PSYC 241 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Autonomic Nervous System, Abnormal Psychology, Behaviorism

• School: Simon Fraser University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 241
• Professor: Shannon Zaitsoff

Document Summary

P s yc 241 we e k 2 (lec ture) G oals of a theoretic al p ers pec tive: explain etiology, (cid:498)what causes the disorder(cid:499, ex. a biological perspective would point to which areas of the brain you should look at, the genes behind, etc. In the past, theories explaining abnormal psychology have emphasized biological or environmental causes: the nature vs. nurture controversy, now moving away from single factor theories and towards interactionist explanations. B iolog ic al models: damage to the brain, neurotransmitters, autonomic nervous system (ans, endocrine system, genetics. S truc tural damag e to the b rain: some disorders have been linked to brain damage, damage can occur through, direct head injuries, ex: concussions. Production/release at the synapse: now we use a sort of interactionist model, lots of time one balances or counteracts another, dopamine pleasure-seeking and exploratory behaviours, serotonin constraint or inhibition of behaviours.