Name:

The Biological Approach to Understanding Behaviour

Topic * Content

a. Techniques used to study the

brain
1. The brain and behaviour
b. Localisation

c. Neuroplasticity: neural
networks and neural pruning

• the contribution of research methods SAQs and ERQs can be asked on

used in the cognitive approach to all the syllabus stated in green.
understanding (*the topics of) human
behaviour

• ethical considerations in the investigation

of the cognitive approach to understanding
(*the topics of) human behaviour.
The Biological Approach to Behaviour

Stuff you should know about the Brain:

It all begins with H2O. The brain is made up of 75% water. It can also hold 1,000 TB of
information. Our brains can scan and process complex images in as little as 13 milliseconds.

The brain contains more connections than there are stars in the entire
galaxy. There are somewhere between 80 & 100 billion neurons (nerve
cells) in the human brain. The left hemisphere of the brain packs in almost
200 million more neurons than the right. The wrinkles in our brain, called
gyri and sulci increase surface area, allowing us to pack in more
memory-storing, thought-producing neurons.

Grey matter is the mass of neuronal cells that are involved in things like memory, intelligence,
speech and muscle control. Grey matter makes up 40% of brain matter. Despite often being
described as grey matter, the brain of a living person has more of a pinkish hue. Greater
proportions of grey matter may account for superior performance on language tasks. It is the
surface area of the brain of around a quarter of an inch. White matter is the subcortical region,
which connects the grey matter areas. A computer analogy is grey matter is the actual computer,
white matter is the cables etc.

The brain actually lacks pain receptors but the brain stem is very delicate. Even moderate damage
can be fatal.

Topic 1: Brain & Behaviour

a. Techniques used to study the brain

How does technology allow an understanding of the relationship between the brain and
behaviour?
How effective is technology in establishing correlations between the brain and behaviour?

Technology allows the observation of the structure and the function of the living
human brain to understand the relationship between the brain and behaviour.

MRI, FMRI and PET scans allow the observation of the structure and the function of the living
human brain to understand the relationship between the brain and behaviour.

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In the past, the study of the brain was limited to people suffering from head injuries and the
effects of accidental damage. It was only possible to study the brain by carrying out an autopsy
once they had died. Laboratory research with animals eventually resulted in important
discoveries about causes and possible treatments of neurological and mental disorders.
Research using live animals must now follow ethical rules, and there remains questions to how
transferable the data is to humans. Whilst Chimpanzees share 99% and mice share 98% of their
DNA with humans and they have the same set of organs (heart, kidneys, lungs, etc.) that
function with the help of a bloodstream and central nervous system, some argue that the
anatomic and metabolic differences between animals and people, alongside our highly
developed brain, make animals poor models for human beings.

Physiological psychologists now have a range of research techniques to study the function of the
brain and body that could not have been imagined just a few decades ago; for example, ways to
identify neurotransmitters. It is also possible to study the activity and structure of the brain
through neuroimaging.

The techniques used for observing activities of the brain are either:
• Non-invasive, that is, the technique does not involve breaking the skin
or injecting anything into the body, or invasive where the skin is broken or
injections are given, for example in a PET scan.
• They can show activity or they show structure. Using the analogy of a
house, structural imaging such as MRI can show you the basic layout of your
rooms, but functional imaging, such as fMRI can show you where people are
congregating during a party.

Criteria A: Writing Introductions:

In our introductions it is important for us to show understanding of why
the concept in question is important to discuss, and how it has
contributed to society.
Some of the contributions of brain imaging techniques to psychology are:
✓We can study the living brain, rather than waiting for the individual to die so that we can do a
post-mortem. Death changes the nature of the brain, as does the treatments of the individual
prior to death. It also means that we don't have to wait. It is much more time efficient.
✓ Brain imaging is much more ethical than animal lesion studies or killing of animals to dissect
their brains.

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In pairs complete the table on the three main types of brain scans that we will cover:
● Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
● Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
● Positron Emission Tomography (PET)
When making notes, be prepared to explain HOW and WHY the technique is used

Using the template make a brain hat showing the 4 lobes

of the cerebral cortex. Develop a poster with a selfie of
your hat showing you know some of the function(s) of each
of the 4 lobes:
1.Frontal lobe 2. Temporal Lobe
3. Occipital lobe 4. Parietal lobe

Recap of a very familiar participant: HM

At the time of Henry’s operation, it was thought that memory functions were spread throughout the
brain. The fact that Henry suffered one kind of amnesia so acutely as a result of damage to one
part of his brain, and yet retained his intellectual abilities, prompted researchers to reassess this
assumption. It was clear that the temporal lobe must be vital for memory function.

At that stage, the scientists could not identify which structure within the lobe was specifically
responsible, however unlike other amnesiac who have eg brain disease, we know that the area
that was removed was localised due to the precise surgical intervention from Scoville.

Corkin had known H.M. since 1962, during which time he had never recognised her from one visit
to another. Corkin and her colleagues used MRI scanning in 1992 and 1993 to determine if
Scoville’s estimated lesioning of H.M.’s temporal medial lobe area had been as he stated, and
whether this could be sufficient to have resulted in the drastic memory loss suffered by H.M.

The MRI Study

Aim: To investigate the extent of the

hippocampal and medial temporal lobe
damage to H.M.’s brain and to
determine whether this could be
sufficient to have resulted in the drastic
memory loss suffered by H.M.

Method: An MRI scan was conducted

on H.M. in 1992 and another in 1993.
Before the 1992 scan, H.M. completed
an IQ test and a memory test. The IQ
test showed that he had normal
intelligence, but the memory test showed his memory quotient (MQ) was 37 points lower than his
IQ and showed he had severe amnesia.

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Results: Both scans showed that the lesioning (also called cutting) of H.M.’s brain was 3cm less
than Scoville had estimated. It therefore did not extend as far into the posterior hippocampal
region as he thought, although there was surrounding damage to the uncus (this is where the
seizures started) and the amygdala. Approximately 50% of the posterior hippocampus on each
side remained, but this had shrunk considerably on the right side. Corkin et al. believe this
could be due to both the removal of the rest of the hippocampus, and also to the drugs and
continuing (though much reduced) epileptic seizures.

Conclusions: The small amount of normal hippocampus remaining in the left temporal lobe was
not sufficient to support normal memory. Therefore, this study demonstrates the importance of the
hippocampus and the temporal medial lobe area for memory.

Criterion C: Using Research

“How do MRI, FMRI and PET scans allow the observation of the structure and
function of living human behaviour?”
Write a sentence to demonstrate HOW Corkin’s study demonstrates
brain-imaging technologies help us understand the relationship between
brain and behaviour

Evaluation

There is not much to criticise with this study. Corkin had interviewed H.M. extensively over the
years, and took care to ensure that the MRI caused no trouble for him. He had three non-magnetic
clips inserted in his brain by Scoville in 1953, and, had they been magnetic, it would have meant
an MRI was not advised. However, ethically there are some questions. It was Brenda Milner, the
psychologist associated long-term with H.M. who gave permission for Corkin to scan his brain. It is
not clear if she was the appointed responsible adult legally able to do this. H.M., even if he gave
permission himself, would not have remembered it, so there are issues with informed consent and
right to withdraw, although anonymity was maintained until after his death.

We look again at the use of brain scans including when we study:

Maguire’s MRI study on neuroplasticity in the hippocampus.
Rivkin’s MRI study on the effects of drugs on a baby's developing brain
Crockett et al fMRI study on the effects of serotonin on aggression

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Critical thinking about the techniques used to study the brain.

When discussing brain imaging techniques, there are some overall concerns about their use.
They are not a “magic tool” as we would like to think.

● The environment is unnatural and may influence the outcome of the research.

Poldrack (2008) argues that up to 20% of subjects are affected by claustrophobia and refuse to
take part in research in an MRI or fMRI. In addition, obese participants are excluded. This may, in
some cases, lead to sampling bias. In order to make sure that the participant lies still in the MRI,
the tasks which they may be asked to do are very limited and mostly artificial in nature.

● Colours exaggerate the effects of the brain in fMRI.

The colors are often misleading, making it look like a specific region of the
brain is clearly defined when in fact the activity of the brain is much more
distributed and not as localized as we would like to believe. In addition, a
lot of activity in the brain is spontaneous and not stimulus driven. We often
cannot be sure why there is activity in a part of the brain or what it is doing.
Brain areas activate for many different reasons.

● Brain images are compilations.

The final image is a statistical compilation of several images taken over the duration of the scan.
It is not an image of the brain at any specific time.

● It is a Westernised technique.
Scanners often cost around $1.2 million. For a state-of-the-art
3 Tesla MRI machine, the price can reach $3 million. The
room that houses the machine, called an MRI suite, can cost
hundreds of thousands more. This limits the availability to
those who can afford its use.

● Imaging technologies are still in their infancy.

There have only been a few scientific breakthroughs, for example, the nucleus accumbens brain
regions “light up” when we fall in love. However, when it comes to psychiatry for example, few

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believe the technique is ready for use in daily clinical care.

● There may also be the possibility of false positives: A false positive is a conclusion
that some effect occurred when in fact it did not. See Bennet et al’s study below:

Key study: Bennett et al.

With the extreme dimensionality of functional neuroimaging data comes extreme risk for false
positives. Across the 130,000 voxels in a typical fMRI volume the probability of a false
positive is almost certain. Correction for multiple comparisons should be completed with these
datasets, but is often ignored by investigators . To illustrate the magnitude of the problem
Bennett et al carried out a real experiment that demonstrates the danger of not correcting for
chance properly.

One mature Atlantic Salmon participated in

the fMRi study. The salmon was not alive at
the time of scanning.

The task administered to the salmon involved

a series of photographs depicting human
individuals in social situations with specified facial expressions. The salmon was asked to
determine what emotion the individual in the photo must have been experiencing.

A total of 15 photos were displayed. Total scan time was 5.5 minutes.

Voxelwise statistics on the salmon data were calculated. Bennett observed clustering of voxels
into groups near areas of high voxel signal intensity to indicate perspective-taking.

Can we conclude from this data that the salmon was engaging in the perspective-taking
task? Of course not. What the researchers determined was that random noise in the fMRI
scanner itself may give false results if multiple comparisons are not controlled for.

Extension: Read further about the Atlantic Salmon here

● Despite the limitations listed above, scanning is more ethical and more practical
than the previous data gathering techniques.

Brain scanning has been a major help to our understanding of how the brain works, as well as
helping to diagnose people with everything from Alzheimer's to schizophrenia. Research is
much more ethical than the early research as the techniques tend to be non-invasive. In
addition, they are incredibly practical. A team of researchers around the world can easily
discuss an MRI scan by sending it as an email attachment. This allows for researcher
triangulation in the analysis of the data and may lead to a higher validity of the conclusions
reached.

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How effective are brain scans in terms of validity, reliability and generalisability?
The effectiveness of a brain scan in establishing correlations between the brain and
behaviour is based on validity, reliability and generalisability.

Summarise which critical thinking points relate to:

1. Validity

2. Reliability

3. Generalisability

Brain Imaging Lab. When we visit NUS, we will be learning more about brain
imaging technologies. It is helpful to do some additional reading so we can ask
useful questions.

List 3 questions that you can ask whilst at the Brain Imaging lab at NUS:
1. .

2. .

3. .

Read the following article from IDEAS.TED.COM about how much about what we know
about might be wrong.

Listen to the following TED talk by Nancy Kanwisher, A neural portrait of the brain, and
answer the following questions:
1. What can FMRIs tell us?

2. What can FMRIs not tell us?

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Topic 1: Brain & Behaviour

b. The Theory of Localisation

Are specific behaviours only determined by specific areas of the brain?

Certain behaviours are due to activity in specific areas of the brain.

Psychologists can use a parsimonious model to describe brain functions and associated
behaviours.

Ways to View the Brain: the nervous system (including the brain) has several orientational
directions. It is common to combine terms. For example, a structure may be described as
'posterior inferior,' which essentially means that it is located 'down and at the back.' When we are
discussing individual brain structures, we also use these directions. These terms do not label
structures according to their importance, just their location.

What functions of behaviour are localized in the brain? The goal of this activity is for a group of
students to become "specialists" on a specific part of the brain.
In pairs, take an area of the brain:
● Amygdala
● Hippocampus
● Nucleus accumbens (sub-structure in the basal ganglia)
● Prefrontal cortex
● Hypothalamus
Describe where your "brain part" is located in the brain.

Provide a general overview of the functions of your part of the brain with regard to behaviour.

Provide evidence of what your part of the brain does - provide case studies or experimental
research that support the localization of function.

Explain what happens when this part of the brain is damaged

We will look at the Nucleus Accumbens in relation to Human Relationships

Neuropsychology is concerned with the relationship between the human brain and behaviour.
The classic way of investigating brain functions is to examine individuals with various forms of
brain damage, like head injuries, tumours, or neurological disease. Any changes in behaviour are
assumed to be due to this brain tissue damage. Studies of brain-damaged patients have shown a
localization of brain function. That is, particular brain areas are dedicated to particular behaviours.

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Extension: What happens when you damage the Hippocampus? Watch this
video by Robert Sapolsky to find out more.

We have looked at HM’s case-study research on long-term memories.

Can you specify the area of the brain damaged

in HM with the help of the image here:

What is the function of the specific part of the brain that

was damaged?

Think critically about whether H.M’s case demonstrates that some parts of the brain play
specific roles in behaviour. Was there anything in his case that may have suggested
otherwise?

We have looked at McGaugh & Cahill’s study

in Flashbulb Memories

Can you specify the specific area of the brain

related to Flashbulb Memories:

What is the function of this specific part of the brain ?

Think critically about whether McGaugh & Cahill’s study demonstrates a specific role of
the Amygdala? What else might the study suggest?

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Critical Thinking of Localisation

How are the structures of the brain both independent and interdependent?
Why do Psychologists benefit from using a reductionist approach to explain
behaviours?
How valid is the concept of localisation of function in human brains?

● Complex behaviours may be a result of interactions between different brain areas:

Recently, studies of brain-damaged individuals have been supplemented with imaging techniques
like fMRIs and MRls. These techniques enable participants to perform cognitive tasks to see
which parts of the brain are used when doing certain tasks. However, we also know that parts of
the brain do not work in complete isolation. The claim that functions are localised to certain areas
of the brain has been criticised. For example, when we respond to stressors in the environment,
there are other cognitive factors involved such as the perception and thoughts surrounding what
is causing the stress which occur within the pre-frontal cortex.

Some theorists argue that the basic motor and sensory functions are localised, but that higher
mental functions are not. We know at times intact areas of the cortex take over responsibility for
specific cognitive functions following brain injury. This therefore casts doubt on theories about the
localisation of functions, suggesting that functions are not localised to just one region, as other
regions can take over specific functions following brain injury.

● It is more important to investigate how the brain areas communicate with each
other, rather than focusing on specific brain regions.

Many neuroscientists claimed that although the different areas of the

brain are independent, they must interact with each other in order to
function. An example to demonstrate this is a man who lost his ability
to read, following damage to the connection between the visual
cortex and the area that processes language. This suggests that
interactions between different areas produce complex behaviours such
as language. Therefore, damage to the connection between any two
points can result in impairments that resemble damage to the localised
brain region associated with that specific function. This reduces the credibility of the localisation
theory. (An analogy is you are late to school because there was a roadblock on the way rather
than you overslept at home or the guardhouse wouldn’t let you pass!)

Thus the credibility of localization is questioned as complex behaviours may be a result of

interactions between different brain areas. Our brain is integrative and different parts work together
to help us create and retrieve memories. Critics suggest that it would be reductionist to simplify the
complexity of mental processes and human behaviours to one specific brain region, or to simplify
one brain region to one specific function.

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Topic 1: Brain & Behaviour

c. Neuroplasticity

A “neural network” is a series of connected neurons. Information travels along these networks
that enable us to do things. For example, when you see a ball thrown to you and you try to catch it,
sensory neurons in your eyes send a signal along a network that connects to your visual and
motor cortices in your brain that then send signals to the neurons connected to your arm, hand
and finger muscles so you can lift your hands and catch the ball. The more times you’ve thrown
and caught a ball, the more developed this neural network will be and the better baseball player
you’ll become. This is why bad habits are hard to break; you literally have to rewire the networks
in your brain and allow the old habits (and their networks) to decay

Definition of neuroplasticity: The brain's ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural
connections throughout life. Neuroplasticity allows the neurons (nerve cells) in the brain to
compensate for injury and disease and to adjust their activities in response to new situations or to
changes in their environment. Neuroplasticity is also called brain plasticity or brain malleability.

How has human physiology adapted or reacted to our environment?

Through environmental influences, there are changes in the structure of the brain.
Axonal sprouting, dendritic branching and neural pruning can govern behaviours.

The process of neuroplasticity isn't a quick or simple one;

rather, it takes place throughout your lifetime and can involve
many processes. Brain reorganization takes place by
mechanisms such as axonal sprouting in which axons grow
new nerve endings, known as dendritic branching, to connect
with other nerve cells, which form new neural pathways to
accomplish a needed function.

Neuroplasticity happens continually as you learn and memorize

new data, and as your brain develops; however, it can also be
spurred by a physical trauma. In such cases, neuroplasticity
serves as an adaptive mechanism that allows someone to
compensate for function loss after suffering a bodily injury. For example, if someone suffers a brain

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injury, neuroplasticity allows the brain to 'rewire' itself in order to restore or maximize brain
functioning by rebuilding neural networks and allowing an uninjured part of the brain to take over
the damaged part.

Neuroplasticity also occurs hand-in-hand with neural pruning, which is the brain's way of deleting
the neural connections that are no longer necessary or useful and strengthening the necessary
ones. How your brain decides which connections to prune out depends on your life experiences
and how recently connections have been used. In this, neurons that grow weak from underuse
and die off. In general, neuroplasticity is a way for your brain to fine-tune itself for efficiency.

Note in the diagram above, showing the child’s developing neural networks, with the
terms axonal sprouting and neural pruning. Add all new terms to your glossary.

Watch the TED talk by neuroscientist Merzenichon on the brain’s ability to actively
rewire itself through brain plasticity. Make notes in your notebooks.

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Neural networks

Key Study: Maguire Taxi Study

Maguire carried out a study to demonstrate how cognitive

processes may lead to neuroplasticity in the hippocampus, through
the development of neural networks and neural pruning.

The aim of Maguire's study was to see whether the brains of London taxi drivers would be
somehow different as a result of the exceptional training that they have to do to be certified,
(what is known as "the Knowledge”, of 1000’s of routes in a 6 mile radius of London’s centre.).

The participants for this study were 16 right-handed male London taxi drivers. The taxi drivers
were compared with the MRI scans of 50 right-handed males who did not drive taxis. In order to
take part in the study, the participants had to have completed the "Knowledge" test and have
their license for at least 1.5 years. The sample included a range of ages so that age would not
be a confounding variable.

The study is quasi-experimental in nature as the IV was not

manipulated by the researcher, as the two sets of participants
were naturally occuring. The researchers were looking to see
if there was a relationship between the number of years of
driving a taxi and the anatomy of one's brain. It was also a
single-blind study - that is, the researcher did not know
whether she was looking at the scan of a taxi driver or a
control.

The data from the MRI was measured using two different techniques: voxel measuring and
pixel counting . Voxels are like 3D pixels and measured the density of grey matter in the brain.
Pixel counting of the images calculated
the overall area of the hippocampus.

There were two key findings of the

study. First, pixel counting revealed
that the posterior hippocampi of taxi
drivers were significantly larger relative
to those of control subjects and the

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anterior hippocampi were significantly smaller. Voxel measuring showed that the volume of the
right posterior hippocampi correlated with the amount of time spent as a taxi driver. No
differences were observed in other parts of the brain. Maguire argues that this demonstrates that
the hippocampus may change in response to environmental demands.

This shows the localised area of function for the posterior hippocampus appears to be involved
when previously learned spatial information is used, whereas the anterior hippocampal region
may be more involved during the encoding of new environmental layouts. It also shows the brain
development of neural networks, with repetition and neural pruning through environmental
influences; in other words, brain plasticity.

Critical Thinking

Consider the following points in relation to Maguire’s study. Can you develop
them into PEEL points that link back to the concept of Neuroplasticity?

- Quasi-Experiment

- Single Blind Control

- Androcentric Sampling Bias

Some might argue that those with larger hippocampi might be more spatially talented and thus
chose to be taxi drivers, this does not explain the positive correlation between the structure of the
hippocampus and the number of years driving.

You cannot argue that the MRI study has low ecological validity because the participants were not
asked to do anything while in the scanner. They simply had their brain anatomy measured.

Exam Questions:
What potential SAQ questions could you use this study for?
What would the related ERQs be?

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Neuroplasticity and child development

In the early years of life, 700–1,000 new connections form between neurons
every second. Based on brain imaging studies, neuroscientists say your brain
isn’t fully mature until around 25 years old. Recent advances in neuroscience
have effectively changed the “nature or nurture” debate. Instead, the focus of
discussion has switched to the following questions:

● In what ways are neural circuits changed by experience?

● When is the brain most receptive to environmental effects?

Neuroplasticity results in experience-dependent changes in the structure and function of the brain
which can provide benefits, allowing for learning new skills. However the same process may also
leave systems vulnerable if in less than optimal conditions. The brain’s plasticity means that
negative experiences, like injury and trauma, can leave their mark in potentially lasting and
harmful ways. Brain plasticity occurs from the very initial environment we find ourselves in; our
mother’s womb.

Key study: Rivkin - Prenatal Exposure to Drugs

Although behavioral studies clearly indicate that exposure to drugs,

alcohol and tobacco in the womb is bad for a baby's developing brain,
specific anatomic brain effects have been hard to show. Often users
don't limit themselves to one substance, and demographic factors like
poverty can also influence brain development.

Now, a study using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) brain scans,

led by neurologist Michael Rivkin, suggests that prenatal exposure to
cocaine , alcohol , marijuana or tobacco (alone or in combination)
may have effects on brain structure that persist into early
adolescence. This was the first study to look at such long-term neuroanatomic effects on the
brain. The findings are of public health significance, the researchers say, since it's estimated that
more than 1 million babies born annually in the United States have been exposed to at least one
of these agents in utero.

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Researchers at Children's and Boston Medical Center employed volumetric MRI imaging to study
the brain structure of 35 young adolescents prenatally exposed to cocaine, marijuana, alcohol or
tobacco. The children, who averaged 12 years old at the time of imaging, were part of an historic
cohort of children assembled at the Boston Medical Center, followed since birth as part of
Deborah Frank’s case-study. Prenatal exposures were confirmed by a combination of maternal
history, urine testing of the mother or urine or stool testing of the infants at birth.

"We found that reductions in cortical gray matter and total brain volumes were associated with
prenatal exposure to such toxins," says Rivkin. Notably, the effects showed the more substances
a child was exposed to in utero, the greater the reduction in brain volume.

Although the researchers initially set out to study cocaine exposure, they were struck by the
finding of brain effects of prenatal tobacco exposure. "Approximately 20 percent of women who
smoke continue to smoke during pregnancy," Rivkin says. "From the vantage point of preventive
health care, it is important to determine the consequences on brain structure of prenatal exposure
to cigarettes, alone and in combination with other substances."

Applicability of the research findings

Both researchers suggest that health care providers should

offer pregnant women comprehensive care to help them
reduce the use of all psychoactive substances. Public health
campaigns should not ignore the risks of some substances
while focusing on others, as it may well be that the greater the
number of total prenatal exposures, the higher the chance
there will be adverse and lasting consequences for the developing brain.

Additionally given that the brain is able to restructure itself through experience, potentially
relatively inexpensive training could be targeted to reduce the effects of the earliest environment
being less than optimal.

Children living below the poverty line typically live in a home environment that is
more stressful, and less stimulating. Read the following article to learn more
about the effects of poverty and brain development. How can we use research
into neuroplasticity to reduce inequalities?

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Neural pruning happens most during adolescence, especially the thinning of grey matter in the
outer layer of the brain (the cortex). Grey matter is made from the synaptic connections, cell
bodies and dendrites, the stuff that makes the neural networks. The pruning helps to improve our
cognition and maybe even our IQ because it strengthens other networks.

Additional study on neuroplasticity; Squeglia et al

Aims: The aim of this study was to see how “neural pruning” (e.g. synaptic pruning) correlates
with cognition and behaviour.

Methods: This correlational study used brain scans to observe the grey matter in the brains of 185
children between 12-14 years old from San Diego, USA. The cortical thickness (e.g. amount of
grey matter in the outer layer of the brain) was
measured using MRIs. As well as brain scanning,
the researchers also gathered data from the kids on
a range of cognitive abilities, including problem
solving, working memory and learning. For example,
the digit-span task was used to assess working
memory capacity.

Results – Neural Networks and Neural Pruning

There was a negative correlation between age and cortical thickness in 10 areas of the brain (7 of
these being in the frontal regions). In other words, the older the children were, the less grey matter
they had. This is consistent with other evidence that shows neural pruning is taking place between
the ages of 12-14. Boys showed more “cortical thinning” (neural pruning) than girls.

Another important correlation was that cortical thickness in the parietal lobe was negatively
correlated with performance on cognitive tasks, including learning, memory and problem solving.
In other words, the thinner the parietal lobe cortex (less grey matter = more neural pruning) the
better the children were at tests of learning, memory and problem solving. This is similar to other
studies that suggest neural pruning helps to improve cognitive function through “…the elimination
of unnecessary synaptic connections.” That is to say, the process of pruning synaptic connections
helps develop the neural networks associated with learning and memory. Interestingly, no
correlation was found for cortical thickness and attention.

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Criterion C: Using Research - How do neural networks adapt

according to their environment?
Choose one of the above studies: Maguire, Rivkin or Squeglia et al
and explain how the findings demonstrate the conceptual understanding
of neuroplasticity

We will continue with Biological Approach Topic 1, Brain & Behaviour in the
next booklet.

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