The biological approach to understanding behaviour is largely an investigation into correlations. Do areas of the brain correlate with behaviour? When changes take place in the brain do changes take place in behaviour or is the reverse the case? Could an individual’s behaviour be predicted from their genes? Is human behaviour subject to natural selection?
The relationship between biology and behaviour is a complex one of mutual causality. The technology available to investigate this relationship is becoming ever more sophisticated, while the ethics of this line of inquiry are increasingly an area for public debate.
Question Record: ib-bio-question-record-1 NOV 2019 UPDATE
Introducing the Biological Approach
Methods and Ethics
Topic 1: The brain and behaviour (SL/HL)
Topic 2: Hormones and pheromones and behaviour (SL/HL)
Topic 3: Genetics and behaviour (SL/HL)
HL Extension: The role of animal research in understanding human behavior
From 2020, exam question can include any of the following terms/phrases:
Agonists, antagonists, neural networks, neural pruning, neurons, synapses (excitatory and inhibitory), twin and kinship (e.g. familial studies).
