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Temporal Lobe: GCSE Psychology Definition

Claire Neeson

Written by: Claire Neeson

Reviewed by: Raj Bonsor

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Contents

  1. 1. What is the temporal lobe?
  2. 2. GCSE Psychology Revision Resources to Ace Your Exams

What is the temporal lobe?

In GCSE Psychology, the temporal lobe is a region of the brain that is located on both sides of the brain (around where the ears are located on the head).

Diagram of brain showing areas: motor cortex, somatosensory cortex, visual cortex, auditory area, Wernicke's area, and Broca's area. Labels indicate functions.
Diagram of the brain

The temporal lobe is responsible for auditory processing, e.g., hearing (located in the auditory cortex), language comprehension  (particularly Wernicke's area, which is located in the left hemisphere of the temporal lobe), memory retrieval and the processing of emotions.

GCSE Psychology Revision Resources to Ace Your Exams

Explore research on the temporal lobe and other brain structures/regions in more detail and master key terms and concepts using our detailed GCSE revision notes. 

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Author
Reviewer
Claire Neeson

Author: Claire Neeson

Expertise: Psychology Content Creator

Claire has been teaching for 34 years, in the UK and overseas. She has taught GCSE, A-level and IB Psychology which has been a lot of fun and extremely exhausting! Claire is now a freelance Psychology teacher and content creator, producing textbooks, revision notes and (hopefully) exciting and interactive teaching materials for use in the classroom and for exam prep. Her passion (apart from Psychology of course) is roller skating and when she is not working (or watching 'Coronation Street') she can be found busting some impressive moves on her local roller rink.

Raj Bonsor

Author: Raj Bonsor

Expertise: Psychology & Sociology Content Creator

Raj joined Save My Exams in 2024 as a Senior Content Creator for Psychology & Sociology. Prior to this, she spent fifteen years in the classroom, teaching hundreds of GCSE and A Level students. She has experience as Subject Leader for Psychology and Sociology, and her favourite topics to teach are research methods (especially inferential statistics!) and attachment. She has also successfully taught a number of Level 3 subjects, including criminology, health & social care, and citizenship.

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