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PSY 350 Week 1 DQ 1 Methods of Neuroscience Investigation
PSY 350 Week 1 DQ 2 Neurotransmitters
Neurotransmitters. This week’s required and recommended materials will cover topics on neurotransmitters, receptors, neurotransmitter systems, and their role in cognition and behavior (both normal and abnormal). After reading Chapters 3 and 4 in your course text and viewing Brain and Nervous System: Your Information Superhighway, The Nervous System: Nerves at Work, and The Influence of Neurotransmitters complete one of the following options for your discussion:
Option A: Evaluate one of the neurotransmitters covered in this week’s readings. Explain the role it plays in modulating responses to a drug of abuse. For example, you could choose the acetylcholine receptor system and discuss the role this neurotransmitter plays in addiction to nicotine. In addition to your evaluation of the specific neurotransmitter and its associated receptor system, provide correlation to the involved neuroanatomical structures, the contribution of genetics and environment to the development of dependence, tolerance, and addiction to this substance, as well as clinical treatment interventions.
Option B: Evaluate one of the neurotransmitters covered in this week’s readings. Explain the role it plays in a neurological or psychological disorder of your choice. For example, you could choose the dopaminergic system and discuss the role this neurotransmitter has in the development of schizophrenia. In addition to your evaluation of the specific neurotransmitter and its associated receptor system, provide a correlation to the involved neuroanatomical structures, as well as the contribution of genetics and environment to the development and clinical management of this disorder.
PSY 350 Week 1 Final Project Topic Selection
Final Project Topic Selection. Select a psychological disorder that you would like to study utilizing a biopsychological approach. For the Final Project, you will provide a detailed discussion of the psychological disorder that you select this week. While you may refer to other areas of psychology, the Final Project must focus on the biopsychological causes and treatment approaches for this disorder. You must utilize current research in this area to evaluate the major biopsychological theories about this disorder. Your research should also be used to discuss possible effective biopsychological approaches to treatment that incorporate the biopsychological causes of the disorder.
Select a disorder from the following list:
a. Schizophrenia
b. Depression
c. Anxiety
d. Substance Abuse (should focus on a single drug of your choice)
e. Autism
f. Neurological disorders
g. Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
PSY 350 Week 2 DQ 1 Nervous System
Nervous System. This week, you will examine the major structures of the central and peripheral nervous systems, as well as the location and function of these structures. Search the Ashford University Online Library and locate a peer-reviewed research study that was published within the last five years, which examines the role of one of the structures reviewed in Chapter 4 of your course text. The research study you identify should evaluate the function of this structure in either normal or abnormal behavior. Your response must clearly identify the role of the structure in the identified behavior as well as your level of agreement with the results of the study and your rationale. Your initial post should be a minimum of 250 words and utilize at least one peer-reviewed research study that was published within the last five years.
PSY 350 Week 2 DQ 2 Movement
PSY 350 Week 3 DQ 1 Sensory Systems
Sensory Systems. This week you were introduced to the sensory systems, which include the visual, auditory, olfactory, taste, and the body senses. Evolution would suggest that each sensory system is of significant importance to maintaining the human organism. For this discussion, imagine you are a professor giving a lecture on the evolutionary importance of the sensory systems. Prepare a summary of your argument. Identify which is the most important sensory system for human survival. Your discussion should also indicate which system is the least important from the perspective of the “survival of the fittest”. Your initial post should be a minimum of 250 words and utilize at least one peer-reviewed source that was published within the last five years
PSY 350 Week 3 DQ 2 Consciousness and Sleep
PSY 350 Week 3 Final Project Outline
Final Project Outline. This week you will create an outline of the main points of your Final Project, using the psychological disorder that was selected and approved by the instructor in Week One. Refer to the Final Project prompt in Week Five for the section components that must be included in your outline. Each main heading and any subheadings must include at least a two to three sentence description. You must also identify a minimum of six peer-reviewed references that were published within the last five years, which you will use for your Final Project. At least two to three of these should be research studies. Indicate which section each reference supports within your outline. Your outline should be at least one to two pages in length (excluding title and reference pages). It may be longer, depending on how much information you choose to include and the depth of your descriptions. All citations must be formatted according to APA guidelines as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
PSY 350 Week 4 DQ 1 Gender Testing
PSY 350 Week 4 DQ 2 Eating Disorders
Eating Disorders. Read the article by Wilson et. al. on the behavioral approaches to the treatment of eating disorders. Choose an eating disorder that is reviewed in this article and in the text. Review the proposed physiological and behavioral mechanisms of this disorder. Based on the proposed causes, which treatment strategy reviewed in this article do you think would be most successful in the treatment of this disorder? Your initial post should be a minimum of 250 words and utilize at least one peer-reviewed source published in the last five years.
PSY 350 Week 5 DQ 1 Brain Injury
PSY 350 Week 5 DQ 2 Schizophrenia and Smoking
Schizophrenia and Smoking. Doctors have historically noticed that Schizophrenics smoke at a much higher rate than that of the typical population. This correlation is still evident today. Review the possible mechanisms of addiction and schizophrenia. Visit the Ashford University Library to locate at least one peer-reviewed article that was published within the last five years, which proposes a biological mechanism for the relationship between Schizophrenia and smoking. How does the data support the proposed mechanism in the article you chose? What other possible mechanisms might explain this relationship? Is it possible that biology has nothing to do with the relationship between smoking and schizophrenia? Your initial post should be a minimum of 250 words and utilize at least one peer-reviewed source published in the last five years.
PSY 350 Week 5 Final Paper
Focus of the Final Project
For your Final Project, you will use the psychological disorder that was selected and approved by the instructor in Week One. In your project, you will provide an overview of the major biopsychological theories of the disorder as well as a detailed discussion of the biopsychological causes and treatment approaches for the disorder. The Final Project must utilize peer-reviewed sources, published within the last five years, and cited according to APA guidelines, to support and enhance your analysis of the selected disorder. In addition to the general overview of biopsychological causes and available treatment approaches, locate two to three published research studies that support a discussion of possible, effective biopsychological approaches to treatment and incorporate the biopsychological cause of the disorder.
Paper Components:
Introduction
This section should provide a general introduction to the psychological disorder you have selected that includes the focus of your critique, as well as an overview of the background and history of the disorder. Additionally, it should provide demographic data that indicates the prevalence of the disorder in both general and specific populations. Finally, this section should clearly indicate the direction that the critique will take.
For example, there are many biopsychological theories of alcoholism. In this section you would express your intent to focus on the role of gamma-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) in alcoholism. There should then be research on the role of GABA and GABAergic pathways in the development of this disorder. This is not to say that your paper must focus on only one biopsychological cause or system, but you should indicate your areas of focus in the introduction.
Discussion
In this section you will present a detailed discussion of the biopsychologicaletiology and treatment for the disorder you chose. Indicate if this disorder appears to be genetic in nature or due to factors in the environment. When discussing the biopsychological causes of this disorder, be specific. Your discussion should refer not only to specific systems (such as the GABA, noted previously) but also to the pathways in the brain that are believed to be involved. This section must utilize current, published research studies to support your discussion. This section should be the majority of your Final Project.
Conclusion
Provide a concluding summary of your findings regarding your selected disorder. Additionally, address the possible future research directions that could be taken to further examine the role of biopsychology in the expression and treatment of this disorder.
The Final Project should contain a minimum of eight to ten double-spaced pages (excluding title and reference pages) and must be formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. You must include a minimum of six to eight peer-reviewed sources that were published within the last five years, and at least two to three of these must be published research studies.