function in understanding speech and in using words to express thoughts and feeling Temporal lobe: * understanding language *Wernicke's area*, behaviour, memory, hearing, learning - located at the lower central side of the brain (up and around the ears - auditory) - involved in auditory perception, memory and aspects of perception - performs complex auditory analysis (understand speech and music) - songs, faces, paintings * primary auditory cortex - perceive and identify different sounds * Broca's area - left hemisphere (speech comprehension) - sensory area is responsible for hearing, association areas interpret sensory experiences and remember visual scenes, music, and other complex sensory patterns (memories) Occipital lobe: * vision, colour perception - located at the rearmost area of the hemispheres - sense of vision (images from the left retina are processed in the left occipital lobe and vice versa; images in the centre of the visual field are processed by both) * primary visual cortex - size, colour, light, motion, dimensions (damage would cause blindness) - sensory area is responsible for vision, association areas combine visual images with other sensory experiences Additionally: - Cerebellum * balance, coordination and control over voluntary movement, fine muscle control - Brain stem: * breathing, body temperature, digestion, alertness/sleepiness, swallowing

recognise that emotion occurs within the limbic system, amygdala and prefrontal cortex

LeDoux's Model of Emotion: proposed that there is a short or long route to processing and acting on emotion Emotion - The Limbic System: - structures: * hypothalamus: maintains homeostasis - hunger, thirst, body temperature, regulates pituitary gland (hormones) - major role in controlling emotion and motivated behaviours such as eating, drinking and sexual activity - part of the HPA axis (the hypothalamic-adrenal-pituitary gland response, which controls our reactions to stressful situations), and is involved in physiological responses to fear-inducing emotional stimuli * thalamus: acts as a relay station for incoming sensory information onto the relevant parts of the cerebral cortex for further processing in the primary motor cortex * hippocampus: memory processing and the regulation and expression of emotion - lies in the medial temporal lobes; responsible for the consolidation of explicit memories and acts to transfer these to other parts of the brain for storage as long-term memory (turn short term to long term memory) - implicated in memory, and when we are presented with emotionally charged stimuli, our hippocampus aids us in recalling any information relevant to the situation - used when we process emotional stimuli via Le Doux's 'long route' before sent to the amygdala Amygdala: - aggression (fight) and fear (flight) in emotion - an almond-shaped structure, located in the medial temporal lobe of the brain that is central to emotion, aggression and implicit learning (conditioning), memory recall and storage - mediates and controls major affective mood states eg. aggression and FEAR - its role is specialised in each hemisphere: * right side - involved in how we perceive emotion, particularly negative emotion, expressing and processing emotion (fear), and involved in memory recollection and storage (declarative and episodic memory) * left side - role in the brain's reward system (amygdala is responsive to the fear stimulus and fear conditioning) Prefrontal cortex: - part of the cerebral cortex that connects brain regions that are involved in the processing and production of emotion - the part of the cerebral cortex that connects and covers the brain - the ventral (underside) connects brain regions that are involved in emotional processing and production - involved in regulating and modifying emotions, and executive functioning and deciding between good and bad actions

recall the structure of the human nervous system, with reference to the central (i.e. brain and spinal cord) and peripheral (i.e. somatic and autonomic) nervous systems

Nervous system: - central nervous system (CNS): * composed of the brain and spinal cord * helps the brain communicate with the rest of the body by sending messages to the PNS The brain: FOREBRAIN - receives and processes sensory information an conducts higher-order thinking eg. problem-solving, learning, planning, memory, perception, language and emotion * left and right hemispheres which each contain the four lobes (left = math/language, right = creativity/spacial reasoning) - regulates autonomic, endocrine and motor functions (thalamus, hypothalamus, cerebrum, amygdala and hippocampus) 2 major divisions of the forebrain: - telencephalon: contains the cerebral cortex and cerebrum (each hemisphere is divided into 4 lobes) * cerebral cortex: contains folded bulges called gyri and is the outer surface of the cerebrum which protects it * function of cerebral cortex: process sensory information, controls motor functions and higher order functions eg. reasoning and problem solving * the cerebrum and cerebral cortex is responsible for everything we consciously feel and do - corpus callosum: a bundle of nerve fibres that ensures each hemisphere of the brain communicates and send signals to each other - diencephalon: regulates the body's sensory perception, motor functions and hormones (contains the thalamus, hypothalamus, pineal gland) - contains several small but highly important structures located toward the centre of the brain (part of the limbic system - emotional and hormonal regulation) - collectively these parts make up the diencephalon and are involved in regulating sensory perception, motor functions and hormones * thalamus - filters sensory information, controls mood states and movement movement associated with emotive states * hypothalamus - 'control centre' for the pituitary gland (regulates autonomic, emotional, endocrine and somatic functions - including stress and mood states) * pineal gland - small as a grain of rice (main job is to produce the hormone melatonin - regulate sleep-wake cycles) MIDBRAIN - co-ordinates movement, sleep and arousal - process auditory and visual information * central part of the brain (contains neural pathways connecting upper and lower brain areas - involved with movement, processing of visual, auditory and tactile sensory information, sleep and arousal - co-ordinates movement from senses (eyes and ears) but not as much as the cerebellum HINDBRAIN - links the spinal cord and brain (important for balance and movement) - regulate autonomic functions, relay sensory information and maintain equilibrium (pons, cerebellum and medulla) - co-ordinates functions that are fundamental to survival eg. respiratory rhythm, sleep, motor activity and wakefulness * cerebellum - postural control, balance, fine muscle movement and co-ordination of voluntary muscle movement (organises but doesn't command muscle movement so it is smooth) * pons ("bridge") - bundle of muscle tissue: - involved in sleep, dreaming and arousal from sleep - helps control breathing and coordination of muscle - connects brainstem to the cerebral cortex (coordination centre for communication between cerebrum and spinal cord) - nerves coordinate eye and facial movements/sensations, sounds processing, balance and chewing * medulla - lowest part of the brain (continuation of the spinal cord to connect to the brain) - controls vital bodily functions eg. swallowing, breathing, heart rate, blood pressure, vomit, salivation, coughing and sneezing * reticular formation - network of nerves which runs through the centre of the midbrain, hindbrain and up toward the forebrain - assists the screening of information in order to not overload the brain - regulates arousal (influences whether you feel awake, drowsy or asleep) - peripheral nervous system (PNS): * the PNS connects the CNS to the organs, limbs and skin * it carries sensory and motor information to and from the CNS * allows brain and spinal cord to receive and send information to the body * regulates involuntary bodily functions (heartbeat and breathing) - the PNS is the entire network of nerves outside the CNS, transmits information from sense organs, muscles and glands to CNS and from CNS to the rest of the body - further divided into the autonomic and somatic nervous systems: * somatic nervous system (voluntary/conscious): - carries sensory information to the CNS - carries motor commands from the CNS to the skeletal muscles - controls voluntary movement of skeletal muscles * autonomic nervous system (involuntary/unconscious): - responsible for the communication between the CNS and non-skeletal muscles, organs and glands that carry out bodily functions - regulates or controls the functioning of internal organs automatically; without conscious thought eg. heart rate, breathing - it is linked to the brain's cerebral cortex (we can at times control autonomic processes like breathing) - divided into sympathetic and parasympathetic: * sympathetic (emergencies): prepares the body for action (intense physical activity - heightens fight/flight response) * parasympathetic (non-emergencies): responsible for homeostasis (relaxes the body and inhibits/slows functions - rest and digest or feed and breed) Relationship between CNS and PNS: - The CNS depends on the PNS to provide information from sense organs about the external environment and information from internal environment from other parts of the body - The PNS relies on the CNS to initiate an appropriate response

communicate neurotransmission using a diagram

Neurons: - neurons: nerve cells, responsible for communication within the body - dendrites: a component of a nerve cell that receives information from other nerve cells and transports this information to the cell body - soma: the largest part of a neuron: it controls the metabolism and maintenance of the neuron - contains the nucleus, which in turn contains the genetic material in the form of chromosomes and are made up of cytoplasm, mitochondria and other organelles - axon: the part of the neuron along which the electrochemical nerve impulse is transmitted - axon terminals: located at the end of the axon, it transmits messages to the next neuron by secreting neurotransmitters - myelin sheath: a white, fatty, waxy substance that coats some axons and insulates them, protecting them from electrical interference from other neurons; this increases the efficiency of transmission of nerve impulses - Node of Ranvier: allow for ions to diffuse in and out of the neuron, propagating the electrical signal down the axon; since the nodes are spaced out, they allow for saltatory conduction, where the signal rapidly jumps from node to node - Schwann cell: the major glial cell type in the peripheral nervous system that plays essential roles in the development, maintenance, function, and regeneration of peripheral nerves Neurotransmission: - Neurotransmitters: chemicals that help communication across nerve synapses - they coordinate behaviour by stimulating an action or inhibiting an impulse - synapse: the connection between two neurons - synaptic (neuro) transmission: the process of neurons sending information to each other via neurotransmitters * For neurons to communicate, the process of synaptic transmission must take place between the neurons of the body. This communication begins with information being transmitted from the synapse to the dendrites. This information, in the form of an electrical impulse, is then passed through the soma and along the axon. Neurotransmitters contained in the synaptic vesicles of the presynaptic neuron are secreted into the synaptic cleft from the terminal buttons on the axon terminal. They are then received by receptors located on the dendrites of the postsynaptic neuron. When a receptor binds with a neurotransmitter that "fits" (according to the lock and key process), this neuron is then activated or inhibited. Excess neurotransmitters in the cleft are then re-uptaken by the terminal buttons and the process continues throughout the neurons of the body. - Presynaptic neuron: a neuron that transmits information to another neuron - Postsynaptic neuron: a neuron that receives information from another neuron

discuss the impact of interference in neurotransmitter function, with reference to Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease (symptoms and treatments)

Parkinson's Disease: - a progressive neurological condition, known to affect the control of movement - Key Features: * age increases the risk (m=60) * diagnosis - medical history and physical examination - Symptoms: * Motor (bradykinesia - decreased blinking and stiff face, rigidity, stiffness, postural instability, balance problems, slowness of movement, resting tremor, walking difficulties, dystonia - repetitive muscle movement - twisting) * Nonmotor (decrease in sense of smell, sweating, melanoma, pain, gastrointestinal issues - constipation, sleep problems, cognitive changes, mental and behavioural issues - depression, anxiety, fatigue, cognition, personality) PD and dopamine: - the brain cells that make dopamine stop working or die (dopamine coordinates movement, feelings of motivation and reward) - not known why they die * symptoms of PD are caused by the denigration of dopamine * substantia nigra is part of the basal ganglia (in the midbrain) responsible for reward, addiction and movement coordination (neurons in the SN release dopamine) * dopamine is needed to control messages passed between the SN and the striatum (balance and control of movement) - without enough dopamine (drop 80%) the neurons of the striatum fire uncontrollably, which causes those with PD to not control movement effectively PD and acetylcholine (ACh): - drop in dopamine influences ACh - a neurotransmitter that also affects movement - PD is brought on by the imbalance of these neurotransmitters Causes (unknown) - but activated by a combo of: - genetics - protein mutations - environmental factors - pesticides, MPTP (street drugs) - diet - vitamin B (folic acid) deficiency Treatment (no cure, but eases symptoms): - individualised - medication - drugs that are precursors of dopamine to increase the level of dopamine that reaches the brain; drugs that block chemicals that affect dopamine - movement disorder specialist - physical therapy (balance, stretch) - diet, aerobic exercise, speech-language pathologist - surgery Alzheimer's Disease: - a disease that progressively destroys neurons in the brain, causing memory loss - Key Features: * most common cause of dementia * caused by the formation of abnormal deposits of protein in the brain (amyloid - creates plaques outside brain cells and fau - creates neurofibrillary tangles inside brain cells to damage them and cause cell death, resulting in brain shrinkage) * the hippocampus (memory formation) is first affected, meaning people have trouble forming new declarative memories and remembering what they just did or said (denigration of memory) * older memories are retained better - not stored in hippocampus * amygdala (emotion) is damaged later, meaning memory of feelings are retained better than the memory of facts * there is a gradual progression of symptoms (worsen over time) - lower levels of acetylcholine (ACh - memory neurotransmitter) - neurons communicate less effectively with each other, leading to greater memory and thinking problems - Signs and Symptoms: * memory loss, difficulty in decision making and judgement, time and place confusion, repeating stories, mood swings, repetitive speech, writing issues, social withdrawal, forgetting people * Alzheimer's disease involves anterograde and retrograde amnesia (hippocampus and prefrontal cortex) Alzheimer's Disease - brain symptoms: - amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles (brain cell death) - Cholinergic neurons are neurons involved with cognition and motor function, they release acetylcholine - ACh latches onto the receptors of neighbouring neurons to allow signals to be passed between cells - impairment of ACh causes neural pathways in memory to deteriorate (hippocampus and frontal/temporal lobes - atrophy) - Treatment (no cure but can ease symptoms): * medications are designed to replace low levels of ACh or prevent it from breaking down (help build communication in neural pathways) - cholinesterase inhibitors prevent ACh breakdown - antidepressants, antianxiety, memantine (helps memory/learning - enhance glutamate) * future - remove plaque using ultrasound

explain psychological influences on visual perception including: perceptual set (past experience, context, motivation and emotional state) and visual perception principles (Gestalt, depth cues, and visual constancies)

Perceptual set: - a predisposition to attend to certain aspects of the visual scene, or to interpret stimuli in a particular way, according to certain preconceptions * Past experiences - previous experiences can affect visual perception, especially if the experience holds significant personal meaning. The same stimulus can be interpreted differently by different people. * Context - the environment in which a perceived stimulus is observed; context sometimes has an immediate effect on our expectations. * Motivation - often we see what we want to see. On a long drive, if running low on petrol, a sign reading 'FOOD AHEAD' might be interpreted as 'FUEL AHEAD'. * Emotional state - we could interpret someone's facial expression as laughing or crying, depending on how we are feeling ourselves. - One example that illustrates how visual stimuli can affect our perceptual set is Bugelski and Alampay (1961) famous rat-man experiment: * One group of participants was shown a line of face sketches and then the ambiguous rat-man stimulus - the majority identified it as an old man. The other group was shown a line of animal sketches and then the ambiguous stimulus - the majority identified it as a rat or mouse. * This shows how perceptual set, created by prior experience, influences perception. Visual perception principles: - At any given moment, vast amounts of visual stimuli enter the eye - far more than we can pay attention to. The brain selects and organises visual information according to a number of visual perceptual principles. 1. perceptual constancies - the tendency to maintain a stable perception of a stimulus, although the properties of the image on the retina may change * size constancy - the constant perception of an object's size, even though the size of the image on the retina alters as the object moves nearer to or further from us * shape constancy - an object is perceived to maintain its known shape despite the changing perspective from which it is observed 2. Gestalt principles of visual perception - the numerous ways in which we organise the elements in our visual field by grouping them into the perception as a whole, complete form (simplest way possible) - used to organise and interpret perceptual stimuli; including figure-ground organisation, closure, similarity and proximity. * figure-ground - images are organised into the central object of attention (figure) and a background (ground) * camouflage - where the Gestalt principle of figure-ground is used to 'blend' the contour of the figure (which usually stands out) against the ground (background), making it more difficult to see * similarity - elements that are similar in appearance will tend to be seen as a unit * proximity - the individual parts of a stimulus pattern are close together, allowing those parts to be perceived visually as a whole * closure - when an object is perceived as being whole despite actually being incomplete 3. Depth perception - the ability to accurately judge three-dimensional space and distance, using cues in the environment - binocular depth cues - depth cues that use both eyes to gauge distance and space: * retinal disparity -the brain compares and contrasts the two slightly different images obtained because of the distance between the two eyes * convergence - the automatic turning of the eyes inwards as we watch an object approaching - monocular depth cues - depth cues that use one eye independently or both eyes together to gauge distance and space * accommodation - the process by which the ciliary muscles of the eye change the curvature of the lens to focus an image on the retina * pictorial depth cues - three-dimensional perceptions of something that exists on a two-dimensional surface: - linear perspective - parallel lines appear to converge as they retreat into the distance (creates depth) - interposition - objects further from the observer are partially obscured by those in the foreground (overlap) - texture gradient - texture in the foreground is seen in finer detail than that further away - relative size - tendency to perceive the object producing the largest retinal image as being the nearest, and the object producing the smallest retinal image as being the farthest - height in the visual field - shows depth by portraying objects further away as being closer to the horizon

evaluate the impact of social influences on visual perception, with reference to cultural skills (Hudson 1960; Deregowski 1972; Deregowski, Muldrow & Muldrow 1972)

Social Influences on Visual Perception: - visual perception is influenced by our understanding - certain symbols/signs can be interpreted differently based on the culture you grew up with Hudson (1960): - Caucasian vs African cultures - schooling vs non-schooling in 2D and 3D perception - images constructed with key visual perception cues: object sizing, depth cues, overlap. * conclusion: without schooling - no 3D perception, with schooling - cultural differences * Non-schooling groups for both cultures could perceive 2D but not identify 3D images * Schooling samples showed cultural differences: Caucasian samples → higher rate of 3D perception compared to African groups * Hudson concluded that there are cultural differences in the perception of images in the 2D or 3D spaces Deregowski (1972): - Western culture (unspecified) and various African countries eg. Zambia viewed 3D pictures - 5 tests conducted: 1. pictorial depth cues 2. 3D vs 2D perception 3. Ambiguous figures and 3D perception 4. depth cues for depth perception 5. 'split-type drawings' vs perspective drawings * The main findings from this research are that many non-Western people lack pictorial depth perception and prefer split drawings to perspective drawings Deregowski, Muldrow & Muldrow (1972): - Ethiopia - 33 (lowland) and 8 (highland) - all participants were able to identify animals: the difference between lowland and highland groups due to past experiences and familiarity * There were some differences between the highland and lowland groups, which may have been due to the lowland group's greater familiarity with some of the animals depicted * Concluded that perception is mostly based on the perceiver's past experience or familiarity with an object, animal or person and that this skill can be learnt with effort

describe the role of the spinal cord in the human nervous system, with reference to the spinal reflex

Spinal cord, reflexes and the peripheral nervous system: Spinal cord: - runs from the brain stem, inside the vertebrae to the lower middle section of the spine - messages are transmitted through nerves * upper section (cervical) - communicates between brain and upper body * lower section (lumbar) - communicates between brain and lower body 2 major functions: - receive sensory information from the body via the PNS and sends it to the brain - receives motor information from the brain and sends it to the body via the PNS (control muscles, glands and organs) Spinal reflexes: - spinal reflex response - involuntary, occur automatically in response to certain stimuli (no brain involved, although the spine does send the information to the brain) - autonomic response (spinal cord) eg. touching a hot plate or stepping on a nail * sense organs -- Reflexes: - simple automatic response to a sensory stimulus - many controlled within spinal cord (faster not to involve the brain) 2 forms of reflex arc: - monosynaptic reflex arc - 1 synapse, 2 neurons (1 sensory and 1 motor) knee kick - polysynaptic reflex arc - 2 or more synapses (multiple neurons, 1 or more inter neurons connecting sensory and motor neurons)

distinguish between recall, recognition and relearning

The Three R's: 1. recall = retrieve info using minimal cues * free recall = in any order without cues * serial recall = in order of presentation/events * cued recall = assisted by cues that don't involve original items 2. recognition = process of retrieval that requires identification of correct response from a set of alternatives * different to cued recall (remembering with cues), as recognition involves remembering by identification from a set 3. relearning = learning again something that has already been committed to memory (LTM - can't be retrieved) * applies especially to procedural memory eg. sport, instrument - measures of relearning assess how much more quickly information is learned when it is studied again after it has already been learned but then forgotten * savings score = (time of original learning - relearning time) / (relearning time) x100

analyse the fallibility of visual perception, with reference to the Müller-Lyer, Ames room, and Ponzo visual illusions, as well as ambiguous and impossible figures.

The fallibility of Visual Perception: - Ponzo Illusion: * Illusion where people perceive two lines of the same length as different * Ponzo suggested human mind judges an object's size based on its background - drawing 2 identical lines across a pair of converging lines - the upper horizontal line appears longer than the lower line, as the depth cues of linear perspective and height in the visual field (upper line appears further away) - Muller-Lyer Illusion: * two lines of equal length with opposite shaped patterns at the end * line with feather tail is perceived to be longer than the arrowhead - perspective cues set up false interpretations of distance - Perceptual Compromise Theory: * Ross Day - explains Muller-Lyer Illusion - the mind applies Gestalt principle of closure (open = feather, closed = arrow) - Carpentered World Hypothesis: * Richard Gregory - familiarity with the right angles and straight lines of the built environment informs our interpretation of linear perspective in pictorial depth perception - misapplication of size constancy * argues we mentally make the 3D form of each figure using familiar building features * outside wall = arrowhead (closer) * inside wall = feather tails (further away) - Ames Room: * distorted room used to create optical illusion of relative sizes * demonstrated that we maintain shape constancy at the risk of size constancy, as the brain prevents us from maintaining size constancy because of the eye's reliance on monocular depth cues Ambiguous and Impossible Figures: - visual perception can be tricked - these figures highlight the way our visual system works as an interconnection between different brain regions/systems to produce a final image (the brain is mistaken) * Impossible Figures: - exploits visual perception cues so we're forced to see images that should not be possible/shouldn't be able to exist eg. Necker cube - 2D image interpreted as 3D - due to our strong reliance upon visual cues, we interpret wrong images as correct * Ambiguous Figures: - optical illusions that exploit similarities in an image/aspects of the visual system - induce multistable perception - we are able to see 2 or more different but unchanging images - due to gestalt principles - we can view them because these allow us to group information quickly (the brain fills in gaps to create a whole image - closure) * use principle of continuation - ensure we can see edges of the image, similarity - group together information, proximity - assess spatial distance) - figure-ground principle - assess which part of the image should be in the foreground

explain the process of visual perception, with reference to reception (visible light spectrum); transduction (photoreceptors, receptive fields); transmission (visual cortex); selection (feature detectors); and organisation and interpretation (visual perception principles)

Vision as a biological process: - When we see something, the image (or visual stimulus) that appears on our retina is: * upside down * back to front * blurred * patched by holes - from the time we receive an image to when we can identify what we see, six stages have been identified, some of which occur at the same time: * essentially, these six stages progress, in sequence, from being reflexive physical functions of the eye and nervous system to being psychological functions of the brain, involving memory and thought processes Reception and absolute threshold: - In order for us to receive a sensation, the appropriate stimulus energy must reach the sense organ and this must be at a level sufficient to activate the sense receptors. This means that the strength of the stimulus must reach the absolute threshold for that sense. * absolute threshold: the minimum level of energy required for a stimulus outside our body to be detected by our internal senses Absolute thresholds for the senses are outlined below: - hearing: the ticking of a watch 6m away - smell: one drop of perfume in a large house - taste: one tsp of sugar dissolved in 10 litres of water - touch: the wing of a fly falling on the cheek from a height of 1 centimetre - vision: the flame of a candle 50km away on a clear, dark night Vision as a sense: - Receiving and interpreting visual stimuli involves the following processes: Sensation: - the process whereby our sensory organs or receptors receive information about the environment and transmit it to the brain 1. reception (visual light spectrum): Stimulus energy is collected by the eye. * light enters the eye through the cornea (a tough transparent tissue covering the front of the eye) * it then passes the pupil (the hole in the middle of the coloured part of the eye (the iris) * the lens then focuses the light on the retina which contains photoreceptors (light-sensitive cells) called rods and cones * photoreceptors are responsible for detecting visual stimuli - the rods are photoreceptors that are particularly sensitive to black and white, and we typically use these at night - the cones are involved in providing clear colour vision and rely on a bright light to function. They are used more than the rods in daylight * light energy must be within the visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum 2. transduction (photoreceptors and receptive fields): Stimulus energy is converted by the receptor cells into electrochemical nerve impulses. * light energy is converted by the rods and cones into electrochemical nerve impulses * photoreceptors (rods and cones) are organised into groups, and these groups form receptive fields * when your retina identifies visual stimuli, it passes this information via rods or cones to bipolar cells, and then to the retinal ganglion cells Rods: - 125 000 000 rods in each eye - Rods are responsible for vision in low light (that is, they are very sensitive to light) - Responsible for peripheral vision (out of the corner of the eye) - They are concentrated at the edges of the retina - They have low visual acuity (they can't register detail) - They can register only in black and white Cones: - 6 500 000 cones in each eye - Cones are concentrated in the middle of the retina - They are responsible for detecting visual details - They are responsible for colour vision (and black-and-white vision in daylight) - They require high levels of light to enable them to respond 3. transmission (visual cortex of the brain): Receptor cells send the nerve impulses to the primary sensory cortex where specialised receptor cells respond as the process of perception begins. * allows the visual information to travel along the fibres of the optic nerve to the brain (optic nerve communicates information from the eyes to the occipital lobes) * rods and cones send nerve impulses along the optic nerve to the primary visual cortex in the occipital lobes, at the very back of the brain where specialised receptor cells respond as the process of visual perception continues Perception: - the process whereby the brain organises and interprets sensory information 4. selection (feature detectors): We can't pay attention to all the millions of stimuli that we receive at the same time, so we pick out the ones that are important to us and pay attention to those. * too much visual stimuli enters the eye and it is impossible to process it all at once, so we are selective about what we give our attention to * at this stage of the process, the image is broken up by specialised cells called feature detectors (cells in the optic nerve that individually respond to lines of a certain length, angle or direction to break up an image for visual perception) * they are used so we can focus on particular elements of the stimulus to determine what is and is not needed to be attended to 5. organisation (visual perception principles): The information reaches the brain and is organised so that we are able to make sense of it. * the visual cortex in the brain recognises information so that we can make sense of it by using the following visual perceptual principles: - perceptual constancies - Gestalt principles - depth cues * once the image is re-assembled using these principles, it travels along two pathways simultaneously: 1. to the temporal lobe, to identify the object 2. to the parietal lobe, to judge where the object is in space (in relation to our visual field and ourselves) 6. interpretation: Our past experiences, motives, values and context (including stimulation) give the stimulus meaning. * the process whereby the visual stimulus is given meaning * the temporal lobes identify the stimulus by comparing incoming information with information already stored in memory (past experiences, motives, values and context help us understand what we are looking at by contributing to our perceptual set) * while information is sent to the temporal lobes, it also travels to the parietal lobes, which assist in judging where the object is in space (in relation to our visual field and us) - patients who have damage or tumours in parts of the temporal lobe responsible for identifying a visual stimulus may be unable to recognise an object or a familiar face (this is called prosopagnosia) - patients who have damage to the parietal lobe will be able to recognise an object, but they may constantly bump into furniture or misjudge picking up their knife and fork. Summary: 1. Reception - The stimulus is recognised by the photoreceptors 2. Transduction - The stimulus information is processed by receptive fields 3. Transmission - The optic nerve carries this information to the occipital lobe 4. Selection - Feature detectors focus on particular elements of the stimulus to determine what is and is not attended to 5. Organisation - We use visual cues to interpret details, which are then passed to the temporal lobe for identification and the parietal lobe to judge the location of the stimulus in space 6. Interpretation - The temporal lobe applies meanings to the stimulus based on memories and stored information

recognise that voluntary movement is coordinated from the primary motor cortex, cerebellum and basal ganglia

Voluntary movement - a series of steps: 1. select a response that will achieve the desired goal of the movement eg. grasp a glass to pick up the glass of water 2. plan the sequence of muscle contractions needed to carry out the movement 3. carry out the movement by activating the motor neurons that trigger the movements Basal Ganglia: - controls the information gathering process (required before we can engage in a voluntary movement) - this includes the body's current position, what goal the movement will achieve and assessing memories of previous strategies used to achieve this goal - includes these brain structures: caudate nucleus, putamen, globus pallidus and subthalamic nucleus - it enables voluntary movement by operating a complex feedback loop: * receives input from the parietal, frontal and temporal lobes * controls movement by gathering and channelling information from brain regions to the motor cortex * blocks movement that may not suit the end goal of the movement Cerebellum: - responsible for coordinating and remembering smooth, well-sequenced movement - located in the hindbrain - stores sequences of previously learned movements (coordinates and integrates information from other brain areas and communicates this to the primary motor cortex) Primary Motor Cortex: - responsible for the movement of skeletal muscles (activates the neural impulses that execute voluntary movement) - locates at the rear of each frontal lobe next to the central fissure * left primary motor cortex controls the right side of the body and vice versa with the right PMC (contralateral organisation) - the extent of the PMC devoted to certain body parts is proportional to the number of neurons required to move them

describe the role of the hippocampus in memory formation and storage

hippocampus (seahorse): - small organ in the brain's medial temporal lobe (under the cerebellum and above the ponds) - forms an important part of the limbic system (regulates emotions and memories) - is associated mainly with memory (LTM), plays a role in spatial navigation - forming explicit memory - consolidating and retrieving long-term declarative memory - damage can lead to loss of memory/difficulty forming new memories the case of Henry Molaison (known as H.M.), a study by Corkins: - patient suffering from epilepsy in 1953 - doctor decided to remove the hippocampus, epilepsy stopped, but he suffered from not being able to form new long-term memories - also removed parts of the temporal lobe, uncus and amygdala * the study of Henry resulted in the discovery that the brain has two different types of memory: procedural memory, or memory of actions, and declarative memory, which is memories of events, people, and speech - the brain has very different memory systems that are connected, memory is a complex chemical process - Henry still had procedural memory, but no declarative memory eg. he couldn't remember that he played golf, but he got better every time he picked up a club 'for the first time' - still had procedural memory - h.m was unable to form new explicit memories (conscious/declarative store) * shows that the hippocampus is important in memory, works with the cerebellum * shows that memory in the brain is divided into different sections which particular functions work together in the memory process - he remembered some memories from before but not all, retained the ability to form new procedural memories (which he would forget he could do eg. golf) * diagnosed with total anterograde and partial retrograde amnesia - anterograde amnesia = can't form new memories (unable to form explicitly) - retrograde amnesia = can't retrieve memories from before the surgery/damage

evaluate two models of memory, including the levels of processing (LOP) model of memory, including the role of encoding in long-term memory

levels of processing model: - Craik and Lockhart (1972) - proposes that memory is retained on the basis of how deeply it is processed - the model focuses on the depth of processing in memory and predicts that the deeper the information processed, the longer the memory trace lasts - the deeper/personal/emotional - easier to retain information as the neural pathway is "strengthened" * the way info is encoded affects one's ability to remember * deeper level of processing = easier it is to recall info - can be shallow or deep (deeper processing means connecting new information to prior info due to meaning so memory is retained more effectively for better recall) - shallow processing (structural and phonemic): * structural: appearance/encode only physical qualities * phonemic: encode sounds - deep processing (semantic): * semantic processing - encode the meaning of a word and relate it to similar words or meaning - involves elaboration rehearsal (engaging) - more meaningful analysis (eg. images, thinking, associations) of information which leads to better recall - shallow processing leads to fragile memory trace, deeper processing (semantic) leads to a more durable memory trace strengths of levels of processing model: - showed encoding was not a straightforward process - confirmed superiority of semantic processing for remembering information limitations: - doesn't explain how the deeper processing results in stronger memories - deeper processing takes more effort than shallow processing, this could be the reason deeper processing stores memory better - the concept of depth is vague and can't be observed or objectively measured

for social learning theory: distinguish between modelling and vicarious conditioning

modelling - when a person copies the behaviour or attitude demonstrated by another person vicarious reinforcement - a theory that individuals are more likely to engage in a behaviour or activity if they witness another individual being rewarded for that activity or behaviour (can be positive - more likely to choose to replicate the behaviour, negative - more likely to discontinue behaviour)

for operant conditioning: distinguish between negative and positive reinforcement and punishment

operant conditioning - a type of learning in which behaviour becomes controlled by its consequences reinforcer - a stimulus that encourages the likelihood of a response * positive reinforcer - a consequence that strengthens a response by providing a pleasant or satisfying outcome, increasing the likelihood that behaviour will be repeated * negative reinforcer - the removal, reduction or prevention of an unpleasant stimulus in response to a behaviour, increasing the likelihood that a behaviour will be repeated punisher - any stimulus (action or event) that weakens or decreases the likelihood of response (behaviour) * punishment (sometimes called positive punishment): a behaviour followed by a negative experience * response coat (negative punishment): a form of punishment that occurs when something desirable is removed reinforcers - strengthen voluntary behaviour (pos = add good stimulus, neg = remove bad stimulus) punishment - weaken response (pos = add bad, neg = remove good) Difference between negative reinforcement and punishment: negative reinforcement - response stops the unpleasant stimulus punishment - unpleasant stimulus follows the behaviour * Effective punishment = brief, immediate and linked to the undesired behaviour in the mind of the person (or animal) being punished * It is only effective if positive behaviour can be developed to replace the negative behaviour

consider the role of the cerebellum in forming and storing implicit (procedural) memories

role of the cerebellum in memory: - the cerebellum activates the neural systems to retrieve a procedural memory - automatically perform tasks and motor skills without conscious thought - people with damage to the hippocampus can still form procedural memory * involved in motor skill memory - sends this to the motor cortex for storage * procedural (implicit) memories are encoded/processed and stored by the cerebellum * structures also involved - putamen, caudate nucleus other brain structures involved in memory: - Frontal lobes: Storage, processing and encoding of procedural memories; Episodic memory (a form of declarative memory); Memory for language and motor-skills tasks - Occipital lobes: Memory for pictures - Parietal lobes: Spatial memory (awareness of oneself in space) - Temporal lobes: Memory for sound and the names of colours - Hippocampus: Forming explicit memory; Consolidating and retrieving long-term declarative memories - Amygdala: Forms of long-term implicit memory including emotional memories such as recognising emotions in faces; Procedural memories such as skill learning and classical conditioning - Basal ganglia: Long-term procedural memory; Movement - Cerebellum: Encoding, processing and storing of procedural memories; Classically conditioned responses (a form of implicit memory); Memory for motor-skills tasks

for operant conditioning: describe stimulus generalisation and discrimination

stimulus generalisation - in operant conditioning, when behaviour is displayed because of a discriminative stimulus that is similar to the original stimulus discrimination in operant conditioning, when a behaviour stops being applied to similar situations and only to the discriminative stimulus (the pre-condition that indicates that behaviour will be reinforced)

discuss strategies to improve memory, including chunking, rehearsal (maintenance and elaborative) and mnemonics (e.g. the method of loci and SQ4R method — survey, question, read, recite, relate, and review)

strategies to improve memory: *chunking: - refers to the process of taking individual pieces of information (chunks) and grouping them into larger chunks to improve memory capacity - each chunk occupies one location in STM (frees up other locations - more info can be stored) - grouping each piece into a large who improves the amount you can remember and allows more info to be stored - context allows for easier memory recall (assists chunking) *rehearsal (maintenance and elaborative): - maintenance: reciting/recycling items in working memory by repeating them - prolongs the period of time info is stored in STM - repeating something often enough (thousands of times) transfer info to LTM - elaborative: linking/thinking about what the info means and how items are related to each other/things you already know - requires meaningful associations between new and old info into the LTM (creates cues to help retrieve from LTM) - salience = personal relevance *mnemonics: - systems that enable us to improve/strengthen memory by enhancing the ability to encode info into memory and retrieve it when needed - method of loci: a strategy of memory enhancement that uses visualisations of familiar spatial environments in order to enhance the recall of information - SQ4R method: identifies the components of active reading and provides a guide for navigating among them - survey, question, read, respond, record and review material - designed to help process and increase retention of written information