Thinking about the Biology of Behavior
Homersapien
Evolution
Genes
GDE
Current
Organism
Current
Situation
Development Experience
Current
Behavior
Biopsychology – the scientific study
of the biology of behavior (Dewsbury, 1991).
• Psychobiology
• Behavioral biology

• Behavioral neuroscience
• Physiological psychology
It denotes a biological approach to
the study of psychology (the
scientific study of behavior).
“Although it is not possible to specify the
exact date of biopsychology’s birth, the
publication of The Organization of Behavior in
1949 by Donald Hebb played a key role in it’s
emergence.”
Biopsychology is an integrative
discipline of neuroscience
• Neuroanatomy – structure of the nervous system
• Neurochemistry – chemical basis of neural activity
• Neuroendocrinology – interactions between the
nervous system and the endocrine system
• Neuropathology – nervous system disorders
• Neuropharmacology – effects of drugs on neural
activity
• Neurophysiology – functions and activities of the
nervous system
Research Dimensions of
Biopsychology
• Human and Nonhuman Subjects
• Experiments and Nonexperiments
• Pure and Applied Research
Advantages of using
Human Subjects:
• Follow instructions
• Report subjective
experiences
• Cost effective
• Human brains
Evolutionary continuity
Qualitatively similar but
quantitatively different
Sphere Surface Area = 4 • π • r²
Sphere Volume
= 4/3 • π • r³
Brain with a medial-lateral (M-L) radius of 2 cm (rat):
surface area = 4 x 3.14 x 4 = 50.24
volume= (1.33x3.14) 4.1866 x (23) 8 = 33.49
surface area/volume ratio = 1.50
Brain with a M-L radius of 6.5 cm (human):
surface area = 4 x 3.14 x 42.25 = 530.66
volume= (1.33x3.14) 4.1866 x (6.53) 274.625 = 1149.76
surface area/volume ratio = 0.46
Advantages of using
Animal Subjects:
• Simple systems
approach
• Comparative approach
• Ethical reasons
• Pre-clinical research
Symphonic inspiration
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/sciencenow/0304/01.html
Animal Research and Disease
Research Designs Used in
Biopsychology
• Experimental studies
• Quasi-experimental studies
• Case studies
Experimental studies
• Establish cause  effect
relations
• Essential to scientific discovery
• Are paradoxically very simple
Elements of the Experiment
• Two or more conditions
• Between- or within-subjects
design
• Independent variable
• Dependent variable
Example of an Experiment
based on the Coolidge effect
The story:
President Calvin Coolidge and his wife were
visiting a poultry farm.
The first lady asked the farmer how so many
eggs were produced with only a few
roosters around. The farmer answered
“each roosters performs his duty dozens of
times each day.”
The first lady said “perhaps you should point
that out to the president…”
Example of an Experiment
based on the Coolidge effect
The story continued…
Then President Coolidge said, “But does
each rooster service the same hen?”
The farmer replied “No, there are many hens
for each rooster.”
“Perhaps you could point that out to Mrs.
Coolidge,” replied the President.
Example of an Experiment
Lester & Gorzalka (1988)
Problem: the Coolidge effect had only been
demonstrated in males (hamsters);
attempts with females were unsuccessful.
Hypothesis: Studies with females were
confounded by the fact that their male
partners get fatigued so quickly.
Solution: Use more male partners to
compensate for the confound of male
sexual fatigue.
Lester & Gorzalka (1988):
Experimental Design
Male # 1  Female # 1
Male # 2  Female # 2
Male # 1 & 2  rest
Male # 3  Female # 1 (fatigue)
One of two tests were conducted
Female # 1  Male # 1 (familiar)
Female # 1  Male # 2 (unfamiliar)
Lester & Gorzalka (1988):
Experimental Design
Dependent Measure: The amount of time
female # 1 displayed Lordosis – rodent
form of sexual receptivity indicated by an
arched-back, rump-up and tail-diverted
posture)
Lester & Gorzalka (1988):
Results:
Mean Lordosis Duration (min)
35
Male 1
Male 1
30
25
20
Male 3
Male 3
15
10
Male 2
5
Male 1
0
Unfamiliar
Familiar
Quasiexperimental
studies
• Studies of groups of subjects exposed to
conditions in the real world
• Not real experiments as potential
confounded variables have not been
controlled
Quasiexperimental
studies
• Poorly educated
• Prone to accidental
head injury
• Likely to use other
drugs
• Likely to have poor
diets
Case studies
• Case studies focus on a single individual,
such as Jimmie G.
• Usually more in-depth than other
approaches, but may not be generalizable
• Generalizability – the degree to which
results can be applied to other cases
Pure and Applied Studies
• Pure research – conducted for the purpose
of acquiring knowledge
• Applied research – intended to bring about
some direct benefit to humankind
• Some research projects may have elements
of both
Divisions of Biopsychology
• Six major divisions
• Each has a different approach, but there is
much overlap
• Physiological psychology,
psychopharmacology, neuropsychology,
psychophysiology, cognitive neuroscience,
comparative psychology
Divisions of Biopsychology
• Physiological psychology
– Neural mechanisms of behavior
– Direct manipulation of the brain
• Psychopharmacology
– Effects of drugs on the brain
• Neuropsychology
– Brain damage in humans
Divisions of Biopsychology
• Psychophysiology (not psychopsychology)
– Relation between physiological activity and
psychological processes
• Cognitive neuroscience
– Neural bases of cognition
• Comparative psychology
– Comparing different species to understand
evolution, genetics, and adaptiveness of
behavior
THE SIX DIVISIONS OF BIOPSYCHOLOGY
EXAMPLES OF HOW THE SIX APPROACHES HAVE
PURSUED THE STUDY OF MEMORY
Physiological psychology: study of the
neural mechanisms of behavior by
manipulating the nervous system of nonhuman
animals in controlled experiments.
Physiological psychologists have studied the contributions of
the hippocampus to memory by surgically removing the
hippocampus in rats and assessing their ability to perform various
memory tasks.
Psychopharmacology: study of the effects of
drugs on the brain and behavior.
Psychopharmacologists have tried to improve the memory of
Alzheimer’s patients by administering drugs that increase the
levels of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine.
Neuropsychology: study of the psychological
effects of brain damage in human patients.
Neuropsychologists have shown that patients with alcoholproduced brain damage have particular difficulty in remembering
recent events.
Psychophysiology: study of the relation
between physiological activity and
psychological processes in human subjects by
noninvasive physiological recording.
Psychophysiologists have shown that familiar faces elicit the
usual changes in autonomic nervous system activity even when
patients with brain damage report that they do not recognize a
face.
Cognitive neuroscience: study of the neural
mechanisms of human cognition, largely
through the use of functional brain imaging.
Cognitive neuroscientists have used brain-imaging technology
to observe the changes that occur in various parts of the brain
while human volunteers perform memory tasks.
Comparative psychology: study of the
evolution, genetics, and adaptiveness of
behavior, largely through the use of the
comparative method.
Comparative psychologists have shown that species of birds
that cache their seeds tend to have big hippocampi, thus
confirming that the hippocampus is involved in memory for
location.
Converging Operations
Using multiple approaches to address a
single question
• Korsakoff’s syndrome – a condition
characterized by severe memory loss and
most commonly seen in alcoholics
• Is Korsakoff’s the result of the toxic effects
of alcohol on the brain?
Converging Operations
• Case studies:
– Jimmie G. – an alcoholic with Korsakoff’s
– Korsakoff’s is also seen in malnourished
persons who had little or no alcohol
• Experiments:
– Thiamine-deficient rats exhibit memory
deficits
– Alcohol accelerates the development of
brain-damage in thiamine-deficient rats
Converging Operations
• Korsakoff’s syndrome is the result of
thiamine deficiency, but the damage is
accelerated by alcohol
• By exploring the possible causes of
Korsakoff’s using multiple approaches
(converging operations) stronger
conclusions can be reached.