![]() When you sense that rotten smell, you immediately pull away and put the jug as far away from you as possible. You open the gallon jug and put your nose up to it. Think of when you check your refrigerator to see if the milk has gone bad. Interneurons, on the other hand, are part of the central nervous system. When you kick a ball, scratch your head, or do push-ups at the gym, afferent and efferent neurons are evaluating stimuli and allowing you to respond. Why is it important?Īfferent and efferent neurons are part of your somatic nervous system, which is responsible for all the voluntary muscle movements in your body. ![]() After all, if we sit on a pin, we can’t jump up in surprise if we don’t feel the pinprick in the first place. The afferent neurons have to receive the sensory information before the efferent neurons can respond to it. Need another way to remember the difference? A comes before E in the alphabet. The association neurons are like the intersection where they meet. The traffic can only flow in one direction – afferent neurons only take information to the central nervous system, and efferent neurons only take it away from the central nervous system. You can think of afferent and efferent neurons pathways as one-way streets. Association neurons bridge the gap to relay information between sensory and motor neurons. Afferent and efferent neurons have to work together in order to sense and respond to stimulus, but they don’t directly connect. These neurons are located in the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord). When sensory input is brought to the brain, it sends signals for a motor response to your muscles and glands via the efferent neurons.Ī third type of neuron, called the interneuron or association neuron, acts as a kind of middleman between the afferent and efferent neurons. Sensory input, such as smells and feelings of pain, is carried from the point of reception up the spinal cord and into the brain.Įfferent neurons – also called motor neurons – are the nerves responsible for carrying signals away from the central nervous system in order to initiate an action. Then, they send information about that stimulus to your central nervous system. Plus, we’ll give you tips on how to remember and master this distinction in time for the AP® psych exam.Īfferent neurons – also called sensory neurons – are the nerves responsible for sensing a stimulus. That’s why it’s important to focus on the difference in what they do first. With such similar-sounding words, it can be tough to remember the difference between afferent and efferent. Image Source: Wikimedia Commons Afferent vs. This AP® Psychology Crash Course will review a tricky topic and make it simple: the difference between afferent and efferent neurons. Luckily for you, we have broken down the key concepts you need to know to score a 4 or 5 in May. It can be exhausting to process all the information expected of you for the AP® Psych exam. ![]() The AP® Psychology course covers 14 key topics and fields of study in psychology, and the AP® exam will test your knowledge of all of them.
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