biological individual differences

Question 1

Case studies

Answer 1

• 1 person is researched in detail
• tend to be focused on people with unusual history / characteristics

Question 2

Case studies - focuses on individual differences

Answer 2

• focuses on people with medical issues
• people who have had unusual experiences
• people who are researched to investigate why they behave differently

Question 3

Case studies - weaknesses

Answer 3

• not generalisable
• small sample size
• unique individual differences aren’t applicable to wider society

Question 4

how have case studies allowed us to understand brain function related to structure better - Phineas Gage

Answer 4

• metal pole through his head
• damaged his pre-frontal cortex
• personality changed from calm and responsible
• to impulsive and aggressive
• suggesting pre - frontal cortex is linked to self control and emotions

Question 5

Strength - case studies

Answer 5

• only focus on 1 person in a lot of detail
• so helps provide a greater understanding

Question 6

Weakness - case studies

Answer 6

• only focuses on 1 person
• can’t be generalised to wider population
• researcher bias = they get to know participant

Question 7

Individual differences affecting findings gathered from brain scans (Raine)

Answer 7

• murderers who pleaded NGRI had less activity on left side of the amygdala
• more activity on right side of amygdala
• less activity in pre-frontal cortex
• NGRI murderers had unusual conditions such as epilepsy which affects behaviour

Question 8

Pre - frontal cortex

Answer 8

• decision making

Question 9

Strengths - lab research

Answer 9

• Carefully controlled environment
• eliminates extraneous variables
• increasing internal validity

Question 10

Weaknesses - lab research

Answer 10

• low ecological validity
• don’t reflect real life situations
• not generalisable
• findings will not reflect how people behave in everyday environments
• limiting usefulness

Question 11

Freud - individual differences

Answer 11

• ID = energy which motivates all behaviour
• may not be easily controlled by ego
• leading to more aggression
• someones ego can’t mediate between ID & superego
• can’t control IDs impulses = more aggression
• Superego is too big

Question 12

Ego

Answer 12

• tries to balance ID and superego
• follows reality principle

Question 13

Strengths - Freud

Answer 13

• Applications
• Ethics

Question 14

Applications - Freud

Answer 14

• reducing aggression
• catharsis
• releasing psychic energy to reduce aggression, preventing build up of energy
• finding harmless alternatives to aggression

Question 15

Freud - ethics

Answer 15

• Found more ethical mental health treatments
• Provided solutions at the time which were unavailable

Question 16

Weaknesses - Freud

Answer 16

• no scientific methods
• data was mainly qualitative and personal
• theories lack generalisability due to unique nature of patients he studied