Chapter 2 Overview

Chapter Overview

In order to get a greater understanding for the field of Psychology we need to learn the foundations of who we are; in other words, our neurological and biological foundations. Our body consists of as many as one trillion neurons. Neurons are the nervous system’s communicators to the rest of the body. Through information that we receive from the outside world, neurons send messages to the brain and other parts of the body so that we function effectively. For example, take a second and think about sitting on your chair. Do you feel the chair under your body? At this point neural messages are being sent from your touch receptors to your brain and relaying a message saying that you are sitting on a chair. As you can imagine having to attend to all this information can be overwhelming (we’ll talk about this process in Chapter 4).

In this chapter you will learn about how messages are received and sent throughout the body. From how neurons communicate with one another to which part of the brain receives the message, this chapter will explore neuroscience, the field of studying how biological processes relate to behavioral and mental processes.

The chapter is divided into 4 sections:

2.1 Neural Bases of Behavior

2.2 Nervous System Organization

2.3 A Tour Through the Brain:

2.4  Our Genetic Inheritance