Biopsych: Localisation of function

Question 1

What is localisation of function

Answer 1

Refers to the belief that specific areas of the brain are associated with specific cognitive processes.

Question 2

What’s brain lateralisation?

Answer 2

the theory that some physical and psychological functions are controlled by a particular hemisphere (the left or the right). The left hemisphere controls the right side of the body and the right hemisphere controls the left side of the body.

Question 3

What connects the 2 hemispheres?

Answer 3

corpus callosum

Question 4

What are the 4 lobes in each hemisphere?

Answer 4

Frontal – front
Parietal – top
Occipital – back
Temporal – bottom

Question 5

Where’s the motor cortex located?

Answer 5

Frontal lobe

Question 6

What does the motor cortex do?

Answer 6

controls the voluntary motor movements in the body.

Both hemispheres have a motor cortex, the right hemisphere’s motor cortex controls the muscles in the left side of the body and vice versa.

Different parts of the motor correct control different parts of the body and are arranged logically next to each other e.g., the region that control the foot is next to the region that controls the leg.

Question 7

Where’s the somatosensory cortex located?

Answer 7

Next to motor cortex in the parietal lobe

Question 8

What does the somatosensory cortex do?

Answer 8

Using sensory information from the skin, the somatosensory cortex it produces sensations of touch, pressure, pain and temperature, which it localises to specific body regions.

The number of neurones in the somatosensory cortex differs depending on body past e.g., there are many more neural connections dedicated to processing information from the hands then the ankles as people more commonly feel things with their hands.

Question 9

Where’s the visual cortex located?

Answer 9

Occipital lobe

Question 10

What does the visual cortex do?

Answer 10

responsible for processing visual information from the eyes.

The visual cortex is contra lateral – the right hemisphere processes info from the left of a person’s visual field of vision in both eyes and vice versa.

So, damage to the visual cortex in the right hemisphere may make it difficult for a person to perceive objects to the left of them.

Question 11

Where’s the auditory cortex located?

Answer 11

Temporal lobe

Question 12

What does the auditory cortex do?

Answer 12

Responsible for processing sound.

The auditory cortex is also contra lateral – the right hemisphere processes sound from a person’s left ear and vice versa. Damage to the auditory cortex from the left hemisphere may cause hearing difficulties in a persons right ear.

Question 13

Where’s the Broca’s area located

Answer 13

Frontal lobe

Question 14

What does the Broca’s area do?

Answer 14

main area of speech production. The Broca’s area was identified by Pierre Broca in the mid 19th Century. From post-mortem autopsies, Broca observed that patients who had difficulty producing words also had lesions (damage) to this area. Damage to the Broca’s area is called Broca’s aphasia which is a condition characterised by slow speech, lack of fluency and an inability to find the right words. Despite difficulties with speech people with Broca’s aphasia often have normal language comprehension – they understand what others are saying to them.

Question 15

Where is the Wernicke’s area located?

Answer 15

Temporal lobe

Question 16

What does the Wernicke’s area do?

Answer 16

primarily responsible for language comprehension (both written and spoken). Damage to the Wernicke’s area is called Wernicke’s aphasia. Patients with Wernicke’s aphasia typically have no problem with producing speech but the content of that they say often lacks clarity.

Question 17

What’s the 4 AO3 points for localisation of function

Answer 17

+Research evidence
+Case study
-Neural plasticity weakens the credibility of localisation
-Culture bias

Question 18

(+AO3) What’s the research evidence for localisation of function?

Answer 18

Peterson et al. provided brain scan evidence of language centres. fMRI/ PET scans monitored activity of the Wernicke’s and Broca’s areas during listening and reading tasks. Activity in the Wernicke’s area during the listening task and activity in the Broca’s area when reading. This provides evidence that different areas of the brain are responsible for different functions.

Question 19

(+AO3) What’s the case study for localisation of function?

Answer 19

Phineas Gage suffered brain damage in an accident – pole through part of his frontal lobe. He survived but his personality was affected by his injury. Before the accident he was calm and reserved and became quick-tempered and rude. This suggests that the frontal lobe is responsible for mood regulation. Further reinforcing that different areas of the brain are responsible for different functions.

Question 20

(-AO3) How does neural Plasticity weakens the credibility of localisation theory

Answer 20

One part of the brain becomes damaged so, it’s function is lost. Other areas of the brain coordinate to carry out the lost function. E.g. stroke victims recovering cognitive abilities despite damage to specific areas of the brain. Suggests they functions aren’t as localised as suggested.

Question 21

(-AO3) How is localisation of function culturally biased?

Answer 21

Majority of research into localisation of function is western and conducted by western researchers, participants and equipment institutions (both brain scans and post-mortem. Usually studying biology is universal but it’s been suggested that language is processed differently in different cultures. The brain may be a feature of physiology that varies between culture and therefore, research into localisation of function is less applicable due to culture bias. More research is needed.