Biological foundations in psychology - Coursework Example

Biological Foundations in Psychology Your Full Your Why is it important for of psychology to study biological psychology? Biological psychology deals with the mechanisms of behavior at the physiological, evolutionary and ontogenetic aspects. The most explored field of biological psychology involves neuroscience, in which the brain functions including the stimulus are being studied in order to explain the human behavior and actions (Kalat, 2011). It is important for psychology students to study biological psychology because it provides a more objective and science-based evaluation of the behavior of an individual, other than just relying on emotions or by deductive reasoning.

Biological psychology provides the students the “why” of a particular behavior at the anatomical level of a human being. The behavior observed in an individual is a result of the integrated influences of the brain and other organs of the body (Kalat, 2011). Find at least one example of a modern-day issue in the field of biological psychology (from your readings, from a news source, from a reputable Internet site, from something you know about in your own life or profession). Explain how this issue relates to our study of biological psychology.

The recent methods that are used in the field of biological psychology are imaging, lesion, biochemical, genetic and recording techniques. Compared to the older techniques such as autopsy and histology, the advance in technology paved the way for the advancement in the study of neuroscience. Through imaging techniques like Computerized tomography (CT) scans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) or Electroencephalograms (EEG), it is now possible to study the activity of a live brain at its finest detail (Freberg, 2009).

However, these techniques also gained ethical issues specifically with the use of animals in different researches. During research, stress factors are induced to the animal, prior to imaging and determination of mechanism, and such treatment poses controversy (Kalat, 2011). This issue is related to our study of biological psychology because research in this field cannot be completed just by forming models and relying on theories. The fact that it is referred to as “biological” implies a deliberate study of a biological sample to be able to properly acquire the needed information.

This does not mean that scientists do not care about the animals used in the research, but more importance is given to humanity and the objective to help individuals with psychological disorders, or maybe determine the neuron that brings out the evil in a human being, to explain the existence of crime in the society.ReferencesFreberg, Laura A. (2009). Discovering Biological Psychology (2nd ed.). Belmont, CA: Cengage LearningKalat, James W. (2011). Biological Psychology (11th ed.). Belmont, CA: Cengage Learning.