Read the summary and the most important questions on Psychology

• BLOA

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• Why do researchers working at the BLOA conduct research on animals?

  Because they believe that results from animal research may be relevant to humans.

• Which of the three principles of the BLOA sees humans' mental processes as visible in their brain activity?

  There are biological correlates to behaviour.

• BLOA Principles and research

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• Patterns of behaviour can be inherited

  • Minnesoty Twin Family Study

  
  On going correlational study investigating concordance rates between twins on measures of personality, temperament, intelligence,...
  

  • Bouchard et al. (1990)

  
  Shows how psychological variations in intelligence and personality might be explained by variations in genetics.
  

  • Scarr and Weinberg (1976)

  
  Investigated IQ and intelligence in black children adopted into white families and found that IQ was shaped by the environment more so than genes.

• There are biological correlates to behaviour (correlation between biology and behaviour)

  • Rogers and Kesner (2003)

  
  Suggests that the neurotransmitter acetylcholine influences spatial memory.
  

  • Newcomer et al. (1999)

  
  Cortisol appears to inhibit memory. 
  

  • Minnesota Twin Study (correlational study)

• Non-human animal research may inform understanding of human behaviour

  • Rogers and Kesner (2003)

  
  Laboratory experiment, using rats to investigate the role of acetylcholine in memory formation.
  Concluded that acetylcholine plays an important role in creating memory. This result has been generalised to humans and other researches (Alzheimer research,...)
  

  • Hans Selye's pioneering research on stress was built from research on rats and their physiological responses to persistent stress.

• Which part of the brain processes the meaning of language?

  
  Wernicke's area
  
  
  Explanation:
  Broca's area processes the structure of language and Wernicke's area processes the meaning. Both are in the left hemisphere of the brain.  A person with an injury in Wernicke's area has difficulty understanding speech and when they speak they produce a string of words with the rhythm of speech but with no meaning.  A person with an injury in Broca's area understands speech but has difficulty producing it.

• BLOA Methods

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• Research methods in BLOA

  Suited to investigation
  

  • experimantal methods
    
  • quasi-experiments
  • correlational studies
  • case studies
  • others

  
  No matter which method is used, there's usually a clear connection between the principle, the research question, and the research method.

• What is the relationship between principles, questions and research methods?

  Principles generate questions that are answered through using certain research methods.
  
  Explanation:
   "a fundamental truth or proposition that serves as the foundation for a system of belief or behaviour or for a chain of reasoning"  Therefore the nature of our beliefs concerning human behaviour underpins the type of questions we ask, and the methods we use to answer them.

• Why might a researcher at the BLOA use a case study approach?

  The case study approach allows the researcher to use interviews, observations, notes over a long period of time to investigate human behaviour, so it gives a very well-rounded and indepth analysis and picture.
  
  
  
  
  Explanation:
  The case study approach is a holistic approach. Researchers use triangulation of methods (more than one method) to gain as complete a picture as possible of a person, or occasionally a group or organization. It originated in clinical medicine.

• BLOA Ethical considerations

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• Genetic research (ethical considerations)

  raises some major issues related to confidentiality