PSYC 111 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: American Psychological Association, Parasympathetic Nervous System, Sympathetic Nervous System
18 Jun 2018
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Key elements of an experiment
procedural issues
Blindness: the participant is unaware of their specific treatment condition
Double blindness: both the experimenter and the participant are unaware of the
treatment condition
Randomization: participants are randomly assigned to treatment groups
Sampling and generalization
Sample: the group from which the researcher obtains the measures or observations
Population: the entire set of relevant people or animals
Selecting participants for a research study
Control geography, ethnic makeup
Samples must be representative in order to make accurate inferences
Validity of research
Internal validity: the degree to which an experiment supports clear casual conclusons
External validity:the degree to which the experimental results can be generalized to
other populations, settings, and conditions
Reliability: a study is reliable if it yields the same result when repeated
Threats to validity
Demand characteristics: cues that people use to determine how they are supposed to
behave
Confounding variable: an unconc=trolled or extraneous variable accounts for the
eserimental finding ratthet than the independent variable
Bias: occurs when preivious belifs expectations or habits alter the participants responses
or affect the design of a study
Subject bias
Experimenter bias
Response bias
Sampling bias
Ethics in research
Instituational review board
Human subjects – informed consent
Animal subjects – instituational animal care and use committee
Conducting ethical research
Guidelines by the American Psychological Association (APA)
Neurons
Three main parts
Cell body
axons
dendrites
Nerve connection
Resisting potential
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The action potential
Depolarization
All or none principle
Ions pass through channels in the cell membrane
Nerve conduction
Neurons have a resisting potential of -70 milivolts, creating a state of polarization
Neurons are surrounded by a salty liquid environment which has a high
concentration of sodium ions and chloride ions
The inside of the neuron has some positively charges potassium ions and many other
negatively charges ions called anions
Deactivation of neurotransmitters
Degradation: other chemicals in the synapse break down neurotransmitters into
their chemical components
Specific neurotransmitter systems
Acetylcholine: involved in memory and muscle activity
Dopamine: involved in motor movement and addiction
Serotonin: enhances mood, eating, sleeping and sexual behavior
Epinephrine/norepinephrine: involved in arousal and responses to stress
Endorphins: reduce pain and increase feeling of well-being
General actions of drugs
Agonists: mimic the action of a neurotransmitter
Antagonists: bind to a receptor but do NOT activate it. They BLOCK the action of a
neurotransmitter
Reuptake inhibitors” allow transmitters to remain in the synapse longer
Enzyme inhibitors: block emzymes that would normally degrade transmitters
The Nervous Sysrem
Three types of neurons
Sensory: carry input messages from the sense organs to the spinal cord and brain
Motor: transmit impulses from the brain and spinal cord the the muscles and organs
Interneurons: perform connective or associative functions in the nervous system
Organization
Central nervous system
Peripheral nervous system
Somatic nervous system: consists of sensory and motor neurons that work
together and coordinate voluntary actions
Autonomic nervous system: controls glands and smooth muscles in bodily organs
Sympathetic nervous system: arouses the body
Parasympathetic nervous system: slows down body processes
Studying the brain
Destruction or surgical removal of neurons
Simulation of neurons
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By electrical current or chemicals
Neuropsychological tests
Electrical recording (EGG)
Brain imaging
CT scans
Beam of x-rays takes pictures of narrow slices of the brain
PET scans
Measure brain activity, including metabolism, blood flow, and neurotransmitter
activity
MRI: used to study brain structure and activity
fMRI: allows for studying brain function as people perform various tasks
Brain structure
Hindbrain
Pons: carries nerve impulses from higher too lower parts of the nervous system
Cerebellum: coordinates fine motor control, some learning/ memory – walking and
balance
Medulla: plays role in vital body functions like heart rate and breathing
Midbrain
Reticular formation: involved in brain arousal, sleep and attention
Ascending: sending information to and alerts higher brain regions
Projections to the brain
Descending: higher brain centers can admit or block sensory input
Nucleus sending signals though the spinal cord
Thalamus and Hypothalamus
Thalamus: routes sensory information to higher brain structures
Hypothalamus:
Major role in motivation and emotions
Connects with the endocrine system
Involved in pain and pleasure
The Limbic system
Helps to coordinate behaviors needed to satisfy motivational and emotional
urges arising in the hypothalamus
Also involved in memory
Regions of Cortex (outer layer of the brain)
Motor cortex
Controls voluntary muscular movements
Association cortex
Involved in perception, language and thought
Sensory cortex
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Document Summary
Blindness: the participant is unaware of their specific treatment condition. Double blindness: both the experimenter and the participant are unaware of the treatment condition. Randomization: participants are randomly assigned to treatment groups. Sample: the group from which the researcher obtains the measures or observations. Population: the entire set of relevant people or animals. Samples must be representative in order to make accurate inferences. Internal validity: the degree to which an experiment supports clear casual conclusons. External validity:the degree to which the experimental results can be generalized to other populations, settings, and conditions. Reliability: a study is reliable if it yields the same result when repeated. Demand characteristics: cues that people use to determine how they are supposed to behave. Confounding variable: an unconc=trolled or extraneous variable accounts for the eserimental finding ratthet than the independent variable. Bias: occurs when preivious belifs expectations or habits alter the participants responses or affect the design of a study.
