QCE Psychology Unit 1: Individual Development — Flashcards & Quiz

Q1: What is the mind–body problem, and how do the materialist and dualistic approaches answer it?

The mind–body problem asks how the mind (thoughts, feelings, consciousness) relates to the physical body and brain. The materialist approach, associated with the Greek physician Claudius Galen, treats the mind as a product of the physical brain, so mental activity can be explained by brain processes. The dualistic approach of René Descartes treats mind and body as separate substances — a non-physical mind and a physical body — that interact, which Descartes proposed happens through the pineal gland.

Q2: Describe phrenology and the experimental neurosurgery of Flourens and Penfield.

Phrenology (Franz Gall, around 1800) claimed that mental faculties were located in specific brain areas and that their strength could be read from bumps on the skull. It was unscientific, but it introduced the idea of localisation. Pierre Flourens (1820s) removed (ablated) parts of animal brains and observed the effects, showing for example that the cerebellum coordinates movement. Wilder Penfield (from the 1930s) electrically stimulated the exposed cortex of conscious patients during epilepsy surgery and mapped motor and sensory areas from their responses.

Q3: How do PET, MRI, fMRI and EEG differ in what they show about the brain?

PET (positron emission tomography) tracks a radioactive tracer, often a glucose analogue, to show metabolic activity — functional, but invasive and slow. MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) uses a strong magnetic field and radio waves to produce detailed images of brain structure, but not activity. fMRI (functional MRI) detects changes in oxygenated blood flow (the BOLD signal) to show which areas are active during a task, with good spatial detail. EEG (electroencephalography) records electrical activity through scalp electrodes, with excellent timing but poor spatial detail.

Q4: Outline the structure and function of the human nervous system.

The central nervous system (CNS) is the brain and spinal cord; it processes information and coordinates responses. The peripheral nervous system (PNS) connects the CNS to the rest of the body and has two divisions. The somatic nervous system carries sensory information from receptors to the CNS and motor messages to skeletal muscles for voluntary movement. The autonomic nervous system controls involuntary functions such as heart rate, breathing and digestion, through its sympathetic (arousing) and parasympathetic (calming) branches.

Q5: Describe the parts of a neuron and contrast sensory neurons, motor neurons and interneurons.

Dendrites receive messages from other neurons; the cell body (soma) contains the nucleus and integrates incoming signals; the axon carries the impulse away from the cell body; the myelin sheath insulates the axon and speeds transmission; axon terminals release neurotransmitters to the next cell. Sensory (afferent) neurons carry information from receptors to the CNS. Motor (efferent) neurons carry messages from the CNS to muscles and glands. Interneurons sit within the CNS and connect sensory and motor neurons.

Q6: What are the hindbrain, midbrain and forebrain, and what does each do?

The hindbrain, at the base of the brain, includes the medulla (vital functions such as breathing and heart rate), the pons (relays messages and helps regulate sleep) and the cerebellum (balance and coordination of movement). The midbrain relays sensory and motor information and contains part of the reticular formation, which helps regulate arousal. The forebrain is the largest division and includes the cerebral cortex (thinking, language, perception, voluntary movement), the thalamus and the hypothalamus.

Q7: Explain the interacting roles of Broca’s area, Wernicke’s area and Geschwind’s territory.

Broca’s area, usually in the left frontal lobe, is involved in producing speech; damage causes slow, effortful speech with comprehension largely intact (Broca’s aphasia). Wernicke’s area, usually in the left temporal lobe, is involved in understanding language; damage causes fluent but meaningless speech and poor comprehension (Wernicke’s aphasia). Geschwind’s territory, in the inferior parietal lobe, connects the two areas and helps integrate the sound, sight and meaning of words. Language relies on these regions working together.

Q8: Why are infancy and adolescence periods of rapid brain change?

Myelination (the coating of axons with myelin) speeds neural transmission and continues from infancy into early adulthood, with the frontal lobes among the last areas to finish. Synaptic pruning removes unused connections after an early overproduction of synapses, making the remaining pathways more efficient (“use it or lose it”). In adolescence the forebrain, especially the prefrontal cortex that supports planning and impulse control, is still developing, while emotional areas mature earlier.

Q1: Descartes’ dualistic approach treats the mind and the body as separate substances that interact.

Answer: TRUE

Dualism separates a non-physical mind from the physical body; Descartes proposed they interact through the pineal gland.

Q2: Phrenology was a valid scientific method for measuring personality from skull shape.

Answer: FALSE

Phrenology was unscientific; skull bumps do not reflect mental abilities, although it introduced the idea of localisation of function.

Q3: Wilder Penfield mapped the cortex by electrically stimulating the brains of conscious patients during surgery.

Answer: TRUE

Penfield’s stimulation of the exposed cortex during epilepsy surgery let him map motor and sensory areas from patients’ reports and movements.

Q4: MRI shows which brain areas are active during a task by detecting changes in oxygenated blood flow.

Answer: FALSE

That describes fMRI. Standard MRI produces detailed images of brain structure, not activity.

Q5: EEG has excellent temporal resolution but poor spatial resolution.

Answer: TRUE

EEG records electrical activity in milliseconds but cannot pinpoint precisely where in the brain it comes from.

Investigating the Brain

Ideas about the mind moved from the mind–body debate (Galen’s materialism and Descartes’ dualism) through phrenology and experimental neurosurgery (Gall, Flourens, Penfield) to modern neuroimaging. Compare PET, MRI, fMRI and EEG by whether they show structure or function and by their spatial and temporal resolution.

Nervous System and Brain Regions

The CNS and PNS (somatic and autonomic), the parts of a neuron, and sensory, motor and interneurons form the basic architecture. The brain can be divided into hindbrain, midbrain and forebrain, and language depends on Broca’s area, Wernicke’s area and Geschwind’s territory working together.

Cognitive Development

Myelination, synaptic pruning and forebrain development make infancy and adolescence periods of rapid change. Neural plasticity, attachment (Lorenz, Harlow, Bowlby, Ainsworth) and early deprivation shape outcomes, while Piaget, Vygotsky and information processing theory offer different explanations of how thinking develops.

Consciousness, Attention and Sleep

Consciousness runs on a continuum of arousal, and attention can be selective or divided. The hypothalamus and pineal gland regulate sleep through melatonin, and EEG, EMG and EOG distinguish REM from NREM sleep. Theories of sleep, lifespan changes, sleep deprivation and sleep disorders with their treatments complete the topic.

What does QCE Psychology Unit 1 cover about individual development?

Unit 1 Individual development has three topics: Topic 1 The role of the brain (the mind–body problem, early brain investigation, neuroimaging, the nervous system, neurons and brain regions), Topic 2 Cognitive development (brain development, neural plasticity, attachment, early deprivation, and cognitive, sociocultural and information processing theories) and Topic 3 Consciousness, attention and sleep (arousal, attention, sleep regulation and measurement, the sleep–wake cycle, sleep deprivation and sleep disorders).

Are these flashcards aligned to the QCAA syllabus?

Yes — every flashcard and quiz question is drawn from the subject matter of Unit 1: Individual development in the QCAA Psychology 2025 General senior syllabus, spread across all three topics.

Is QCE Psychology Unit 1 assessed in the external exam?

No. Units 1 and 2 are assessed only through school-based assessment, and results are reported to the QCAA as satisfactory or unsatisfactory. The external examination covers Units 3 and 4. Unit 1 still matters because it builds the brain, research and sleep knowledge that later units extend.