APA Biological Psychology and Neuroscience 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: The parasympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system is primarily responsible for:
- Initiating fight-or-flight responses
- Rest-and-digest functions that conserve energy (Correct answer)
- Voluntary skeletal muscle control
- Processing incoming sensory information
Correct answer: Rest-and-digest functions that conserve energy
The parasympathetic division promotes rest-and-digest functions, slowing heart rate, stimulating digestion, and conserving energy when the body is not under threat.
Question 2: Which brain structure serves as the primary relay station for sensory information (except olfaction) on its way to the cerebral cortex?
- Hypothalamus
- Thalamus (Correct answer)
- Basal ganglia
- Cerebellum
Correct answer: Thalamus
The thalamus routes sensory signals—visual, auditory, somatosensory, and gustatory—to the appropriate cortical areas, earning it the label of the brain's relay station.
Question 3: Broca's area, located in the left inferior frontal gyrus, is primarily associated with:
- Understanding spoken language
- Production and articulation of speech (Correct answer)
- Processing auditory frequency information
- Visual word recognition and reading
Correct answer: Production and articulation of speech
Broca's area is critical for speech production; damage results in Broca's (expressive) aphasia, characterized by halting, effortful speech with relatively preserved comprehension.
Question 4: The cerebellum is primarily responsible for:
- Regulating hunger, thirst, and body temperature
- Coordinating voluntary movement, balance, and fine motor control (Correct answer)
- Processing emotional memories and fear responses
- Controlling the circadian sleep-wake cycle
Correct answer: Coordinating voluntary movement, balance, and fine motor control
The cerebellum integrates sensory feedback with motor commands to coordinate smooth, precise voluntary movements and maintain balance.
Question 5: Dopamine pathways in the brain are most strongly implicated in:
- Anxiety regulation and fear extinction
- Reward processing and motivation (Correct answer)
- Pain suppression and analgesia
- Explicit memory consolidation
Correct answer: Reward processing and motivation
The mesolimbic and mesocortical dopamine pathways are central to reward, motivation, and reinforcement learning, and their dysregulation is implicated in addiction and schizophrenia.
Question 6: Which neurotransmitter is the primary inhibitory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system?
- Glutamate
- Acetylcholine
- GABA (Correct answer)
- Norepinephrine
Correct answer: GABA
GABA (gamma-aminobutyric acid) is the principal inhibitory neurotransmitter in the CNS, reducing neuronal excitability throughout the brain and spinal cord.
Question 7: The hypothalamus plays a critical role in:
- Speech production and language comprehension
- Regulating homeostasis and controlling the pituitary gland (Correct answer)
- Processing complex abstract reasoning and planning
- Coordinating fine voluntary motor movements
Correct answer: Regulating homeostasis and controlling the pituitary gland
The hypothalamus regulates homeostatic functions (temperature, hunger, thirst, circadian rhythms) and controls the pituitary gland, making it the key link between the nervous system and endocrine system.
APA Biological Psychology and Neuroscience 2
The parasympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system is primarily responsible for: