Localisation of function in the brain

Question 1

What did Broca and Wernicke discover?

Answer 1

That specific areas of the brain are associated with particular physical and psychological functions.

Question 2

Before investigations and the case of Phinneas Gage what did scientists support?

Answer 2

The holistic theory of the brain - all parts were involved in the processing of thought and action.

Question 3

What did Broca and Wernicke argue?

Answer 3

Localisation of function.

Question 4

What is localisation of function?

Answer 4

The idea that different parts of the brain perform different tasks and are involved in different parts of the body.

Question 5

What does localisation of function follow?

Answer 5

The idea that if a certain area of the brain becomes damaged through illness/ injury the function associated with that area will also be affected.

Question 6

What is the main part of the brain called?

Answer 6

The cerebrum

Question 7

What is the main part of the brain divided into?

Answer 7

Two symmetrical halves called the left and right hemisphere - lateralisation.

Question 8

What is activity on the left hand side of the body controlled by?

Answer 8

The right hemisphere.

Question 9

What is activity on the right hand side of the body controlled by?

Answer 9

The left hemisphere.

Question 10

What hemisphere is language linked to?

Answer 10

The let hemisphere.

Question 11

What is the cortex of both hemispheres subdivided into?

Answer 11

Four centres - lobes of the brain:
Frontal lobe
Parietal lobe
Occipital lobe
Temporal lobe

Question 12

What is a lobe?

Answer 12

Part of an organ that is separate in some way from the rest.

Question 13

What is each lobe associated with?

Answer 13

Different functions.

Question 14

What is at the back of the frontal lobe?

Answer 14

The motor area - controls voluntary movement in the opposite side of the body.

Question 15

What does damage to the motor area result in?

Answer 15

A loss of control over fine motor movements.

Question 16

What is at the front of both parietal lobes?

Answer 16

The somatosensory area.

Question 17

What is the somatosensory separated from the motor area by?

Answer 17

A ‘valley’ called the central suculus.

Question 18

What happens in the somatosensory area?

Answer 18

Sensory info from the skin is represented.

Question 19

What is the amount of somatosensory area devoted to?

Answer 19

A particular body part - receptors for our face and hands occupy over half of the somatosensory area.

Question 20

What is in the occipital lobe at the back of the brain?

Answer 20

The visual area.

Question 21

Where does each eye send info from?

Answer 21

From the right visual field to the left visual cortex and from the left visual field to the right visual cortex.

Question 22

What do the temporal lobes house?

Answer 22

The auditory area - analyses speech-based info.

Question 23

What might damage to the temporal lobe cause?

Answer 23

Partial hearing loss.

Question 24

What might damage to Wernicke’s area affect?

Answer 24

The ability to comprehend language.

Question 25

What is language restricted to?

Answer 25

The left side of the brain.

Question 26

What did Broca identify?

Answer 26

A small area in the left frontal lobe responsible for speech production.

Question 27

What does damage to Broca's area cause?

Answer 27

Broca's aphasia - speech that is slow, laborious and lacking in fluency.

Question 28

What do people with Broca's aphasia have difficulty with?

Answer 28

Prepositions and conjunctions.

Question 29

Where is Werncike's area?

Answer 29

In the left temporal lobe - responsible for language understanding.

Question 30

What happens when Wernicke's area is damaged?

Answer 30

Wernicke's aphasia - produce nonsense words as part of the content of their speech.

Question 31

Evaluation: Damage to areas of the brain has been linked to mental disorders.

Answer 31

One psychologist reported on 44 people with OCD who had undergone a cingulotomy. At post-surgical follow up after 32 weeks about 30% had met the criteria for successful response to the surgery and only 14% partial response.

Question 32

Evaluation: evidence from brain scans supports the idea that many everyday brain functions are localised

Answer 32

Petersen et al used brain scans to demonstrate how Wernicke's area was active during a reading task.

Question 33

Evaluation: Challenge to localisation theory

Answer 33

Lashley removed areas of the cortex in rats that were learning the route through a maze. No area was proven to be more important than the other. The process of learning seemed to require every part of the cortex rather than a particular area.

Question 34

Evaluation: Language may not be localised to just Broca's and Wernicke's area.

Answer 34

A review found only 2% of modern researchers think language in the brain is completely controlled by Broca and Wernicke's area. It also appears that language function is distributed more holistically in the brain than first thought.