Psy 4200: Physiological Psychology

• Read the syllabus! (this is just a summary)

• Pre-requisites Psych 4000 (Statistics) and Psych 4050 (Research Methods)

• Course Website: (here)– power-point presentations of the lectures, – Weekly study questions, – useful links, etc.

10th edition 9th edition

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/images/0205548741/ref=dp_image_0?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books

Outline

• Doctrine of specific nerve energy

• Mind-body problem

• Physiological Psychology: Scope, definitions, & examples

If I were to touch the auditory system in your brain– would you 'hear' my hand? or – would you feel my hand?

In other words, • Is the subjective sensory experience dependent

– on the sensory system stimulated? or– on the stimulating stimulus?

- Provide real life examples to support your claim- Be ready to defend/articulate your claim

Group activity

Retina --> Nerve --> Brain/ Mind --> See

Detached BlindStrokeMultiple Sclerosis

Body .

Mind

Retina --> Nerve --> Brain/ Mind --> See

ElectricalStimulation

LSDSchizophreniaDreamsMigraine

Rub youreyes Hallucination

Body .

Mind

Retina --> Nerve --> Brain/ Mind --> See

- the path may be altered. - physiologically (i.e. normal), - pathologically (i.e. abnormal), and - experimentally

-The same is true for other paths (e.g. phantom limbs)

Detached Blind

ElectricalStimulation

LSDSchizophreniaDreamsMigraine

StrokeMultiple Sclerosis

Rub youreyes Hallucination

Body .

Mind

Phantom limb: feeling ‘touch’ in the amputated limb

Somatosensory Cortex Skin surface

“Whoa! That was a good one! Try it, Hobbs – just poke his brain right where my finger is”

Retina --> Nerve --> Brain/ Mind --> See

Body .

Mind

Suggested reading: ‘worse than creationism’ P. Bloom

• The doctrine of specific nerve energy states that the subjective experience depends on the specific nerve stimulated, not the stimulus.

• The same nerve can be stimulated by different stimuli (e.g. pressure, light)

• Functions are localized in the brain

• The brain affects the mind

Conclusions

Physiological Psychology

Body/Brain Behavior (Mind)

how you can affect behavior by manipulating the body?(give specific examples)

Group activity

Physiological Psychology

Body/BrainBehavior (Mind)

how does the psychological experience affects the body?(give specific examples)

Group activity

Physiological Psychology: Contributing Fields

the 'mind - body' problem

• Physiological Psychology:

– It investigates how the brain implements the mind

– Assumes that mental activity has a biological basis– (behaviors, emotions, thoughts, desires, are the result of physical processes).

• Philosophy of mind

– It questions whether the brain implement the mind

– Does mental activity have a biological basis? And how is that possible? This is the:

The Mind-Body Problem: How are physical brain events and mental experiences

related?

There are two sides to this debate• Dualism – the brain and mind are related but separate

• Materialism (monism)- the brain and mind are the same ‘the mind is what the brain does’

Recommended book: Matter and Consciousness, by Paul M. Churchland