Psychobiology
This field attempts to explain
psychological phenomena based on their biological underpinnings.
1875-----1900-----1925-----1950-----1975-----2000
-------------Hebb---------------
--------------Sperry--------------
Wanted to find the neurophysiological basis for conditioned reflexes
Provided evidence against the behaviorists’ conception of the brain as a switchboard
-Loss of ability after damage to the cortex is related to the amount of damage not the location (the cortex is a unified whole)
-Any part of an area with a specific function could perform that function
Recurring environmental objects produce cell assemblies, a system of interconnected neurons which produce an idea of the object
Phase sequences are interrelated cell assemblies that are activated simultaneously; a string of interrelated ideas is produced
Hebb claimed that simultaneously or successively activated neurons become associated and create a neural network
Used split brain preparation in order to investigate specialization of the hemispheres
The hemispheres have individual ranges of memory, cognition, emotion, and consciousness