amygdala Flashcards
where is the amygdala found?
in the temporary lobe
what is the amygdala responsible for?
emotion regulation and aggression
why might it be seen that the A has a survival benefit?
it is in the older region of the brain
what does damage to the amygdala cause?
overreactive, irritable, over emotional
what is an example of a case study that can link to this theory?
charles whitman
what did charles whitman do and why?
shot his wife and mother followed by 16 others at a university
he had a brain tumour that may have pressed against his A
who studied sham rage?
canon and briton
what emotional state did canon and briton find?
sham rage
what did canon and briton find/do?
researched on cats, and found that when the amygdala was provoked they became aggression and when it was removed they became placid
what did raine et al find linked to the A?
found that murderers had lower glucose metabolism in the A compared to non murderers
why might the study be classed as incomplete/ what doesn’t it explain?
if it is to do with the size, functioning of the amygdala
why is it reductionist?
just states amygdala doesn’t account for other factors or brain parts
what is the problem with using animal studies?
lacks generalisability, size may differ
what did fallon do?
used MRI scans to identify whether people were psychopaths or not, but identified himself as one when he wasn’t
is fallon a strength or weakness
weakness
is pardini a strength or weakness?
strength
what did padroni find?
found differences in the levels of activity in the brain
what glen a strength or a weakness?
strength
what did glen find?
he found that criminals showed less activity in the A when doing a task related to moral decision making, don’t worry about hurting others
why might the theory have strength of reliability?
reliable methods are used such as brain scans
why might the methods used to study this theory be invalid?
lack mundane realism as don’t represent real life behaviour