SPERRY Flashcards
Background (2 points)
- treatment for epilepsy, fits or seizures which occur when an electrical storm travels from one hemisphere of the brain to the other causing the entire brain to be effected
- the main region for connecting the left and right hemispheres is the Corpus Callosum
What is the Corpus Callosum
A large band of white matter located in the centre, when this is severed it can reduce and even prevent epilepsy in patients
AIM of Sperry (2)
-Investigate the effects of Commissurotomy (the severing of the corpus Callosum)
-and to show each hemisphere of the brain has different functions
SAMPLE of Sperry
Opportunity sample of 11 participants with epilepsy, all had previously undergone split brain surgery (comissurotomy) following severe epileptic seizures
METHOD of Sperry
Quasi experiment, took place in a laboratory using an independent measures design.
Compared split brained people with previous research on non split brained people
WHAT what the IV and DV
IV: whether or not the patients had a split brain
DV: performance of participants on the tactile and visual tasks
PROCEDURE of Sperry
Participants were seated in front of a screen and asked to focus on a cross in the middle of the screen. One eye was covered
Images were flashed on the screen each for 0.1 second, so that the eye only had time to process the image in the visual field, where was it placed.
The tasks test how the LH and RH respond to input from the left visual field and write visual field and left and right hand.
In addition to the experiment
Participants were also interviewed about every day effects
Visual and tactile task result
When an object is placed in the left-hand participants made wild gases and were unaware they were holding anything.
Name 2 conclusions from this study
Functions are lateralised in the brain
We have two streams of consciousness, each with their own memories, perceptions and impulses
