Ch 14 Definitions: Emotion, Aggression, and Stress Flashcards
emotion
a combination of physical sensations and the conscious experience of a feeling
valence
a positive (attractive) or negative (aversive) reaction to an object or event
nonverbal communication
the use of facial expressions, gestures, and body language to communicate ideas and feelings
James-Lange theory
a theory of emotion in which a person’s physical state provides cues for identification of an emotional state
catharsis
the relief of tension through the expression of emotion
empathy
the ability to relate to the feelings of another person
Cannon-Bard theory
a theory of emotion in which the simultaneous activation of physical responses and the recognition of subjective feelings occur independently
Schachter-Singer two-factor theory
a theory of emotion in which general arousal leads to cognitive assessment of the context, which in turn leads to the identification of an emotional state
somatic marker
an association formed between stimuli and resulting patterns of physical activation
facial nuclei
a cranial nerve nucleus, located at the level of the pons, that controls the facial nerves
polygraph
a lie-detector test based on measures of autonomic arousal
Klüver-Bucy syndrome
a collection of symptoms, including
tameness, extreme sexual behavior, and oral exploration,
that results from damage to the temporal lobes, and the amygdala in particular
emotion regulation
the influence exerted by individuals over which emotions they experience,
when they experience emotions,
and how they experience and express them
social cognition
the ability to understand the intentions and behavior of other people
aggression
the intentional initiation of a hostile or destructive act toward another individual
sham rage
a violent reaction to normally innocuous stimuli following removal of the cerebral cortices
stress
an unpleasant and disruptive state resulting from the perception of danger or threat
stressor
a source of stress
General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)
a three-stage model for describing the body’s response to stress;
developed by Hans Selye
alarm reaction
the first stage of Selye’s GAS,
characterized by activation of sympathetic nervous system and mental alertness
resistance stage
the second stage of Selye’s GAS, characterized by
the persons’s efforts to maintain normal activities while coping with stress
exhaustion stage
the final stage of Selye’s GAS,
characterized by extremely low reserves of strength and energy
corticotrophin-releasing hormone (CRH)
a hormone released by the hypothalamus that signals the release of ACTH by the anterior pituitary gland
adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)
a pituitary hormone that stimulates release of cortisol from the adrenal glands
immune system
the system used by the body to defend against bacteria, viruses, and other foreign substances
lymphocyte
a white blood cell;
an important feature of the immune system
