Brief History of Biopsychology

While biopsychology might seem like a fairly recent development thanks

to the introduction of advanced tools and technology for examining the
brain, the roots of the field date back thousands of years to the time of
the early philosophers.

While we now consider the mind and brain synonymous, philosophers and
psychologists long debated what was known as the mind/body problem.
In other words, philosophers and other thinkers wondered what the
relationship was between the mental world and the physical world

One important thing to remember is that it is only fairly recently in human

history that people have come to understand the actual location of the
mind. Aristotle, for example, taught that our thoughts and feelings arose
from the heart. Greek thinkers such as Hippocrates and later Plato
suggested that the brain was where the mind resides and that it served as
the source of all thought and action.

Later thinkers such as Rene Descartes and Leonardo da Vinci introduced

theories about how the nervous system operated. While these early
theories were later proven wrong, they did establish the important idea
that external stimulation could lead to muscle responses.

It was Descartes who introduced the concept of the reflex, although later
researchers demonstrated it was the spinal cord that played a critical role
in these muscle responses.

Newer Biopsychology Research

Since those early influences, researchers have continued to make
important discoveries about how the brain works and the biological
underpinnings of behaviour. Research on evolution, the localization of
brain function, neurons, and neurotransmitters have advanced our
understanding of how biological processes impact thoughts, emotions,
and behaviours.

If you are interested in the field of biopsychology, then it is important to

have an understanding of biological processes as well as basic anatomy
and physiology. Three of the most important components to understand
are the brain, the nervous system, and neurotransmitters.

Name: Vengat .V.G

Roll No: 21BPY043