Chapter 10

Question 1

affective neuroscience

Answer 1

the subfield within cognitive neuroscience that is concerned with understanding emotional
aspects of brain function

Question 2

limbic system theory

Answer 2

The theory, developed by Paul MacLean in the 1940’s, positing that structures of the limbic forebrain constitute a system that generates emotions.

Question 3

posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Answer 3

emerges following
exposure to a traumatic stressor that elicits feelings of fear, horror, or helplessness in response to bodily injury or threat of death to oneself or another person

Question 4

emotion

Answer 4

A set of physiological responses, action tendencies, and subjective feelings that adaptively engage humans and other animals to react to events of biological and/or individual significance.

Question 5

Basic emotions

Answer 5

taken to be innate, pan-cultural, evolutionarily old, shared with other species, and expressed by particular physiological patterns and facial configurations

Question 6

complex emotions

Answer 6

are learned, socially and culturally shaped, evolutionarily new, most evident in humans, and typically expressed by combinations of the response patterns that characterize basic emotions

Question 7

arousal

Answer 7

the physiological and/or subjective intensity of the emotion

Question 8

valence

Answer 8

The degree of pleasantness of a stimulus

Question 9

vector models

Answer 9

A way to graphically represent the relationships among emotions by ordering them along two orthogonal axes of positive and negative valence

Question 10

circumplex model

Answer 10

A way to graphically represent the relationships among emotions by ordering them along the circumference of a circle formed by intersecting two orthogonal axes of valence and arousal at the circle’s center

Question 11

What are the three information-processing stages?

Answer 11

(1) the evaluation of sensory input;
(2) the conscious experience of a feeling state;
(3) the expression of behavioral and physiological responses

Question 12

startle response

Answer 12

a protective musculoskeletal reflex elicited by intense and unexpected sensory stimuli (e.g., a flash of light or a loud noise). Such stimuli interrupt ongoing thoughts and behavior to evaluate the location and significance of the sensory input

Question 13

parasympathetic division

Answer 13

Sometimes referred to as the “rest and digest” system. The component of the autonomic motor system that mediates restorative metabolic functions.

Question 14

sympathetic division

Answer 14

Sometimes referred to as the “fight or flight” system. The component of the autonomic motor system that contributes to the mobilization of energy to prepare the body for action.

Question 15

James-Lange theory

Answer 15

A theory, developed by William James and Carl Lange in the 1880’s, positing that emotions are determined by the pattern of feedback from the body periphery to the cerebral cortex.

Question 16

hypothalamus

Answer 16

A collection of small but critical nuclei in the diencephalon that lies just inferior to the thalamus;
governs reproductive, homeostatic, and circadian functions.

Question 17

thalamus

Answer 17

A collection of nuclei that forms the major component of the diencephalon. Has many functions;
a primary role is to relay sensory information from the
periphery to the cerebral cortex.

Question 18

sham rage

Answer 18

An emotional reaction elicited in cats by electrical stimulation of the hypothalamus, characterized by hissing, growling, and attack behaviors directed randomly toward innocuous targets.

Question 19

Cannon-Bard theory

Answer 19

Also called diencephalic theory. A theory of emotion, developed by Walter Cannon and Philip Bard in the 1920’s, emphasizing the role of the hypothalamus and related parallel processing routes for emotional expression
and emotional experience.

Question 20

Klüver-Bucy syndrome

Answer 20

A rare behavioral syndrome following damage to the anterior temporal lobe that includes a lack of appreciation for the motivational significance of objects in the environment, hyperorality, and altered sexual behavior;
named after Heinrich Klüver and Paul Bucy.

Question 21

hippocampus

Answer 21

A specialized cortical structure located in the medial portion of the temporal lobe;
in humans, concerned with declarative memory, among many other functions.

Question 22

right-hemisphere hypothesis

Answer 22

A hypothesis positing that the right hemisphere is specialized for emotional functions.

Question 23

prosody

Answer 23

The fluctuating pitch of speech; gives emotional and other information to speech.

Question 24

valence hypothesis

Answer 24

A hypothesis postulating that positive emotions are preferentially processed in the left hemisphere and negative emotions are preferentially processed in the right hemisphere.

Question 25

anhedonia

Answer 25

Reduced experience of positive affect; often accompanies depression

Question 26

temperament

Answer 26

the habitual emotional responses that characterize aspects of an individual’s personality

Question 27

individual difference

Answer 27

Variation in a cognitive function or other trait across people, often as can be related to a particular biological predictor

Question 28

vertical integration models

Answer 28

A model of emotion that integrates cortical, subcortical, and visceral processes.

Question 29

fear conditioning

Answer 29

A form of emotional learning in which fear responses are acquired to cues that predict the occurrence of an aversive stimulus.

Question 30

amygdala

Answer 30

A collection of nuclei in the temporal lobe that forms part of the limbic system;
its major functions concern autonomic, emotional, and sexual behavior

Question 31

fear extinction

Answer 31

A form of emotional learning in which fear responses are reduced by repeated presentation of a feared stimulus without any unpleasant consequences.

Question 32

skin conductance response (SCR)

Answer 32

A stimulus-induced increase in the electrical conductance of the skin due to increased hydration.

Question 33

emotional perseveration

Answer 33

The continuation of an emotional response to a stimulus after the emotional significance of the stimulus has changed and the response is no longer appropriate.

Question 34

contextual fear conditioning

Answer 34

A form of emotional learning in which fear responses are acquired in response to environments that predict the presence of an aversive stimulus.

Question 35

Urbach-Wiethe syndrome

Answer 35

A rare, congenital dermatological disease that occasionally produces calcifications in temporal lobe structures.

Question 36

flashbulb memory

Answer 36

The concept that traumatic memories are vividly and accurately represented in the brain as though the event were recorded through the flash of a camera.

Question 37

epinephrine

Answer 37

A catecholaminergic neurotransmitter and hormone involved in many body functions, including the fight-or-flight response coordinated by the autonomic nervous system.

Question 38

norepinephrine

Answer 38

Also called noradrenaline. A catecholamin-ergic neurotransmitter and hormone released across synapses in postganglionic neurons of the sympathetic nervous system, in the adrenal medulla, and in some parts of the central nervous system.

Question 39

cortisol

Answer 39

A steroid hormone released by the adrenal gland that is involved in the stress response. Called corticosterone in rodents.

Question 40

stress hormones

Answer 40

Any of several hormones, including cortisol, epinephrine, and norepinephrine, that are secreted by the adrenal gland when stimulated by its sympathetic innervation.

Question 41

propranolol

Answer 41

An antagonist of the beta-adrenergic system.

Question 42

emotion regulation

Answer 42

The voluntary or involuntary deployment of resources to gain control over emotional responses.

Question 43

situation selection

Answer 43

A form of emotion regulation in which individuals select situations that minimize the likelihood of experiencing negative emotions.

Question 44

cognitive reappraisal

Answer 44

A form of emotion regulation in which individuals use cognitive resources to alter the meaning of a situation in order to reduce or change its emotional impact.