Review Sperry Casey and Practical Applications PDF

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Biological Psychology...

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Review of Sperry (1968) and Casey et al (2011) p242 Similarities/differences between Sperry and Casey - explain: 1. Brain structure to behaviour 2. Individual behaviour/character 3. Impact of research 4. Types of tasks 5. Sample 6. Type of study 7. Use of technology 8. Reductionist or holistic? 9. Brain abnormalities – what is the significance to these studies’ results? Theme 1. Matching brain structure to behaviour 2. How do our brains make us into the unique person that we are? 3. Impact of research

4. Both used contrived tasks 5. Sample 6. Type of study 7. Technology

8. Reductionist view of the brain. (Reducing complex things to something simpler) 9. Link between brain and behaviour not as simple as these two studies make it appear

Sperry RH/LH investigation

Two minds in one body – two streams of consciousness Influenced popular culture (film starring Keanu Reeves about living with a split brain) as well as neurobiology Only devised to be able to study unusual effects of split brain Small (11) snapshot Limited tech (tachistoscope) Sperry won a Nobel prize for his work on increasing our knowledge of the brain. Only looked at visual and tactile tasks (although did interviews as well) Personality can be affected by brain tumours (Charles Whitman)

Casey et al Regions of brain related to impulse control / resisting temptation What makes someone good at resisting temptation? Casey expanded on knowledge about the role of the frontal lobe.

Go/nogo doesn’t have high ecological validity either Original study over 600, this study 59/27 Longitudinal More advanced tech (fMRI) Scanning might not be as accurate as thought (See Bennet et al on scanning brains of dead fish) Reduced to looking at areas of the brain to do with impulse control.

People suffering with Hydrocephalus can still function

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Brain Plasticity Our Plastic brains  Plastic in the sense that it is malleable (able to change structure – like plasticine)  ‘Our brains renew themselves throughout life to an extent previously thought not possible.’ Michael Gazzaniga et al , 2013)  Scientists used o think that the brains developed up to a certain age and then became fixed until decline sets in.  However, we now know that the brain can respond to its environment by changing its structure.  Also, are brains are plastic to the extent they can reorganise to compensate for damage or injury.  Can occur to a lesser degree as an everyday response to learning new things. This happens throughout our lives.  Two areas that demonstrate plasticity are the visual cortex and the hippocampus. (Both this theme’s core studies investigate these areas.)

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