1
Q
evaluation of localisation and function in the brain
strengths
A
- brain scan evidence: Peterson et al used brain scans to show activity in wernkicks and broca. Tulving revealed semantic and episodic memories are located in different parts of the frontal cortext.
- neurological evidence: surgically removing or destroying airs of the brain. 44 OCD patients who had a cingulotomny at 32 week follow up 1/3 met successful response.
- case studies: unique cases of neurological damage such as phineas gage. personality changed frontal lobe responsible for regulating mood.
2
Q
evaluation of localisation and function in the brain
weaknesses
A
- contradictory research: Lashley suggested higher cognitive functions are not localised. removed between 10 and 50% of the cortex in rats learning a maze. no one area was more important. as learning requires every part of the cortex.
- neural plasticity. when the brain becomes damaged and function has been compromised or lost the rest of the brain is able to reorganise itself to recover the function. Lashley called this the law of equipotentiality other parts ot he brain chip in so the same action can be achieved. several documented cases of this.
3
Q
evaluation of plasticity and functional recovery
strengths
A
- practical application. understanding processes involved in plasticity contributed to neuro-rehabilitation. techniques include movement and electrical stimulation of the brain. at a point it the brain requires further intervention for functional recovery
- animal studies. Hubel and wiesel sewed one eye of a kitten shut and analysed the brain’s cortical responses. the area of the visual cortex associated continued to process information from the open eye. compensatory activity in the brain.
4
Q
evaluation of plasticity and functional recovery
limitations
A
- potential -ve consequences. maladaptive behavioural consequences. prolonged drug use result in poorer cognitive functioning and increased risk of dementia. 60 - 80% of amputees develop phantom limb syndrome due to reorganisation in the somatosensory cortex. not always beneficial.
- age ad plasticity relationship complex. functional recovery reduces with age. brain has a greater propensity for reorganisation in childhood as it constantly adapts to new experiences and learning. Bezzola et al demonstrated 40 years of golf training produced changes in the neural representation of movement in older people. does continue through life time.
- cognitive reserve. person’s educational attainment may influence how well the brain adapts. found the more time brain injury patients had spent in education the greater their chances of recovery.
5
Q
evaluation of split brain research into hemispheric lateralisation
strengths
A
- research shows laterlised brain functions. the left hemisphere is analytical and verbal (the analyser) and the right is adept at spatial tasks and music (the synthesiser). the right hemisphere can only produce basic words and phrases but contributed emotional content to language. distinction may be too simplified and several tasks associated with 1 hemisphere can also be carried out by the other.
- methodology. sperry used a carefully standardised procedure. participants stated at a fixed point with one eye. an image flashed up for 0.1 seconds so the patient had no time to move their eyes over the image. this allowed sperry to vary aspects of the basic procedure. well controlled procedure.
- started a debate about the nature of the brain. triggered a theoretical and philosophical debate about the nature of conscious and degree of communications. some suggest hemisphere are so functional different they represent a form of duality in the brain.
6
Q
evaluation of split brain research into hemispheric lateralisation
limitations
A
- generalisation. split brains patients are a very unusual sample of people. only 11 patients took part in all variations all had a history of seizures. this may have caused unique changes to the brain influencing the findings. the limits the extent to which the findings can be generalised to normal brains, reducing validity
- differences in hemispheric functions overstated. growing body of pop-psychological literature that oversimplifies and overstates the difference in functions between the 2 hemispheres. modern neuroscientists argue these distinctions are not all clear cut. may behaviours performed by one hemisphere can be performed by the other when required. the apparent flexibility of the 2 hemispheres suggests some of the conclusions drawn are too simplistic.
7
Q
evaluation of fMRI
A
- non invasive. unlike other scanning techniques does not rely on the use of radiation and is safe.
- it produces images with high spatial resolution showing detail by the millimetre. this means fMRI can provide a clear picture of how brain activity is localised.
- fMRI is expensive compared to other techniques and can only capture a clear image of a person if they stay still
- it has poor temporal resolution because of 5 second lag between initial neural activity and image. this means fMRI may not truly represent moment to moment brain activity
8
Q
evaluation of EEGs
A
- contributed to our understanding of the stages of sleep
- has extremely high temporal resolution. EEgs can detect brain activity at a resolution of a single millisecond.
- invaluable in diagnosing conditions such as epilepsy
- EEG produces a generalised signal from thousands of neurons. So it is difficult to know the exact source of neural activity. Cant distinguish between the activity of different but adjacent neurons.
9
Q
evaluation of ERPs
A
- ERPs are more specific than can be achieved using raw EEG data.
- they have excellent temporal resolution especially compared to fMRI
- lacks standardisation in methodology between studies. this makes it difficult to confirm findings in studies involving ERPs.
- background noise and extraneous material must be completely eliminated. this may not always be easy to achieve.
10
Q
post mortem evaluation
A
- Broca and Wernicke both relied on post mortem sutides.
- post mortem studies improve medical knowledge. they help generate hypotheses for further study.
- observed damage in the brain may not be linked to the deficits under review but to some other related trauma or decay.
- raise ethical issues of consent from the patient before death.
patients may not be able to provide informed consent.
11
Q
evaluation of circadian rhythms
strengths
A
- practical application to shift work. Shift workers experience a lapse of concentration around 6am so mistakes and accidents are ore likely, research suggested a link between shift work and poor health, with shift workers 3 time more likely to develop heart disease. thus research have economic implications.
- practical application to drug treatments. circadian rhythms coordinate the bodies basic processes with implications for pharmacokinetics.
12
Q
evaluation of circadian rhythms
limitations
A
- case studies and small sample sizes. use of small groups or single individual. participants not representative of wider population limiting meaningful generalisations. Siffre clock slower at 60. even when 1 person involved many factors prevent general conclusions
- poor control. participants deprived of natural light but still had artificial light assumed to have no effect. adjust circadian rhythm from 22 to 28 hours using dim lighting. artificial lighting confounding variable.
- individual differences. individuals vary from 13 to 65 hour cycles. some display natural preference for sleeping and rising early others vis versa. age effects sleep wake patterns. findings may not fully represent individual differences within population
13
Q
evaluation of infradian rhythms
A
- research on menstrual cycle shows evolutionary value. advantageous for females to menstruate together and become pregnant same time so offspring could be looked after collectively increasing survival. validity of this perspective produce competition for highest quality males lowing fitness of potential offspring. avoidance of synchrony would be adaptive evolutionary.
- limitation in methodology. factors that may change menstrual cycle as confounding variables. what we would expect to occur by chance. small sample, self reporting onset may be inaccurate. lack validity
- animal studies. role of pheromones of animal sexual behaviour well documented, evidence for the effect in humans is speculative and inconclusive
- practical application. SAD photo therapy stimulates strong light resetting melatonin levels. relieve symptoms in 60% if sufferers placebo effect of 30%. cast doubt on the value.
14
Q
evaluation of ultradian rhythms
A
- evidence support qualitatively different stages of sleep
monitored sleep patterns of 9 participants in sleep lav found evidence for stages of sleep. REM activity during sleep correlated with dreaming; brain activity varied according to how vivid the dreams were; when woken immediately they could accurately recall.
suggests REM sleep is a distinct ultraidan rhythm and is important component of the ultradian sleep cycle.
15
Q
evaluation of edogenous pacemakers
A
- research into SCN obscures other body clocks. body clocks (peripheral oscillators) are found in many organs and cells they are influenced by the SCN but act independently changing feeding patterns in mice altered circadian rhythms of cells in the liver by up to 12 hours, leaving SCN rhythm unaffected. many other complex influences.
- use of animals. hard to generalise findings because cognitive factors more significant in humans. ethics involved. exposed to great harm and potential risk. does benefits justify procedures used.
16
Q
evaluation of exogenous zeitgebers
A
- influence overstated. case of a man blind from birth with a 24.9 hour cycle. could not adjust to social cues so he took sedatives and stimulates. studies of people in Arctic regions show normal sleep patterns despite prolonged exposure to light.
- methodological issues. campbell and murphy’s study not been replicated some light exposure to participants eyes confounding variable. isolating one zietgeber does not give us insight into the many others. ignored and underplay the way these zeitgebers interact
- endogenous pacemakers and exogenous zeitgebers interact.
only in exceptional circumstances do pacemakers free run unaffected by zeitgebers. total isolation experiment are rare and present an unrealistic view. as they interact in real life it makes little sense to separate them
17
Q
evaluation of Wundt and introspeciton
A
- some aspects of method would be classified as scientific. e.g he recorded the introspection within a controlled lab environment he standardised his procedures.
forerunner to the latter scientific approaches in psych - other aspects unscientific: relied on participants self reporting mental processes. such data is subjective, untruthful and they may not have the same thoughts every time so establishing general principles is impossible.
18
Q
evaluation of emergence of psychology as a science
A
- claim to be scientific. some aims of the natural science to describe, understand, predict and control behaviour. so approaches rely on scientific method
- not all approaches use objective methods. humanistic approach is anti-scientific does not attempt to form any general laws. psycho-dynamic use of case study open to bio not representative. scientific approach to study of human experience not possible nor desirable difference between subject matter.
19
Q
evaluation of the behaviourist approach
strengths
A
+ gave psych scientific credibility: focused on carefully measurements observable behaviour in lab, importance of scientific process objectivity and replication, language and method of natural science to psych increasing credibility and status
+ real life applications: principles of conditioning applied to a broad range of behaviours and problems. Token economies. suitable treatment for patients who lack insight and not capable of talking about problems.
20
Q
evaluation of behaviour approach
limitations
A
- mechanistic views: animals seen as passive machines as responds to environment with little choice or insight. importance of mental events has a more active role in learning.
- environmental determinism. All behaviours determined by past experience. ignores free will as an illusion. Past conditioning history determines outcome.
- ethical and practical issues of animal research: although maintain high degree of control exposed to stressful and adverse conditions affect how they reacted reducing validity behaviour not normal.
21
Q
evaluation of social learning theory
strengths
A
- importance of cognitive factors: Behaviourism is not comprehensive because cognitive factors are emitted. storing info about behaviours to make judgements on when appropriate to perform. SLT is a more comprehensive explanation as it includes metitational processes.
- account for cultural differences: explains how children learn from individuals and media and how norms are transmitted. useful in understanding behaviour
- SLT less deterministic: emphasis reciprocal determinism we have influence on environment through behaviours we chose to perform. Free will. more realistic and flexible
22
Q
evaluation of social learning theory
Limitations
A
- over reliance on evidence from lab studies: Bandura watching kids in lab. contrived nature procedure produced demand characteristics as the purpose of the bobo doll is to hit it so kids behaving how they thought was expected of them. Can’t be applied to everyday life.
- underestimates biological factors influence: Bandura little reference to biological factors boys are more aggressive regardless of situation because more testosterone. these factors have important influence and is not accounted for in SLT.
23
Q
evaluation of the cognitive approach
strengths
A
- scientific and objective methods. employed highly controlled and rigorous methods lab experiments, to produce reliable, objective data. credible scientific basis.
- application to everyday life. applied to wide range of piratical and theoretical contexts contributions to AI and robots leading to exciting tech advances
- less deterministic. soft determinism recognise cognitive systems can only operate within certain limits but that we are free to think. more reasonable and flexible middle ground to free will. determinism debate
24
Q
evaluation of the cognitive approach
limitations
A
- machine reductionist: some similarities machine reductionism ignores influence of emotion and motivation on cognitive system and put ability to process info memory affected by emotional anxiety in eyewitness
- lacks external validity. only able to infer mental processes from behaviours they observe too abstract and theoretical. artificial stimuli like word lists not represent every day experience
25
evaluation of the psychodynamic approach strengths
- explanatory power. although controversial and bizarre had a huge influence used to explain a wide range of behaviours drew attention to the influence of childhood on adult personality. dominant approach for the first half of the 20th century
- piratical application: psychoanalysis therapy designed to asses unconscious mind using hypnosis suitable for mild disorders but inappropriate for more severe. forerunner to many modern day psychotherapies and talking therapies.
26
evaluation of the psychodynamic approach
| limitations
- case studies. ideas based on case studies not possible to make universal claims on human nature based on this. interpretation is highly subjective. lack scientific rigour
- un-falsifiable. cannot be proved or disproved as they occur on unconscious level. status of pseudoscience
- psychic determinism: behaviour determined by unconscious conflicts in childhood. Slip of tongues driven by unconscious forces with deep symbolic meaning. extreme determinism free will has no influence.
27
evaluation of humanistic approach
| strengths
- non reductionist. rejects attempts to break down behaviours into smaller components. advocates holism. has more validity by considering behaviour within real life context
- positive approach. praised for bringing the person back to psych promoting positive image of human condition . refreshing and optimistic alternative by seeing all people as basically good, free to work towards achievement of their potential and in control of their lives.
28
evaluation of humanistic approach
| limitations
- limited application. little impact within the disciple as a whole. may be due to lack of sound evidence- base approach describes as a lose set of concepts and not comprehensive.
- unstable concepts. vague ideas that are abstract un-falsifiable self actualisation and congruence. anti scientific and is short on empirical evidence to support its claims.
- cultural bias. ideas of individual freedom, autonomy and personal growth associated with an individualist culture. collective community, interdependence and needs of the group valued in a collectivist culture ignored.
29
evaluation of the biological approach
| strengths
- approach uses scientific methods. use a range of precise and highly scientific methods. scanning techniques and drug trials. accurately measure biological neural processes not open to basis. based on reliable data
- real life application. increased understanding of biochemical processes in the brain has led to the development pf psychoactive drugs to treat mental disorders. not effective for all patients. revolutionised. suffers are able to live a relatively normal life
30
evaluation of the biological approach
| limitations
- establishing cause and effect with neurotransmitters. role of them in mental illness come from studies show particular drugs reduce symptoms so it is assumed that the neurotransmitter is the cause. limitation because only a association exists
- deterministic. sees human behaviour as governed by internal biological causes of which we have no control. this is at offs with legal system. such research may have negative implications for wider society giving excuse
- nature v nurture. identical twins, non identical twins and members of the same family all have genetic similarities because they are genetically similar. however the fact that family members are exposed to similar environmental conditions is an important confounding variable.
Psychology A level
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