Localisation Of Function And Hemispheric Lateralisation Flashcards
What is localisation
Theory that specific areas of the brain are associated with particular physical and psychological functions
What are the 4 lobes of the brain
Frontal lobe
Parietal lobe
Occipital lobe
Temporal lobe
What is hemispheric lateralisation
The dominance of one hemisphere of the brain for particular physical and psychological functions
Motor cortex
Responsible for generation of voluntary motor movements
Located in frontal lobe
Both hemispheres of the brain have a motor cortex - contralateral
Somatotopically organised
Somatosensory cortex
Detects sensory events arising from receptors
Located in parietal lobe
Produces sensations of touch, pressure, pain and temperature
Contralateral
Somatotopically organised
Visual cortex
Primary visual centre
Located in occipital lobe
Visual processing - retina - light enters - strikes photoreceptors - transmitted to brain via optic nerve
Contralateral
Different areas process different visual info - colour , shape , movement
Research into damage of visual cortex
Hurovitz et al -
Found that damage to area VI leads to complete loss of all vision including visual imagery in dreams
Auditory cortex
Concerned with hearing
Located in temporal lobes in both hemispheres
Auditory process is contralateral
Auditory pathways - begin in cochlea - sound waves converted to nerve impulses - travel to brain stem - move to thalamus - move to auditory cortex
Damage = difficulties in processing and understanding sounds
What does contralateral mean
Right controls left and left controls right
Whene is the left hemisphere more active
Maths skills
Problem solving
Logic
When is the right hemisphere more active
Musical ability
Creativity / arts
Non verbal cues
Broca’s area
Speech production
Werncickes area
Understanding language
What happens when there is damage to both werncikes and Broca’s area
Global aphasia
Split brain patients
Had connection between left and right hemispheres severed
Corpus collossum has been cut
Cerebral commissurotomy
