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Access Psychology
Tutor: Hannah Butler
[email protected]
Before we begin
• Register
• Essay title verification
• Moodle training
• Any questions/comments?
What will we learn today?
• The Biological approach to Psychology
• Nature versus nurture
• Brain structure and functions
The Biological approach to Psychology
• The biological perspective is a way of looking
at psychological topics by studying the
physical basis for animal and human behaviour.
• It is one of the major perspectives in
psychology, and involves such things as
studying the immune system, nervous system
and genetics.
• This field of psychology is often referred to
as biopsychology or physiological psychology.
• The biological perspective is relevant to the
study of psychology in three ways:
• 1. Comparative method: different species of
animal can be studied and compared.
• This can help in the search to understand
human behaviour.
• 2. Physiology: how the nervous system and
hormones work, how the brain functions, how
changes in structure and/or function can
affect behaviour.
• For example, we could ask how prescribed
drugs to treat depression affect behaviour
through their interaction with the nervous
system.
• 3. Investigation of inheritance: what an
animal inherits from its parents, mechanisms
of inheritance (genetics).
• For example, we might want to know whether
high intelligence is inherited from one
generation to the next.
• Each of these biological aspects, the
comparative, the physiological and the
genetic, can help explain human behaviour.
Basic assumptions
• Psychology should be seen as a science, to be
studied in a scientific manner (usually in a
laboratory).
• Behaviour can be largely explained in terms of
biology (e.g. genes/hormones).
• Human genes have evolved over millions of
years to adapt behaviour to the environment.
Therefore, most behaviour will have an
adaptive / evolutionary purpose.
Nature versus nurture
The nature versus
nurture debate is one of
the oldest issues in
psychology.
• This debate is about how much a
person’s life is determined by their
inherited genetics (their 'nature') and
how much is determined by the
environment they grow up in ('nurture').
• Nurture is the effect the people in your
life had on you growing up. An example
would be the values your parents taught
you.
• Nature is the genetics you received, like
eye colour.
• Read ‘nature versus nurture handout’
• Highlight key information
• Complete ‘nature versus nurture worksheet’
What do you think???
• For example, when a person achieves
tremendous academic success, did they do so
because they are genetically predisposed to
be successful or is it a result of an enriched
environment?
• What about homosexuality?
• What about serial killers?
Brain structure and functions
• Class reading
• Complete the ‘brain structure and functions’
work sheet
Homework
• Research and summarise the following
studies:
• Kaplan & Woodside (1987)
• Strober & Katz (1987
• Askevold & Heiberg
• Hollander et al (1984)