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TOPIC 1
History and development of neuropsychology
The question:
How are the mind and body related
How is the material (the body) can produce the nonmaterial (brain)
Anantomy of the brain connecting with the capacity of the body
New technologies (neuroimaging etc.) are making these questions far more
answerable
Psychological problems eg. Intelligence and the underlying functions that are
related to the human body
Metaphysical problems – the issue of the soul and the entity of the body
How does physical activity stimulate biochemica, reactions in the brain
We do not know the exact locations of most of these functions
Molecular, psycholigical, biological aspects that must be taken into
consideration
How does physical activity give rise to thought and emotion?
Philosophy of the mind-body relationship:
Three theories:
Mentalism
o Psyche is the mind
o The soul or mind is responsible for our behaviour
o Began in ancient Greece = Aristotle
o All human intellectual fucntions are produced by the psyche
o It took no role of the brain
o The psyche was independent of the body
Dualism
o Mind-body problem
o They are different in terms of what they are (hence dualist approach)
o Cogito ergo sum = I think therefore I am
o The mind is a non material substance
o Looks at how the body causes reactions in the mind.
o Belief that the mind and the body are connected – the causal reaction
o Theorist: Descartes
French
Materialism
o Mind and behaviour is an illusion and is linked to the central nervous
system
o The neural firing for conscious thinking – biological functions result in
brain activity and its functions
Philosphers of functional neuroanatomy:
, Alcmeonde Crotona V B.C:
o First one to localize sensations in the brain
Hypocrates:
o He stated that the brain is the centreof reasoning, emotions, senses
and movement were controlled by the brain
Galen II B.C:
o Tried to establish the relationship (localization) between the psychic
phenomena and the brain
Albertus Magnus 1193-1206 :
o Behaviour as the result of the combination of the brain, the
cerebellum and the midbrain
Andreas Vesalius1514-1564:
o Brain mass as the responsible for mental processes.
Thomas Willis 1621-1675 :
o Studies of the blood circulation in the brainCorpus Striatum as the sit
of the mental function
Think and debate:
What is impressive about these philosophers?
o Thye came up with these theories based on observations and not
experimental trial
o Theories were invented that are still used today and can be tested
Phrenology:
The study of the shape and feeling of the head
This would determine behaviour
The size of each organ is indicative of its power
Although it is false, it did begin the start of enquiring into what part of the
brain controls what function
The cranium was divided into sections to serve as reference points
Becomes an important historical contribution
Functional neuroanatomy:
Earliest research on neurosicence dates back to more than 5000 years
It began in Africa, ancient Egypt
Egyptian embalmers were the first to obtain knowledge of human anatomy
through the mummification process
Trepanation:
o the process of creating a burr hole in the skull to access the brain, was
widely used to relieve pressure after head injury, and is used to this
day in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with traumatic brain
injury
trephination:
o removal of part of the cortex and brain matter
o does not matter what part of the brain, but the amount that is
removed
o used a trephination instrument on the head
,localization thoery:
Marie-Jean-Pierre Flourens
o The brain could not be analysed in separate parts
o Studied the brain with galvanic stimulation and concluded:
Intellect originates in the cerebral cortex
Cerebellum is responsible for motor functioning
Lower brain sustains vita fucntioning
Edouard Hitzig and Gustav Fritch
o Neuroanatomists who mapped the brain by electircal stimulation and
lesioning of the cortical tissue to provide evidence of localization of
cortical functioning
Paul Broca
o Localization of language in the brain
o Non-fluent apasia
o Can understand speech but could not produce speech themselves
o Strengthens the localizationist theory
Carl Wernicke
o Localization of langauge in the brain
o Fluent apasia
o Can produce speech, but cannot comprehend it
o Weakened the localizationist theory
Dr Wilder Penfield
o Intention to cure focal epilepsy
o Performed surgery while the patient was awake in order to map
where functions originate
Historical background: wholistic view
Sigmund Freud
o 1956-1839
o Criticized broca and wernickes apasia due to the complexity of the
apasia showed that the areas are noda points in a complicated
network
o His interpretation of dreams continued the diaolgue on the subjective
experience of the brain and mind
Karl Lashley
o 1890-1948
o Does not matter what part of the brain you remove, but how much
Historical background: the middle ground
John Hughlings-Jackson
o 1835-1911
o sensory and motor are localised in specialised cortical areas, but there
are more complex functions that must be assembled from many areas
of the brain
, o the same activity can be assembled in higher and lower areas of the
brain
psychological assessments:
although we have similar brains, we differ in terms of functionality.
Assesment is concern with the question of individual differences, and one of
the most explored differences has been what we call intelligence.
Francis Galton
o 1822-1911
o collected sensorimotor information of around 10000 subjects with
discrimination of weight, tone etc.
o classification of men according to their natural gifts
o laid the foundations for modern psychological assessment
alfred Binet
o 1857-1911
o first intelligence test for those in need of special education
o Binet-simon test
Raymond Cattel
o 1905-1998
o first person to use the term mental test
o development of tests, especially personality assessments
David Wechsler
o 1896-1981
o Wechsler adult intelligent test scale
Founders of clinical neuropsychology:
ALEXANDER LURIA
Born in Moscow, died in 1977
Focused on the objective role of psychology
Looked at a cultural historical psychology: mediatory role of culture
and language in the development of higher mental functions
Looked at qualitative, theoretical and clinical case study research
Systemic localization of the brain
Verbal regulation of behaviour during development
Proposed a functional system theory:
Coherent theory about cerebral mechanisms underlying psychological
functions
Each psycholgical function is complex and is carried out in a unitary whole
Functional units responsible for any type of mental function:
o Regulating of tone or waking
Lies below the cerebral cortex
o Obtaining, processing and storage information
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