Chapter 11: Emotional Behaviours Flashcards
What is the relevance of pure autonomic failure to the study of emotions?
People with pure autonomic failure do not react to events with changes in heart rate or other autonomic functions. They report still having emotional experiences but they do not feel them as strongly
In what physiological way, if any, does one type of emotion differ from another?
No type of emotion has a unique pattern of physiological activity, either in the autonomic nervous system or in the brain.
What evidence challenges the idea that we identify people’s emotions by their facial expressions?
Given a photo of a spontaneous facial expression, people usually see more than one emotion and often don’t see the emotion described by the person whose face was shown. People recognize expressions from their own culture better than those from other cultures. Also, in everyday life we identify someone’s emotion by a combination of cues, including posture, context, gestures, and tone of voice
After damage to the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, what happens to people’s moral reasoning and concern for others?
Such people become more likely to endorse the utilitarian option, even in situations where most people would find it emotionally unacceptable. They show decreased concern for others.
Carina has suddenly started gasping for breath and is worried that she is suffocating. She is also exceedingly anxious. She has likely just had _____.
a. an emotional reaction
b. pure autonomic failure
c. a heart attack
d. a panic attack
Panic attack
Correct. Carina just experienced a panic attack. She had sudden, intense arousal of the sympathetic nervous system without knowing the reason, so she likely experienced it as a negative emotion.
The ___ system is marked by low to moderate autonomic arousal and a tendency to approach, which could characterize happiness or anger.
a. amygdala processing
b. BIS
c. BAS
d. limbic
BAS
Correct. Increased activity of the frontal and temporal lobes of the left hemisphere is associated with the behavioral activation system (BAS), marked by low to moderate autonomic arousal and a tendency to approach, which could characterize happiness or anger.
Mariam has damage to her ventromedial prefrontal cortex. Scientists are having her play a game where she has some money and is asked to give any amount she chooses to a trustee. If she gives it to the trustee, the value triples. Then, the trustee can choose to give any amount back to Mariam. Given her damage, she would likely _____.
a. give most of the money to the trustee
b. keep most of the money for herself
c. keep or give the money depending on the gender of the trustee
d. give about half of the money to the trustee
keep most of the money herself
Correct. People like Mariam with ventromedial prefrontal damage give very little to the trustee, showing decreased trust. If she had been the trustee, she likely would have kept all or most of the money she was given. In short, people with this damage show very little concern for others.
What relationship did Caspi et al. (2002) report between the enzyme
MAOa and antisocial behavior?
Overall, people with genes for high or low production of MAOa do not differ significantly in their probability of antisocial behavior. However, among those who suffered serious maltreatment during childhood, people with lower levels of the enzyme showed higher rates of antisocial behavior.
Why did researchers test the effects of testosterone on women?
Studying the correlation between men’s testosterone and their aggressive behavior does not demonstrate cause and effect. Administering testosterone to women is more likely to produce demonstrable effects because women start with a lower level.
If we want to know how much serotonin the brain has been releasing, what should we measure?
We can measure the concentration of 5-HIAA, a serotonin metabolite, in the cerebrospinal fluid or other body fluids. The more 5-HIAA, the more serotonin has been released and presumably resynthesized.
What is the relationship between cortisol and aggressive behavior?
Cortisol tends to inhibit impulsive behaviors, including aggression.
What brain mechanism enables the startle reflex to be so fast?
Loud noises activate a path from the cochlea to cells in the pons that trigger a tensing of neck muscles.
How could a researcher use the startle reflex to determine whether some stimulus causes fear?
Present the stimulus before giving a loud noise. If the stimulus increases the startle reflex beyond its usual level, then the stimulus produced fear.
What would be the effect of benzodiazepines on someone who had no GABA?
Benzodiazepines facilitate the effects of GABA, so a person without GABA would not respond to benzodiazepines.
What evidence indicates that a smaller than average hippocampus makes people more vulnerable to PTSD?
For victims of PTSD who have a monozygotic twin, the twin also has a smaller than average hippocampus, even if he or she does not have PTSD. Also, people with a smaller hippocampus are less likely to recover easily from PTSD.
