Epy Topic 5 Notes
Epy Topic 5 Notes
5.1 Introduction
In this lecture, we are going to look at the controversy that existed among
psychology. We shall also discuss the nervous system and see how it
affects our behaviour. In our discussion we shall examine the major
divisions of the nervous system; the central nervous system (CNS), which
consists of the brain and spinal cord and the peripheral nervous system
(PNS), which consists of the nerves in the body outside the central
Learning Activity:
Which one do you think is more important than the other in determining
environment.
5.2 Learning Outcomes
At the end of this lecture, you should be able to:
• Explain the nature versus nurture controversy.
• Explain how heredity and environment interact to determine human behaviour.
• Give the implication of the nature versus nurture debate on the learning process.
• Explain how neurons convey electrochemical information throughout the body.
• Discuss how the two major divisions of the peripheral nervous system initiate
bodily activity and regulate body functions.
• Identify the major structures of the brain and state their role in behaviour.
• Explain the role of hormones in human behaviour.
structures containing genes and are found in the nuclei of body cells.
interaction between the forces of nature and nurture. Therefore, the total
Learning Activity:
Give a brief explanation of how heredity determines various traits
a very high inherited academic potential will not achieve high grades
unless he or she is exposed to an ideal and conducive learning
and radiation through x-ray can result to malformation of the baby, low
nutrition, parents, disease, learning and school. In the early years of life,
the most important influence comes from an infant’s caretaker. Thus the
heredity does not change, but produces various physical changes that
Learning Activities:
traits.
such as, attitudes, beliefs, prejudice, interest and values. The real issue in
of contribution of each.
a policing point of view, the most important thing to learn is that many of
environment for our police force to enable them realize their full potential
revealed that:
develop from the same egg) are exceptionally high when raised
correlations.
• The correlation between the IQ scores of a child and its mother is the
same as the correlation between the IQ score of the child and its father.
biological parents.
(Bourchard, 1984).
The human nervous system, especially the brain is highly developed and
constituting the brain and spinal cord; and peripheral which includes
nerves outside the central nervous system serving muscles, glands and
The Neuron
This is the basic unit of the nervous system (a single nerve cell). Neurons
the level of the neuron. A neuron has three basic features: dendrites, cell
body and an axon. Neurons in different parts of the nervous system may
differ in size and shape but they all have the three major parts.
The dendrites receive information from other neurons. Each neuron may
several functions;
between the soma and the axon. This action potential travels down and
branches into the axon terminal buttons. These terminal buttons form
junctions with other neurons and with muscles, which in turn are activated
Neurons do not touch one another. They are separated by a gap between
gap, the space between the two cells. Neurotransmitters are chemicals
1995).
Learning Activity:
Psychoactive drugs (drugs that affect the nervous system like alcohol or
The peripheral nervous system (PNS) connects the central nervous system
to the rest of the body. It includes all the nerves going to and from the
brain and the spinal cord. It serves to transmit neural impulses to and
from the brain and the spinal cord. It consist of two systems, the somatic
and the autonomic nervous systems. The two divisions work jointly with
voluntary actions. For example, when you move your hand when writing,
the somatic nervous system sends neural impulses to and from the brain
with instructions for the skeletal muscles to contract or relax.
involuntary responses.
The autonomic nervous system is made up of two systems, the
relaxed, non-stressful physical and mental state. It slows the heart rate,
over when a person is under some type of stress, or some type of mental
deal with the source of stress. In other words, it prepares the body to fight
or flee from whatever is causing the stress or anxiety. When you feel very
tense and anxious when taking a very important examination or being
interviewed for a job, the sympathetic nervous system is the one that
would be responsible for such feelings. When the crisis is settled, the
During combat, the sympathetic nervous system will be active and when
the combat is over and the threat from the enemy is no more, the
branches
contractions
The central nervous system consists of the brain and the spinal cord. The
brain is the control centre for all voluntary behaviour (such as writing,
for reflex actions and the nerve fibres that link the brain and other parts
of the body.
(a) The spinal cord
It is the part of the nervous system found within the spinal column which
is involved in reflexes and the relay of neural information to and from the
brain. It is involved in all the voluntary and reflex responses of the body
The spinal cord has two major components, the grey matter and white
matter. The grey matter near the centre contains mainly cell bodies within
which information is processed within the spinal cord itself. The white
matter is the outer layer of the spinal cord. Within the white matter, axons
transmit information to and from the brain. When damaged, all muscles
served by sections of the spinal cord below the damaged part will not
Learning Activity:
As you read through this section draw a table with two columns and
indicate in one column the various parts of the brain and in the other
As we have seen, the brain is the control centre for the body. It controls
what we do, think and feel. The human brain is complex and highly
developed as compared to that of other animals. This accounts for the
are the cerebrum, consisting of the cerebral cortex and sub cortical areas,
the cerebellum and the brain system.
The cerebral cortex makes the outside surface of the brain. It is the largest
structure of the brain and accounts for more than 70 percent of the
neurons in the central nervous system. It is composed of two hemispheres
sides control opposite sides of the body. The right half mainly controls
the left body areas. The left half mainly controls the right side of the body.
areas which controls all voluntary body movements. For example, when
you remove your pen from your bag, it is the motor control area of the
frontal lobes that guide your hand.
A specialized area in the left frontal lobe on the surface of the brain near
the bottom of the motor control area is the broca’s area, which controls
the muscles used to produce speech. The remaining part consists of
The parietal lobes are located behind the frontal lobes. They control body
lobes.
The occipital lobes are located at the back of the brain. They mainly
control vision and visual perceptions. When you are hit at the back of your
head with your eyes closed you will see stars or flashes of light. This is
because the blow activates the nerve cells in the occipital lobes. Damage
The sub cortical brain areas are found in the centre of the brain and are
limbic system.
case, each hemisphere will have its own sensations, perceptions and
concepts. For example, if one sees or learns something with one eye and
blindfolds it and uses the other, the second eye will not recognize what
was seen or learned. However, in conflict one side overrides the other and
The thalamus is located below the corpus callosum and between the two
hemispheres. It serves as the major sensory relay centre for the brain. It
receives input from nearly all the sensory system, and then projects this
out and directs information from the sensory organs to specific sensory
and motor regions of the brain. The thalamus also plays a role in learning
memories.
send signals to the pancreas to produce insulin that will bring it down to
the required level. It is a master control centre for emotion and other basic
motives. The hypothalamus controls behaviours such as sexual response,
amygdala, septum, parts of the thalamus and parts of the frontal and
The brain stem consists of the pons, medulla and the reticular activating
is important for attention and arousal. This part of the brain is also
As you have seen in this lecture, behaviour is a complex process that has
its roots in the interaction between heredity and environment and also the
nervous and endocrine systems. The more you learn about the influence
system the more you will understand why people behave the way they do.
Learning Activity:
As you read through this section draw a table with three columns and
indicate in one column the various endocrine glands and in the second
column indicate the hormones/chemicals they secrete and in the third
into the blood stream. The nervous system and the endocrine system
work together to direct our behaviour and maintain our body’s normal
secrete hormones which are passed into the blood stream which circulates
them throughout the body. These hormones affect behaviour and the
nervous system itself. These glands include the pituitary, thyroid, adrenal,
It is located at the base of the brain. One of the major hormones produced
by the pituitary gland is the growth hormone which controls the growth
is also called the master gland because of its many effects on other glands.
hormone, which controls metabolism rate of the body (i.e., the rate at
The adrenal glands are located at the upper end of the kidneys. They are
always two, with an inner core/layer called adrenal medulla and an outer
The adrenal medulla is the source of adrenaline, which helps the body to
perform in emergencies by increasing heart rate, permitting the flow of
is to regulate salt balance in the body and helps the body to adjust to
The gonads are the testes and ovaries. They play a key role in sexual
breasts and pubic hair) and ovulation. One of the major male hormones
more sugar freed from the liver and vice versa. Diabetes results due to
In conclusion, you have seen how behaviour and personality among other
body functions are tied to the flow of hormones in the blood which are