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Biological Bases of Behavior
Mrs. HensleyAP Psych 2014
Why are psychologists concerned with human biology?
• Everything psychological is simultaneously biological”– We think, feel, and act with our bodies.
1800s: Franz Gall invented phrenology (a popular theory that claimed that bumps on the skull reveal our mental abilities and our character traits.
-Although bumps on our skull reveal nothing about the brain’s underlying functions, Gall was accurate in supposing that various brain regions have particular functions.
-We are composed of subsystems, tiny cells organize to form body organs, and these systems are even part of a larger system-THE INDIVIDUAL, who in turn is part of a family, culture, and community.
-We are BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL systems!
Neural and Hormonal Systems
Will Explain Why We FEEL……
Pain
Strong
Sick
Nervous
It all Starts with the Neuron
Describe the parts of a neuron.• Neuron: consists of a cell body and branching fibers• Dendrite: receive information from sensory receptors (or other
neurons)• Axon: send information to other neurons• Sensory Neurons: send information to body’s tissues and sensory
organs inward to the brain and spinal cord (which processes information)
• Motor Neurons: carry outgoing information from the central nervous system to the body’s tissues.
• Interneurons: communicate internally and intervene b/n the sensory inputs and the motor outputs
• Myelin sheath: helps speed impulses
Neuron Structure
Neurons do NOT touch each other- the space in between is call the synapse.
How Neurons Communicate