Biology and Human Behavior

early all general psychology texts begin with chapters relating to the biology of 11 human behavior. This is due not simply to convention but rather because basic biological processes underlie all behavior. The various branches of psychology rest, to varying degrees, on this biological foundation. The area of psychology that studies these biological functions is typically called psychobiology or biological psychology. This field focuses on the actions of your brain and nervous system; the processes of receiving stimulation and information from the environment through your senses; the ways your brain organizes sensory information to create your perceptions of the world; and how all of this affects your body and behavior. The studies chosen to represent this basic component of psychological research include a wide range of research and are among the most influential and most often cited. The first study discusses a famous research program on right-brain/left-brain specialization that shaped much of our present knowledge about how the brain functions. Next is a study that surprised the scientific community by demonstrating how a stimulating "childhood" might result in a more highly developed brain. The third study represents a fundamental change in the thinking of many psychologists about the basic causes of human behavior, personality, and social interaction—namely, a new appreciation for the significance of your genes. Fourth is the invention of the famous visual cliff method of studying infants' abilities to perceive depth. All these studies, along with several others in this book, also address an issue that underlies and connects nearly all areas of psychology and provides the fuel for an ongoing and fascinating debate: the nature-nurture controversy.