How is the brain organised, and how do innate and learned behaviours arise?
Option C Neurobiology and behaviour: the structure and functions of the human brain; methods of studying the brain; innate and learned behaviour; types of learning; and the role of behaviour in survival.
A focused answer to the Eduqas Component 3 Option C on neurobiology and behaviour. Covers the structure and functions of the human brain, methods of studying it, innate and learned behaviour, types of learning, and the role of behaviour in survival.
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What this dot point is asking
Eduqas Option C wants you to describe the structure and functions of the human brain, describe methods of studying it, distinguish innate and learned behaviour, describe types of learning, and explain the role of behaviour in survival. Study this option if your school has chosen it.
Structure and functions of the brain
Methods of studying the brain
The brain is studied by: MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) for detailed structure; fMRI (functional MRI), which shows which areas are active during a task by detecting blood flow; CT scans; EEG (recording electrical activity); and studying patients with brain damage or lesions to infer the function of the affected region.
Innate and learned behaviour
Types of learning
- Habituation: learning to ignore a repeated, harmless stimulus (for example a snail stops withdrawing when touched repeatedly).
- Classical conditioning: learning to associate a new stimulus with a response (Pavlov's dogs salivating at a bell that had been paired with food).
- Operant conditioning: learning by the consequences of behaviour, reward or punishment (a rat pressing a lever for food, after Skinner).
- Imprinting: a young animal rapidly learning to recognise and follow a parent (or the first moving object it sees) during a sensitive period, after Lorenz.
The role of behaviour in survival
Behaviour increases survival and reproductive success, so it is shaped by natural selection. Examples include innate escape reflexes, learned food preferences, social behaviours (such as cooperation in groups), and courtship behaviour that ensures mating with the right species and mate.
Examples in context
Example 1. Imprinting in geese. Lorenz showed goslings would follow the first moving object they saw after hatching, even him, during a short sensitive period, the classic example of imprinting.
Example 2. fMRI in research. fMRI lets researchers see which brain areas become active during a task (such as language or memory) without surgery, which is why it has largely replaced inferring function only from injuries.
Try this
Q1. State the function of the cerebellum. [1 mark]
- Cue. Coordinates movement, balance and posture (makes movement smooth and precise).
Q2. Distinguish between innate and learned behaviour. [2 marks]
- Cue. Innate is inherited and present from birth, the same in all the species; learned develops through experience and can change during life.
Q3. Name the type of learning shown by Pavlov's dogs salivating at a bell. [1 mark]
- Cue. Classical conditioning.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of WJEC Eduqas exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
Eduqas 20195 marksDescribe the functions of the cerebrum, the cerebellum and the medulla oblongata in the human brain.Show worked answer →
The cerebrum (the largest part, with its folded cortex) controls higher functions: conscious thought, reasoning, memory, language, and the interpretation of sensory information and initiation of voluntary movement.
The cerebellum coordinates movement, balance and posture, making movements smooth and precise, though it does not initiate them.
The medulla oblongata controls vital involuntary processes such as the heart rate, breathing rate and blood pressure (the autonomic centres).
Markers reward the cerebrum for higher functions (thought, voluntary movement, sensory interpretation), the cerebellum for coordination and balance, and the medulla oblongata for involuntary processes such as heart and breathing rate.
Eduqas 20215 marksExplain the difference between innate and learned behaviour, and describe one type of learned behaviour with an example.Show worked answer →
Innate behaviour is inherited and present from birth; it does not have to be learned and is the same in all members of a species (for example a reflex, or a fixed action pattern such as a spider spinning a web).
Learned behaviour develops through experience and can change during an organism's life; it is not fully determined by genes.
One type of learned behaviour (any one with an example): habituation (learning to ignore a repeated, harmless stimulus, for example a snail stopping withdrawing when repeatedly touched); classical conditioning (associating a new stimulus with a response, for example Pavlov's dogs salivating at a bell); operant conditioning (learning by reward or punishment, for example a rat pressing a lever for food); or imprinting (a young animal following the first moving object it sees).
Markers reward innate behaviour being inherited and present from birth, learned behaviour developing through experience, and one correctly named and exemplified type of learned behaviour.
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Sources & how we know this
- Eduqas A Level Biology Specification (A400) — Eduqas (2015)