1. What Is Biopsychology, Anyway?
Chapter 1
Biopsychology as a
Neuroscience
What Is Biopsychology, Anyway?

2. Four Major Themes 1. Thinking creatively about biopsychology
Base thinking on the evidence presented
But also “think outside the box”
2. Clinical implications
Study of diseased or damaged brains leads to new knowledge
New knowledge leads to new treatments

3. Four Major Themes Continued
3. The evolutionary perspective
Consideration of environmental pressures on human evolution
May use a comparative approach
4. Neuroplasticity
The brain is plastic, not static

4. What Is Biopsychology?
“The scientific study of the biology of behavior (psychology)”
Psychology: the scientific study of behavior
Also called psychobiology, behavioral biology, behavioral neuroscience
Biopsychology emerged as a discipline in the late 1940s

5. What Is Biopsychology? Continued`
Hebb (1949) proposed that psychological phenomena might be produced by brain activity
Hebb’s work helped discredit the notion that psychological functions were too complex to be derived from physiological activities

6. Biopsychology and Other Disciplines of Neuroscience
Biopsychology utilizes the knowledge and tools of other disciplines of neuroscience
Each discipline studies a different aspect of the nervous system that informs our understanding of what produces and controls behavior

7. Other Disciplines of Neuroscience
Neuroanatomy
Structure of the nervous system
Neurochemistry
Chemical bases of neural activity
Neuroendocrinology
Interactions between the nervous system and the endocrine system

8. Other Disciplines of Neuroscience Continued
Neuropathology
Nervous system disorders
Neuropharmacology
Effects of drugs on neural activity
Neurophysiology
Functions and activities of the nervous system

9. Biopsychological Research
Human and nonhuman subjects
Experiments and nonexperiments
Pure and applied research

10. Human and Nonhuman Subjects
Many questions about the biology of behavior are addressed using human subjects
However, much can be learned from studying the brains of other species
Species differences are often more quantitative than qualitative

11. Human and Nonhuman Subjects Continued
Why use nonhumans?
Simpler brains makes it more likely that brain-behavior interactions will be revealed
Comparative approach – gain insight by making comparisons with other species
Fewer ethical restrictions for nonhumans than with humans
although nonhuman research also requires extensive ethical oversight
Why use humans?
They can follow instructions
They make subjective reports
They are often cheaper to work with

12. Experiments and Nonexperiments
Experiments involve the manipulation of variables
In nonexperiments, the researcher does not control the variables of interest
Quasiexperimental studies
Case studies

13. Experiments and Nonexperiments Continued
Experiments involving living subjects require that subjects be placed in various conditions
Between-subjects design: Different group of subjects tested under each condition
Within-subjects design: Same group of subjects tested under each condition

14. Experiments and Nonexperiments Continued
The difference between the conditions is the independent variable
The effect of the independent variable is the dependent variable
A confounded variable is a variable that affects the dependent variable but is not controlled for

15. Experiments and Nonexperiments Continued
Control of confounded variables example: the Coolidge effect
Coolidge effect had been demonstrated in males—but does it occur in females?
The confounded variables: A female hamster may be more receptive to a new partner due to novelty or to his vigor (compared to the fatigued former partner)

16. FIGURE 1.3 The experimental design and results of Lester and Gorzalka (1988). On the third test, the female hamsters were more sexually receptive to an unfamiliar male than they were to the male with which they had copulated on the first test.

17. Experiments and Nonexperiments Continued
Quasiexperimental studies – studies of groups of subjects exposed to conditions in the real world
Not real experiments as potential confounded variables have not been controlled for

18. Experiments and Nonexperiments Continued
Case studies focus on a single individual, such as Jimmie G.
Usually more in-depth than other approaches, but may not be generalizable
Often a source of a testable hypothesis
Generalizability – the degree to which results can be applied to other cases

19. Pure and Applied Research
Pure research – conducted for the purpose of acquiring knowledge
Applied research – intended to bring about some direct benefit to humankind
Often research projects have elements of both

20. Divisions of Biopsychology
Six major divisions
Physiological psychology
Psychopharmacology
Neuropsychology
Psychophysiology
Cognitive neuroscience
Comparative psychology
Each has a different approach, but there is much overlap

21. Divisions of Biopsychology Continued
Physiological psychology
Neural mechanisms of behavior
Controlled experiments with direct manipulation of the brain
Psychopharmacology
Controlled experiments of the effects of drugs on the brain and behavior
Neuropsychology
Psychological effects of brain damage in humans
Usually has a clinical emphasis

22. Divisions of Biopsychology Continued
Psychophysiology
Relation between physiological activity and psychological processes
Example: visual tracking is abnormal in schizophrenics

23. FIGURE 1.4 Visual tracking of a pendulum by a normal control subject (top) and three schizophrenics. (Adapted from Iacono & Koenig, 1983.)

24. Divisions of Biopsychology Continued
Cognitive neuroscience
The neural bases of cognition
Functional brain imaging is the major method of
cognitive neuroscience

25. FIGURE 1.5 Functional brain imaging is the major method of cognitive neuroscience. This image—taken from the top of the head with the subject lying on her back—reveals the locations of high levels of neural activity at one level of the brain as the subject views a flashing light. The red and yellow areas indicate high levels of activity in the visual cortex at the back of the brain. (Courtesy of Todd Handy, Department of Psychology, University of British Columbia.)

26. Divisions of Biopsychology Continued
Comparative psychology
Comparing different species to understand evolution, genetics, and adaptiveness of behavior
Laboratory and/or ethological research

28. Converging Operations
Using multiple approaches to address a single question

29. Converging Operations
Example: Korsakoff’s syndrome
Korsakoff’s syndrome is a condition characterized by severe memory loss and most commonly seen in alcoholics
Is Korsakoff’s the result of the toxic effects of alcohol on the brain?

30. Converging Operations Continued
Jimmie G. – an alcoholic with Korsakoff’s syndrome
Korsakoff’s is also seen in malnourished persons who had little or no alcohol
Thiamine-deficient rats exhibit memory deficits
Alcohol accelerates the development of brain damage in thiamine-deficient rats

31. Converging Operations Continued
By exploring the possible causes of Korsakoff’s using multiple approaches, or converging operations, findings are more accurate
Korsakoff’s syndrome is the result of thiamine deficiency, but the damage is accelerated by alcohol

32. Scientific Inference
The empirical method that biopsychologists use to study the unobservable
Scientists measure what they can observe and use these measures as a basis for inferring what they can’t observe
Example: how does the brain “see” movement?

33. FIGURE 1.6 The perception of motion under four different conditions.

34. Critical Thinking
The ability to evaluate scientific claims by identifying potential omissions or weaknesses in the evidence

35. Critical Thinking Continued
Case 1: Delgado claims that a charging bull can be tamed by stimulation of its caudate nucleus
Exciting account reported in popular press
Many possible alternative explanations
Morgan’s Canon: give precedence to the simplest interpretation for a behavioral observation

36. Critical Thinking Continued
Case 2: Moniz wins Nobel Prize for prefrontal lobotomy
Adoption for human therapy based largely on study of a single chimpanzee
Inadequate postoperative evaluation of human patients, often by the physician who prescribed the surgery
Undesirable side effects such as amorality, lack of foresight, emotional unresponsiveness, epilepsy, and urinary incontinence

37. FIGURE 1.8 The prefrontal lobotomy procedure developed by Moniz and Lima.