1. Chapter 1 Biopsychology as a Neuroscience

2. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon What Is Biopsychology? “The scientific study of the biology of behavior” Also called psychobiology, behavioral biology, behavioral neuroscience Psychology: the scientific study of behavior `

3. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon What Is Biopsychology? (continued) Hebb (1949) proposed that psychological phenomena might be produced by brain activity Biopsychology takes an eclectic approach based on experiments, case studies, observation, and inference `

4. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon Biopsychology and Other Disciplines of Neuroscience Knowledge from other disciplines of neuroscience is applied to the study of behavior Each discipline studies a different aspect of the nervous system that informs our understanding of what produces and controls behavior

5. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon Other Disciplines of Neuroscience Neuroanatomy Structure of the nervous system Neurochemistry Chemical bases of neural activity Neuroendocrinology Interactions between the nervous system and the endocrine system

6. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon Other Disciplines of Neuroscience (continued) Neuropathology Nervous system disorders Neuropharmacology Effects of drugs on neural activity Neurophysiology Functions and activities of the nervous system

7. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon Biopsychological Research: Three Major Dimensions Human and nonhuman subjects Experiments and nonexperiments Pure and applied research

8. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon Human and Nonhuman Subjects While some questions about behavior can only be addressed using human subjects, much can be learned from studying the brains of other species Species differences are more quantitative than qualitative

9. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon Human and Nonhuman Subjects (continued) Why use nonhumans? Simpler brains makes it more likely that brain-behavior interactions will be revealed Comparative approach – gain insight by making comparisons with other species Fewer ethical restrictions than with humans Why use humans? They can follow instructions They can report their introspections They’re cheaper

10. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon Experiments and Nonexperiments Experiments involve the manipulation of variables In nonexperiments, the researcher does not control the variables of interest Quasiexperimental studies Case studies

11. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon Case studies focus on a single individual, such as Jimmie G. Usually more in-depth than other approaches, but may not be generalizable Generalizability – the degree to which results can be applied to other cases Experiments and Nonexperiments (continued)

12. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon Divisions of Biopsychology Six major divisions Physiological psychology Psychopharmacology Neuropsychology Psychophysiology Cognitive neuroscience Comparative psychology Each has a different approach, but there is much overlap

13. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon Divisions of Biopsychology (continued) Physiological psychology Neural mechanisms of behavior Direct manipulation of the brain Psychopharmacology Effects of drugs on the brain and behavior Neuropsychology Psychological effects of brain damage in humans

14. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon Psychophysiology Relation between physiological activity and psychological processes Example: visual tracking in schizophrenics Divisions of Biopsychology (continued)

15. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon Cognitive neuroscience – the neural bases of cognition Functional brain imaging is the major method of cognitive neuroscience

16. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon Comparative psychology Comparing different species to understand evolution, genetics, and adaptiveness of behavior Divisions of Biopsychology (continued)

17. Copyright © 2009 Allyn & Bacon

18. Scientific Inference The empirical method that biopsychologists use to study the unobservable Scientists measure what they can observe and use these measures as a basis for inferring what they can’t observe