AS PSYCHOLOGY – REVISION

THE BIOLOGICAL APPROACH

REMEMBER, THE BIOLOGICAL APPROACH TO PSYCHOLOGICAL STUDY AIMS TO UNDERSTAND THE ROLE THAT OUR NATURAL BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES PLAY
IN OUR BEHAVIOUR

THEREFORE, IT WOULD LOOK AT HOW THE BRAIN FUNCTIONS AND WHETHER THE WORKING OF THE BRAIN CAN HELP US UNDERSTAND BEHAVIOUR,
COGNITIONS AND EMOTIONS

IT WOULD ALSO LOOK AT HOW THE WORKING OF HORMONES CAN HELP US UNDERSTAND BEHAVIOUR, COGNITIONS AND EMOTIONS

WHETHER SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PEOPLE CAN BE ACCOUNTED FOR IN TERMS OF THEIR BIOLOGICAL FACTORS

WHETHER SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PEOPLE CAN BE ACCOUNTED FOR IN TERM OF THEIR BIOLOGICAL FACTORS AND INTERACTION WITH
OTHER FACTORS

THE THREE STUDIES IN THE BIOLOGICAL APPROACH ARE:

REMEMBER:

 YOU NEED TO KNOW ALL THE RESEARCH STUDIES IN DETAIL – ALL THE INFORMATION PROVIDED ABOUT EACH RESEARCH STUDY
 EXPLAIN AND GIVE REASONS WHY THE STUDY IS FROM THE BIOLOGICAL APPROACH
 YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO COMPARE THE BIOLOGICAL STUDIES IN TERMS OF SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES
 YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO EVALUATE THE STUDIES IN TERMS OF STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES

THIS REVISION BOOKLET SHOULD HELP YOU ACHIEVE THESE GOALS.


Aim (s)
Research Method
Equipment used
Participants/Sample/Sample type
Procedure
Number of scenes shown
Scenes procured from
Valence (emotional value)rating
Arousal rating
Scenes shown for
How participants rated the scene
The level of emotional rating
Number of frames for the fMRI
Experimental design
Unexpected recognition test
Time after the first procedure
Number of foils
Valence ratings of the foils
Independent variable
Dependent variable
Results
(Check graphs)
Conclusion
Links between the amygdala and emotions using fMRI
1. To consider the role that the amygdala plays or how sensitive it is to different levels of intensity to emotions.
2. Whether the degree of emotional intensity in the pictures affects the role of amygdala in aiding memory recall.
Laboratory experiment
fMRI scanner – functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Ten, right-handed female participants. They all volunteered. Volunteer sampling
96
International Affective Picture System stimuli set
Highly negative 1.17 to neutral of 5.44
Mild and tranquil (1.97) to intensely arousing (7.63)
2.88 seconds
By pressing a numbered button with their right hand
Rate the pictures from 0 to 3, with 3 being the most intensely and emotionally arousing
11 frames per trial
Repeated measures because participants were called back for an unexpected memory test
Scenes were shown which included previous images and new foils (images not seen before)
3 weeks
48
Same as the first 96 scenes that the participants saw in the first procedure.
The intensity of the picture shown
Pixel strength and the number remembered, forgotten or familiar
1. Participants’ ratings of the emotional intensity of the images reflected the emotional value and arousal rating of
the scenes.
2. Amygdala activity was significantly correlated with higher ratings of experienced emotional intensity. In other
words, the amygdala responded to the more emotional intense and arousing pictures.
3. Memory rating was significantly higher for those pictures/scenes which were more emotionally intense
4. Participants recalled more emotionally intense scenes when faced with the recognition test.
1. The amygdala is sensitive to individually experienced emotional intensity of visual scenes
 2. The activity in the left amygdala can during encoding from the the machine could predict subsequent memory
3. The degree to which the amygdala activation at encoding can predict subsequent memory is a function of
emotional intensity
Evaluation
Strengths There was a high level of standardisation.
The valence scores of all images shown were the same for all participants.
All images were shown for a fixed time period. 2.88 seconds.
All participants were shown the same images.
This level of standardisation meant the experiment could be replicated.

The patients were “pinned” down so as to allow little or no head movement. This could again make the procedure more
valid.

It was an objective brain scan. This could account for reliability as nothing could influence the participant, except the
pictures themselves and amygdala activity was objectively recorded through functional imaging. Therefore, the
researchers could be confident in the results of their study.
Even the foils used in the recognition test were standardised for emotional value and intensity.

Weaknesses Low ecological validity because the setting was a laboratory.

Low mundane realism because asking participants to look at pictures for 2.88 seconds and rating them on intensity in a
laboratory is not something we do in everyday life.
There could have been participant variables in this study.
Ethics Participants were exposed to emotionally charged imagery which may have stressed some of them. This could have
caused emotional distress which violates the psychological ethics of protecting participants from harm.
Generalisability Only TEN, RIGHT-HANDED females were chosen. This is a small sample which makes generalisation difficult. Furthermore,
this sample might suggest that the findings might be representative of females alone. It does not account for the fact
that the ways in which males and females process emotional information might be different and it might be difficult to
generalise these for males.
Type of data collected Quantitative data was collected in an objective manner and this can help in further statistical analysis of trends and
differences.
Application to real life Advertising agencies can use the findings of the study to create powerful emotionally intense images that are likely to
stay in the minds of consumers.
The education industry can also use this in order to make subject content more appealing by offering visual stimuli of
 content being taught.
Nature versus nurture Because emotions are linked to brain function, some might suggest that there is a natural element to the process.
Nevertheless, we cannot leave out nurture as a possible element because prior human experience could have also played
a role in the manner in which the participants rated the images. So, there could be an effective nature vs nurture debate
to be had here.
This bar chart shows that there is more or less a similar
The following graph shows the activation of the amygdala
distribution of forgotten, familiar and remembered for ‘0’
for the four different intensity stimuli given during the
to ‘2’, but the pattern changes for ‘3’.
scan. Note that ‘3’ has the highest activation and ‘0’ the
lowest.

This image shows us activation on the left side of the
amygdala for scenes rated ‘3’.
This graph shows us a significant correlation between
activation and the emotional intensity of the memory. The
number of significant ‘pixels’ in the amygdala for the
scenes shown correlates to the emotional intensity of the
scene.
 the use of EEG and EOG to study the relationship(s) between sleep, dreams, dream content and eye movement

Aim (s) 1. Is there difference in dream recall between the two types of sleep – REM and n REM?
2. If participants were asked to estimate the duration of their dream would they make the right estimate? In other
words, would there be a positive correlation between the estimate they make and the length of REM sleep.
3. To test whether there is relationship between eye movements and the content of a dream.
Research Method Laboratory experiment
Equipment used EEG – Electro encephalo graph and an EOG – Electro oculo graph
Types of sleep REM and n REM
Participants/Sample/Sample type 9 participants in total, but only 5 were used for the full experiment. Four were used to validate the findings.
Opportunity sampling
Number of nights spent 6-17 nights
Pre-arrival standardisation No tobacco and alcohol or any drinks containing caffeine
Pre- sleep standardisation Arrived a little before bed-time and the EEG was set up with electrodes being connected to their heads. The electrodes
were tied up in a ponytail for ease of movement and sleep.
Continuous running of EEG So that it could inform the researchers of the type of sleep and thus determine waking up patterns.
Waking up procedure A doorbell was rung and they were told to narrate dream content if any.
Pattern of waking up Differed between participants for further standardisation. Two participants were randomly woken up to avoid a set
pattern. One participant was told he would only be woken in dream sleep. One participant was woken up based on the
researcher’s choice.
Results Qualitative and quantitative data collected for studies 1 and 2. For study 3, it was purely qualitative.
Study 1 Dreams occur in REM sleep.
Study 2 The estimates were mostly correct, except for one participant with the DN initial.
Study 3 There was a definite pattern between eye movement and dream content.
Description of dream content in Participants whose eyes moved vertically described: watching climbers up and down a cliff, a person climbing up a ladder
study 3 and looking down, a person shooting basketballs through a hoop and picking it up.
Participants whose eyes moved horizontally described a dream in which two people were through tomatoes at each
other.
For little or no eye movement, they were looking at something in the distance or eyes were fixed on an object.
Still eyes, with sudden movement, they had been dreaming about driving and in one case, a bystander lifted his hand for

Conclusion
Independent variable –Study 1
Dependent variable – Study 1
Independent variable –Study 2
Dependent variable – Study 2
Independent variable –Study 3
Dependent variable – Study 3
Evaluation
Strengths
Weaknesses
Ethics
Generalisability
Reductionism
Self-reports
Application to real life
Nature versus nurture
a ride. In another case, a speeding car appeared at the junction.
Dreams occur during REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep
There is some evidence of the rate of dreaming as the dream progresses.
Eye movement suggest a link between what the person is dreaming about the way in which their eyes move.
REM sleep and n REM sleep
Dream or no dream reported
The waking up after either 5 minutes or 15 minutes
The estimate a participant made
Eye movement – could not be manipulated because it was natural and recorded by the EOG
The content of the dream
It was a laboratory experiment with standardisation – all participants followed the same procedure.
There were controls like the doorbell and the machines used offered valid, objective information that could not be
manipulated. This meant high reliability of data and the possibility of replicating such a study. It also meant that the
validity of data could be high.
Participants had to sleep in an unfamiliar environment and this could have caused an artificial setting which lowers
ecological validity.
Such an activity of asking people to narrate dreams in a tape recorder does not realistically happen in everyday life. It
lacks mundane realism.
Participants were woken up from sleep and this could have hampered concentration and productivity either at home or
the workplace.
Only initials were used in the report and this meant that they kept up the confidentiality aspect of psychological
research.
It might be difficult to generalise this study and apply it to the entire population as only 9 people were studied of which
only 5 were studied in detail.
Everything is reduced to biological mechanisms and this aspect of the study ignored psychological traits that could have
been portrayed.
These might have been exaggerated or participants might have tried to stitch pieces of the dream to create a clearer
narrative.
It could be used to help people with sleeping disorders as sleep patterns can be detected by the EEG machine.
Sleeping and dreaming is natural and it could be suggested that the nature element of psychology is at play. However,
we can also use the dream narrative to suggest that dream content could possibly have been generated by things the
people experienced recently or their psychological condition.
 to understand the role that physiological and psychological processes play in the experience and labelling of emotions
Aim (s)
Research Method
Participants/Sample/Sample type
Name of the drug participants
were told
Name of the drug administered
Grouping of injected people
The two cognitive conditions
Activities in the euphoric condition
Questions in the anger condition
Number of standard behaviours
that the stooge engaged in
Classification of participant
behaviour – euphoria
Classification of pariticpant
1. If people have not explanation for a physiological arousal, do they look for emotional cues to help them label
an emotion.
2. If they feel an emotion, do they attach the correct label to that emotion.
3. The role that cognitive processes and the environment might play in our experience of emotions.
Laboratory method with observation through a one-way window and self-report scales.
University of Minnesota – Introduction to Psychology Course., 184 volunteers who were told they would be rewarded
with 2 marks for each hour they spent on the experiment.
Suproxin
Epinephrine – with has adrenaline and can cause tremors, palpitations and headaches.
Epinephrine Informed; Epinephrine ignorant, Epinephrine Misinformed and Placebo
Euphoria and Anger
Throwing paper balls into a basket
Throwing open a window
Using a rubber band as a slingshot
Playing with a hula hoop
Simple questions about diet
More controversial questions about: father’s income, a person who fit the description of not having washed or bathed
in some time
Even more controversial – frequency of sexual intercourse
14
1. Joins in the activity
2. Initiates a new activity that the STOOGE has not shown
3. Ignores the stooge
4. Watches the stooge
1. Agrees with the confederate (stooge)
behaviour – anger
Self-report questions on feelings
Self-report questions on side
effects
Number of participants suspicious
of the stooge
The reason for the deception
Independent variable
Dependent variables
Results – Activity Index - Euphoria
Results – self-report scale –
euphoria
Results – self-report scale anger
Results – self-report of side-effects
and pulse
2. Disagrees with the stooge.
3. Neutral behaviour
4. Initiates agreement or disagreement
5. Watched the stooge
6. Ignores the stooge.
All behaviours were observed by more than one observer to ensure reliability
These questions were on mood and where of this sort:
How happy or good do you feel at present?
How angry or irritated do you feel right now?
0 – Not at all to 3 – I feel extremely angry/irritated.
Do you feel any palpitations?
Do you feel any tremors?
These were answered on a rating scale
- I feel nothing – I felt intense tremors
11
So that there would be no demand characteristics and that the participants would act in the manner in which the
researcher hoped that they would
Seven conditions: Epi Inf Euphoria, Epi Ign Euphoria, Epi Mis Euphoria, Placebo Euphoria
Epi Inf Anger, Epi Ign Anger and Placebo Anger
So there were seven independent groups as part of the research design
How the participants behaved in the room
Their self-report scales
Their pulse rates
The participants in the Epi Mis group have the highest activity index as noted by the observers, while those in the Epi
Inf group had the lowest index.
The Epi Mis informed also initiated the highest number of activities compared to the Epi Inf
The Epi Mis group reported the highest level of euphoria based on the self-reports they gave. Their irritation scores
were subtracted from their good/happy scores for each individual to get this number.
The Epi Inf group showed the highest self report for anger and this was surprising. However, the most overt anger
shown was from the Epi Mis group.
All those who were injected with epinephrine showed the effects of the drug, except for 5 who showed no reaction. In
all cases, they reported the side effects one would associate with epinephrine.
Conclusion When people cannot give reasons for their psychological state, they look for emotional cues as did the Epi Mis group.
Cognitive and emotional environment can factor in producing emotions.
There are two factors that can contribute to emotion – physiological arousal and emotional cognitions.

Evaluation
Strengths Laboratory experiment. There were controls and the groups were divided to ensure that the drug and the cognitive
condition could enable the researchers suggest why people behaved in a particular manner.
There was a standardised coding of behaviours.
The observers had a good rating for reliability – 88%. This could increase the validity of the experiment.
Weaknesses Low mundane realism because this is not something that people are asked to do in real-life.
Self-report scales might not have been honest.
The sample was only of young university students. This might affect generalisibility.
Ethics They were injected with a drug with side effects. This could have caused harm. It was an invasive technique.
Generalisability Only college students and their reactions might not reflect how other people of a different age group of diversity might
respond.
Use of independent groups This was good as it would offer good feedback on how people with the same injection but different information would
react in two different cognitive conditions.
Self-reports Might have been misleading
Application to everyday life It could help in understanding why people may feel the way they do.
It could help in understanding why our environment might sometimes affect our mood.
It could help in understanding how the behaviour of others around us can influence our own behaviours. This could be
used in studying, understanding and targeting mob mentality situations.
Nature versus nurture Both elements are present because the participants responded to the drug as most naturally would. At the same time,
the stooge was around to influence behaviour. So this study could be used to understand whether we behave naturally
or whether we respond to our immediate environment.
Individual and situational Some individuals showed no reaction to the drug, some were suspicious of the stooge. Not everyone behaved in the
explanations exact same manner. This could suggest that individuals can control their situation, so there could be an individual
explanation for how each participant behaved. However, the different groups had similar had scores that reflected the
situation they were put in. So this could also suggest that situations can affect behaviour.

Tables from the Schachter and Singer study: