Chapter 12 pt.1 Flashcards
Free will doesn’t explain why we act as we do.. so what does?
We do things that we find “rewarding”
How do brain circuits play a role in our behaviour?
Brain circuits increase or decrease activity in our brains, and signal reactions and feelings
What are “Androgens”?
hormones that are related to masculine characteristics, like sex drive
What are “Innate Releasing Mechanisms (IRMs)
A mechanism that detects sensory stimuli and directs an organism to do a specific action. They are present from birth
Blind children, can produce facial expressions, even when they haven’t seen them before. How is this so?
Because IRM’s aren’t learned, we are born with it (but experience can modify them)
The fact that the nervous system is often prewired to make some associations but not others has led to the concept of ___________.
preparedness
What neural structure is critical in producing motivated behaviour?
The hypothalamus, it receives projections from major subdivisions of the Nervous system
What are Regulatory Behaviours
behaviours motivated by an organisms survival (like eating and drinking/waste elimination/body temperature maintenance)
What are regulatory behaviours controlled by?
Homeostatic Mechanisms
What are Non-regulatory behaviours
opposite of regulatory behaviours, we do them but aren’t required to meet out basic survival needs, and isn’t controlled by homeostatic mechanisms (sex/parenting/reading)
What gland does the hypothalamus control?
Pituitary Gland
What are the 3 regions of the hypothalamus?
Lateral, Medial, and Periventricular
Which chemical contributes to the control of motivated behaviours, including eating and sex??
Dopamine (containing MFB fibers)
When is Oxytocin released?
During intimate moments
The hypothalamus controls the release of pituitary hormones, by producing what?]>
Releasing hormones
