In recent years, the field of neuroscience psychology has garnered increasing attention for its groundbreaking research and discoveries about the human brain and behavior. This interdisciplinary field explores how the brain functions and how it influences our thoughts, emotions, and actions.
In fact, she was so determined to join a research lab in her sophomore year that she started cold emailing all the labs and projects that she found interesting after Muser didn’t work out for her. Ramirez’s current research project focuses on understanding how mitochondria affect the growth and shape of astrocytes, which are crucial support cells in the brain, in the Eroglu lab. The research suggests that the positioning of mitochondria in astrocytes is important for the health and development of the brain. These findings not only contribute to our understanding of the cellular mechanisms underlying mitochondrial dynamics as a therapeutic strategy for neurological diseases but also offer new perspectives on targeting mitochondrial dynamics as a therapeutic strategy for neurological diseases. In layman’s terms, Ramirez’s research and findings help us understand better how cells in the brain work by studying these tiny structures called mitochondria.
Su found in a study published in 2021 that people with a genetic propensity for alcohol use disorder are more likely to have sensation-seeking personality traits, and that social support can prevent those traits from developing into problem drinking (Journal of Abnormal Psychology, Vol. 130, No. 5, 2021). This is consistent with earlier research that found that individuals who have a higher polygenic risk score for alcohol dependence are less likely to abuse alcohol if they are in a Family Check-Up intervention group (Kuo, S. I., et al., Prevention Science, Vol. 20, No. 7, 2019). Jinni Su, PhD, an assistant professor of psychology at Arizona State University, says psychologists have been combining their knowledge about the impact of environment on behavior with these polygenic risk scores to help people develop better coping mechanisms. Our nervous system comprises billions of neurons, all firing action potentials and communicating with each other through synapses. Conversely, when neurotransmitters act on receptors to cause negative ions to flow into the postsynaptic neuron, it is called inhibition because the neuron is brought further away from its action potential threshold and therefore becomes less likely to fire. When neurotransmitters act on receptors to cause positive ions to flow into the postsynaptic neuron, it is called excitation because the neuron is brought closer to its action potential threshold and therefore becomes more likely to fire.
The electrical signals carried by axons and transmitted to dendrites are called action potentials. Neurons are electrical devices — they contain channels that allow positive and negative ions to pass from outside to inside the cell or vice versa, which gives rise to an electrical potential concerning a cell’s membrane (the barrier around the outside of a cell). The branches of neuroscience are primarily defined by their scales of analysis — that is, the perspectives from which they analyze the nervous system. Molecules in the nervous system form the basis for neuronal function and communication, which is the focus of molecular neuroscience. Much later, the invention of the microscope and the use of staining procedures led to the discovery of individual neurons (cells of the nervous system) by Santiago Ramón y Cajal in the late 1890s, setting the stage for the modern study of the nervous system (Guillery, 2004).
This neurobiological view rests on the basis of the brain as a hierarchical, inferential, Helmholtzian machine, in which large-scale intrinsic networks such as the DMN are located at higher levels of cerebral hierarchy and work to optimize the representation of the sensorium, minimizing the level of free energy. Moreover, as we noticed, the DMN functional connectivity seems to become relatively weak in the elderly (Damoiseaux et al., 2006; Andrews-Hanna et al., 2007), representing a neurological impairment of the mechanism able to support cognitive functions, switching the focus from the inside supported by DMN, to the outside supported by DAN. We can observe the higher control system apparently impaired and unable to bind the free energy, making difficult the executions of cognitive tasks. In cases of ADHD (Castellanos et al., 2008) or impulse control disorders (Church et al., 2009), the hierarchically lower system seems to become too active to be managed by the hierarchically superior system, operating a sort of “mutiny,” or “hijacking,” leading to an impairment of the system control. The Freudian concept of reality principle seems consistent with the functional role of the DMN in its hierarchical and self-organizing role of suppressing free energy originated from subordinate levels, such as the limbic and paralimbic systems. In fact, the Freudian secondary process with its top-down mode of operation, in which it transforms free energy of the lower levels into bound energy trying to keep the system on physiologically acceptable levels, seems to be consistent with the functions of the DMN.
He had to abdicate the pursuit of his dream, first because the technologies available at his time were not sufficiently advanced to seek his neuroscientific ambition and on the other side because of his skepticism about the widespread phrenologic view and the disposition to fit any mental process in its specific brain region. This typical localizationist view was back in vogue after the important Paul Broca’s discoveries in 1861, about the areas of language and his homonymous aphasia, determined by the lesion of an area that still maintains today Broca’s name. Interest was renewed but not completely new, given that since the beginning of the 19th century Franz Joseph Gall, pioneer in the study of the cerebral cortex, focused his neuroanatomical investigation on the attribution of specific psychic functions to specific brain structures. In the first phrenology view Gall believed that man’s moral and intellectual faculties were innate and strictly connected to the organization of the brain. He also proposed a localizationism view of the brain where single regions were responsible for a given mental faculty, and he finally suggested that the development of mental faculties in an individual would lead to a growth or larger development in the sub-region responsible for them.
The Basics of Neuroscience Psychology
Neuroscience psychology blends principles from both neuroscience and psychology to study the relationship between the brain and behavior. Researchers in this field use advanced imaging techniques, such as fMRI and EEG, to observe brain activity in real-time and correlate it with specific behaviors or mental processes.
Key Areas of Research
The best cities to study Neuroscience in Thailand based on the number of universities and their ranks are Nakhon Pathom, Bangkok, Chiang Mai, and Khon Kaen. Below is a list of best universities in Bangkok ranked based on their research performance in Psychology. A graph of 253K citations received by 24.6K academic papers made by 19 universities in Bangkok was used to calculate publications’ ratings, which then were adjusted for release dates and added to final scores. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data.
- Neuroplasticity: The brain’s ability to reorganize and change throughout life.
- Neurotransmitters: Chemical messengers that transmit signals between neurons.
- Cognitive functions: How the brain processes information, learns, and remembers.
- Emotional regulation: How the brain controls and responds to emotions.
FAQs About Neuroscience Psychology
- How does stress impact the brain?
- Can neuroscience psychology help treat mental health disorders?
Chronic stress can lead to changes in brain structure and function, affecting memory, decision-making, and emotional regulation.
Research in this field has led to new therapies and interventions for conditions like depression, anxiety, and PTSD.
Overall, neuroscience psychology offers valuable insights into the complex interplay between the brain and behavior, shedding light on fundamental questions about what makes us human.
