PSYC 3400 Chapter Notes - Chapter 2: Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Gerald Edelman, Donald O. Hebb

• School: Northeastern University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 3400
• Professor: William Sharp

Document Summary

Ancient egypt: wandering womb; shifts in location of the uterus caused female personality disorders- focus on causing hysteria, men were ignored, hippocrates supported this. Ancient greece: galen, four humors that align with four basic elements that created four temperaments (personality styles) Some variety of expression within particular personality styles, but only within the boundaries set by composition. Contemporary theories of personality: wandering wombs and humors have upgraded to molecules, chromosomes & neurotransmitters, but precise relationships between chemical constituents and observed behaviors still remain elusive, modern researchers investigate functions more than ingredients. Modern compositional theories: donald hebb 1985: cell assemblies. A group of neurons that develop into a functioning unit through repeated stimulation. Believed cell assemblies could vary in size. Each environmental object we experience res a cluster of neurons. Believed people are motivated to seek an optimal level of arousal- seek stimulation: gerald edelman 1992: neural darwinism. Neuronal group (cell assembly) as primary structural construct and added evolutionary element.