PSYCHOLOGY ESSAY
2.4: EXPLAIN ONE STUDY RELATED TO LOCALIZATION OF FUNCTION IN THE
BRAIN
Localization of function in the brain is the concept that certain areas of the brain
correspond to certain functions, and therefore, emotions, thoughts and behavior
originate from specific areas of the brain. This concept was first widely accepted
due to psychological research carried out in the 19 th and 20th centuries, such as the
study of HM, or Henry Molaison. Such research helped psychologists understand the
neurological aspects behind behavior. This essay will attempt to give a detailed
account of the study of HM.
At the age of 7, HM suffered frequent epileptic seizures after falling off a bike. It was
initially assumed that these seizures came were because of the accident, and at age
27, HM underwent neurosurgery to stop his seizures. The surgery was experimental
in nature, and removed tissue from HM’s medial temporal lobe, including the
hippocampus. It was found that HM suffered from amnesia post-surgery, and as
such, could not create new episodic and semantic memories. He could, however,
learn procedural memories. In 1957, Milner first reported HM’s case of diminished
memory functioning, following such an operation. In 1997, Corkin et al. conducted
an MRI scan of HM’s brain. The MRI allowed researchers to get a precise image of
the damage HM’s brain suffered. It was found as a result of this scan that the
hippocampus and amygdala were missing, and this was the link between difficulty
recalling memories and the operation which HM underwent. This case study is
therefore significant because it provided evidence that the hippocampus was largely
responsible for memory call. On the contrary to the concept of localization,
however, the study evidenced the fact that many different memory systems in the
brain coexist, since he could form memories, but not recall them, a result of HM’s
retrograde and anterograde amnesia.
The findings of HM’s case study are that the hippocampus and surrounding areas
play a critical role in converting memories of past experiences from short term to
long term memory, from contemporary store, to permanent store respectively. This
is because HM was found to have the ability to remember what happened before his
surgery, but not after, indicating that the hippocampus stores temporary memory,
rather than permanent memory. Also, the fact that HM had deficits in one part of his
brain but not in others is evidence in itself that the brain has numerous memory
systems, all supported by specific brain locations. HM’s operation, notably, was
based on the assumption that his seizures would stop after the surgery, but it was
not anticipated that memory issues would emerge from his surgery. Ethical
considerations are definitely present in the case study, such as the fact that HM
could not recall all the times he participated in studies, and therefore, could not
provide his informed consent. It is arguable, however, that the study was justified
due to the significance of the findings. Also, it is very difficult to make
generalizations from this case, but, we could generalize to some extent, because
2.4: EXPLAIN ONE STUDY RELATED TO LOCALIZATION OF FUNCTION IN THE
BRAIN
Localization of function in the brain is the concept that certain areas of the brain
correspond to certain functions, and therefore, emotions, thoughts and behavior
originate from specific areas of the brain. This concept was first widely accepted
due to psychological research carried out in the 19 th and 20th centuries, such as the
study of HM, or Henry Molaison. Such research helped psychologists understand the
neurological aspects behind behavior. This essay will attempt to give a detailed
account of the study of HM.
At the age of 7, HM suffered frequent epileptic seizures after falling off a bike. It was
initially assumed that these seizures came were because of the accident, and at age
27, HM underwent neurosurgery to stop his seizures. The surgery was experimental
in nature, and removed tissue from HM’s medial temporal lobe, including the
hippocampus. It was found that HM suffered from amnesia post-surgery, and as
such, could not create new episodic and semantic memories. He could, however,
learn procedural memories. In 1957, Milner first reported HM’s case of diminished
memory functioning, following such an operation. In 1997, Corkin et al. conducted
an MRI scan of HM’s brain. The MRI allowed researchers to get a precise image of
the damage HM’s brain suffered. It was found as a result of this scan that the
hippocampus and amygdala were missing, and this was the link between difficulty
recalling memories and the operation which HM underwent. This case study is
therefore significant because it provided evidence that the hippocampus was largely
responsible for memory call. On the contrary to the concept of localization,
however, the study evidenced the fact that many different memory systems in the
brain coexist, since he could form memories, but not recall them, a result of HM’s
retrograde and anterograde amnesia.
The findings of HM’s case study are that the hippocampus and surrounding areas
play a critical role in converting memories of past experiences from short term to
long term memory, from contemporary store, to permanent store respectively. This
is because HM was found to have the ability to remember what happened before his
surgery, but not after, indicating that the hippocampus stores temporary memory,
rather than permanent memory. Also, the fact that HM had deficits in one part of his
brain but not in others is evidence in itself that the brain has numerous memory
systems, all supported by specific brain locations. HM’s operation, notably, was
based on the assumption that his seizures would stop after the surgery, but it was
not anticipated that memory issues would emerge from his surgery. Ethical
considerations are definitely present in the case study, such as the fact that HM
could not recall all the times he participated in studies, and therefore, could not
provide his informed consent. It is arguable, however, that the study was justified
due to the significance of the findings. Also, it is very difficult to make
generalizations from this case, but, we could generalize to some extent, because
