An introduction to neuropsychology explores the various aspects of human behaviour and cognition and how the nervous system affects these two areas. It is a biological perspective as it examines the brain to understand human behaviours. Many neuropsychologists are interested in how dysfunctional behaviours can be related to disorders within the brain. With the advancements in neuroimaging techniques, the ability to study the brain and relate it to behaviour has made leaps and bounds.
So, what are the various techniques we can use to study the brain? What are the different types of neurological damage that can affect behaviour and cognition?
- First, we are going to provide a neuropsychology definition.
- Followed by an in-depth discussion of the types of neuropsychology, identifying the nuances of neuropsychology, and the differences between neuroscience and neuropsychology.
- Throughout, we will provide plenty of neuropsychology examples to illustrate our points.
- Finally, we will discuss the various ethical issues in neuropsychology.
Neuropsychology explores how the brain and nervous system affect cognition and behaviour, freepik.com/vectorjuice
Neuropsychology Definition
We can define neuropsychology as:
Neuropsychology is the study of the nervous system and how the various physiological processes involved in the nervous system affect human behaviour and cognition, specifically how disorders within the brain result in dysfunctional behaviours. Some argue neuropsychology is the study of the mind (this is important when trying to understand the difference between neuroscience and neuropsychology!)
To recap, it's worth knowing what we mean by the nervous system when discussing the topic of neuropsychology. So, the nervous system consists of two parts:
- The central nervous system (CNS) - consists of the brain and spinal cord.
- The peripheral nervous system - consists of neurons connecting the CNS to the body and can be further divided into the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and the somatic nervous system.
The ANS can be divided even further! The sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight) and the parasympathetic nervous system (rest and digest) are both subdivisions of the ANS.
The nervous system cells are neurons, and they are key in the transmission of information around the body.
Types of Neuropsychology
Neuropsychology encompasses a wide range of topics and is relatively new in the grand scheme of things, but we can separate it somewhat into two types:
- Clinical neuropsychology
- Cognitive neuropsychology
They differ both in their focus and application of knowledge in neuropsychology.
Clinical Neuropsychology
Clinical neuropsychology uses the knowledge and information neuropsychology provides and applies it to people in a clinical format, assessing potential issues and dysfunctions with the brain and identifying treatment methods.
Think of neuropsychology as the explanation and study of disorders and clinical neuropsychology as its application to treat people. Typically, clinical neuropsychologists undergo specialised training to do this. They assess how brain injuries, diseases, or illnesses, in general, affect behaviour and cognition and then formulate plans to help treat the issues.
Clinical neuropsychologists, according to the British Psychological Association¹, can:
- Assess a patient (providing a diagnosis and treatment plans, assessing the impact of the dysfunction on behaviour).
- Treat the patient (providing strategies and training to overcome effects of brain dysfunction, illnesses, and injuries, and help people cope with any feelings/adjustments they have to make).
- Providing research (by working with patients, they can answer many questions revolving around the effects of brain injuries and how they impact the people affected, including family and friends).
Cognitive Neuropsychology
Cognitive neuropsychology is similar to neuropsychology overall. It is interested in studying the brain and how the physiological processes involved in the nervous system affect behaviour and cognition, specifically focusing on the effects of disorders. Unlike clinical neuropsychology, however, it is more interested in identifying information through the study of patients rather than providing treatment paths and assessing medical needs.
It can be considered one of the more scientific-based branches of psychology.
Think of cognitive neuropsychology as a research branch of neuropsychology, specifically focusing on brain and behaviour disorder relationships. In contrast, clinical is more focused on using this information to assess and treat individuals.
Clinical neuropsychology is different to cognitive neuropsychology, freepik.com/vectorjuice
Cognitive Neuroscience: Difference between neuroscience and neuropsychology
Cognitive neuroscience sounds intimidating at first glance, but it essentially focuses on the structure and function of the brain and how it can affect and shape human behaviour and cognition. It is similar to neuropsychology, although some may argue it is the most scientific division overall of psychology.
Cognitive neuroscience looks at how activity within the brain can relate to and affect cognition and behaviour.
The difference between neuroscience and neuropsychology is that neuroscience is the study of the brain, focused on how structure and function affect behaviour and cognition. In contrast, neuropsychology is the study of how disorders of these processes affect the mind.
The two blend somewhat, and many debate how closely the two are related, but it helps to remember that:
- Neuropsychology is focused more so on disorders and how it affects cognition and behaviour, and neuroscience is more focused on studying the structure and function of the brain overall.
The brain can be separated into distinct parts and areas of function.
For example, the somatosensory cortex aids the interpretation of touch, pain, and temperature, whereas the motor cortex is responsible for voluntary movement.
Broca's area is responsible for speech production and is located just below the strip of the brain known as the motor cortex, whereas Wernicke's area is responsible for understanding language and is located closer to the auditory cortex.
Scanning Techniques: Neuropsychology examples
Neuropsychology and neuroscience alike both benefit immensely from the use of scanning techniques. Scanning techniques allow researchers to investigate the brain like never before.
Previously, to understand a disorder, medical professionals had to rely on invasive techniques such as surgery to look at the brain's inner mechanisms.
Similarly, if this weren't possible, they would have to resort to post-mortems (examination after death) to gain an insight into the potential disorders affecting the brain and infer conclusions based on any present damage or structural abnormalities. Both are not ideal.
Examples of scanning techniques researchers, psychologists, and medical professionals can use include:
- CT (computerised tomography) scan - uses X-ray beams to take images (slices) for a cross-sectional view of the body's internal state.
- PET (positron emission tomography) scan - uses radioactive dyes to identify issues with function in the body and brain.
- fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging) scan - uses magnets and computers to create images of the body by affecting the alignment of nuclei using the magnetic fields, identifying function/dysfunction through identifying blood flow (BOLD imaging).
Tulving's Gold Memory Study
Tulving sought to understand the relation between memory and brain activity. Using case studies, Tulving injected six volunteering participants with a gold radioactive isotope, which subsequently spread into the brain.
As the isotope had a half-life of 30 seconds, the risk was fairly low!
This allowed Tulving to use a PET scan (which we discussed above) to identify the areas of function.
- Participants were asked to think of either an episodic memory or a semantic memory, with reference to how recent the memories were. Participants, after a minute, were then injected, and scans were taken to measure regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF). This is used to measure brain functioning.
- Twelve rapid scans were obtained through eight trials, and three of the participant's results were dismissed due to issues with the consistency of their readings.
The results indicated a clear difference in blood flow depending on the type of memory the participants were asked to think about, irrespective of the recency of the memories.
Neurological Damage and the Ethical issues of Neuropsychology
Neurological damage can significantly impact the brain's functioning and, subsequently, cognition.
A stroke, for instance, occurs when blood supply and, therefore, oxygen to the brain is restricted or cut off. Without a constant blood supply, the brain cells deprived of oxygen begin to die.
Depending on the stroke, this can result in significant damage and loss of function. The loss of function can be permanent, and long-term symptoms can range from loss of motor abilities, such as paralysis and incontinence, to vision problems and issues with general fatigue.
Behaviour can also be affected, with patients feeling more irritable and quick to anger, sad or depressed, and losing interest in their favourite activities.
The severity varies depending on how long the stroke occurred and how long it took to receive treatment.
Another example of neurological damage can be seen in the case of Phineas Gage.
Phineas Gage is a famous case in psychology where brain injury resulted in observable changes in behaviour. It was particularly significant due to the extent of the damage the injury caused.
Phineas Gage had an accident at work where an iron rod went through his left frontal lobe. Gage miraculously survived, but he lost his eye in the accident and behaved differently following the injury. Friends of Gage reported he was more aggressive, behaved erratically and was often vulgar and intolerable to most people afterwards.
A significant difference from the hard-working individual they previously described him as!
Ethical issues in neuropsychology
Neuropsychology is a relatively new field compared to the likes of psychology and takes a more biological, scientific approach to studying the mind. As a result, it has to consider the ethical issues the neuropsychology study can create. Overall, neuropsychology typically is bound by the same constraints psychology ethics are tied to.
Some additional examples of ethical issues to consider are:
- Potential harm to patients/participants - use of PET scans, for instance. PET scans are somewhat radioactive and pose a small risk to the patients. Fortunately, PET scans are used only when necessary for this reason.
- Informed consent - similar to that of psychology, neuropsychology offers potential avenues of treatment and also looks into various areas of research that require informed consent.
- Treatment issues - treatment plans created through neuropsychological assessment come with their own risks and benefits, so the patients need to understand these risks before agreeing to treatment.
- Invasive techniques - although neuropsychology has moved on and developed advanced techniques to study the brain, some procedures can still be considered invasive.
An introduction to neuropsychology - Key takeaways
- Neuropsychology is the study of the nervous system and how the various physiological processes involved in the nervous system affect human behaviour and cognition, specifically in how disorders within the brain result in dysfunctional behaviours.
- Some argue neuropsychology is the study of the mind (important when distinguishing the difference between neuroscience and neuropsychology!).
- Neuropsychology can consist of two main types, clinical neuropsychology and cognitive neuropsychology.
- Scanning techniques include CT, PET, and fMRI scans.
- Tulving's Gold memory study highlighted how semantic and episodic memories vary in the areas of the brain they produce activity in.
- Neurological disorders can greatly impact brain functioning and, subsequently, behaviour. A stroke, for instance, can cause brain cells to die and result in permanent damage and loss of functioning (paralysis, mood changes).
References
- British Psychological Society, (2022). Retrieved from https://www.bps.org.uk/sites/bps.org.uk/files/Member%20Networks/Divisions/DoN/what%20is%20clinical%20neuropsychology.pdf
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