Emotion

Question 1

How are emotions defined

Answer 1

Emotions are the cognitive interpretations of our subjective feelings, as an inferred behavioral state called affect.

Question 2

What is affect?

Answer 2

A conscious, subjective feeling about a stimulus, independent of where or what it is.

Question 3

How are emotions often labeled?

Answer 3

Emotions are often labeled by two-dimensional dichotomies such as:
○ Pleasant/Unpleasant
○ Arousing/Not Arousing
○ Reward/Punishment

Question 4

What are the four principal behavioral components of emotion?

Answer 4

1. Psychophysiology: Includes central and autonomic nervous system activity (e.g., sweat, hormones, increased blood pressure).
2. Distinctive motor behavior: Especially important in observing emotions because they convey overt action (e.g., facial expression, tone of voice, posture).
3. Self-reported cognition: Cognition operates in the realm of both subjective emotional feeling and other cognitive processes (e.g., feelings of a situation).
4. Unconscious behavior: Cognitive processes of which we are not aware that influence behavior (intuition or hunches related to unconscious biases - racism).

Question 5

Which systems contribute to the experience of emotion?

Answer 5

Multiple systems, both cortical and subcortical, contribute to the experience of emotion.

Cortical: cerebral layer/cortex
Sub cortical: limbic system

Question 6

What and where is the fusiform face area?

Answer 6

The fusiform face area is located in the temporal lobe and shows activity in response to faces.

Question 7

Are basic facial expressions universally recognized?

Answer 7

Yes, people throughout the world universally recognize basic facial expressions.

Question 8

What brain structures are key to understanding the nature of emotional experience?

Answer 8

The prefrontal cortex and the amygdala hold the key to understanding the nature of emotional experience.

Question 9

What is the function of the orbitofrontal cortex?

Answer 9

The orbitofrontal cortex:
○ Represents positive and negative rewards.
○ Learns from previous stimuli/events.
○ Helps guide behavior and responses.

Question 10

How are the hippocampus, amygdala, prefrontal cortex, hypothalamus, and cingulate cortex connected?

Answer 10

○ The hippocampus, amygdala, and prefrontal cortex all connect with the hypothalamus.
○ The cingulate cortex completes the circuit by connecting back to the hippocampus, amygdala, and prefrontal cortex.

Question 11

What are the inputs and functions of the amygdala?

Answer 11

○ Receives input from all sensory systems.
○ Cells are multimodal—respond to different types of stimuli.
○ Involved in attaching pleasant and unpleasant values to stimuli.

Question 12

How is the amygdala connected, and what are the consequences of dysfunction?

Answer 12

○ Intimately connected to the frontal lobes.
○ Our survival relies on proper amygdala functioning.
○ Dysfunction is associated with mood disorders.

Question 13

What role does the prefrontal cortex play in emotion?

Answer 13

The prefrontal cortex is involved in regulating stress and emotions. Damage to this area, specifically the frontal region, results in individuals no longer outwardly expressing emotion.

Question 14

Which brain area is associated with the conscious awareness of emotions?

Answer 14

The orbitofrontal area is associated with conscious awareness of emotions.

Question 15

What is mid-anterior orbitofrontal cortex activity associated with?

Answer 15

Mid-anterior orbitofrontal cortex activity is associated with subjective pleasantness ratings of:
○ Chocolate
○ Delicious drinks
○ Pleasures of drugs, music, and sexual orgasm

Question 16

What is the effect of left-hemisphere lesions on mood and speech?

Answer 16

Left-hemisphere lesions, especially in the left frontal lobe, produce a flattening of mood that appears as depression. They also result in decreased talking.

Question 17

What is the effect of right-hemisphere lesions on mood and speech?

Answer 17

Right frontal-lobe lesions result in increased talking. They also impair the ability to mimic emotional states.

Question 18

What are the effects of left-hemisphere vs. right-hemisphere lesions on language?

Answer 18

○ Left hemisphere lesions impair language content.
○ Right hemisphere lesions impair language prosody (the rhythm, stress, and intonation of speech).

Question 19

What is the effect of anterior lesions on facial expressions?

Answer 19

Anterior lesions produce a reduction in the frequency and intensity of facial expressions.

Question 20

What can cause atypical emotional behavior?

Answer 20

Emotional behavior may be atypical due to the misinterpretation of social or emotional signals from others.

Question 21

What deficits can result from right hemisphere lesions?

Answer 21

Right hemisphere lesions result in deficits in:
○ Comprehending humor
○ Being humorous
○ Judging mood (by both voice and facial expressions)

Question 22

What is the effect of frontal and temporal lobe lesions on emotional behavior interpretation?

Answer 22

Frontal- and temporal-lobe patients were impaired in a test requiring them to select an appropriate facial expression to match a specific social context. Lesions in both hemispheres were equally effective at blocking this ability, regardless of the specific emotion.

Question 23

What roles do the right and left hemispheres play in facial expression processing?

Answer 23

○ The right hemisphere is dominant for processing faces and facial expressions.
○ The left hemisphere plays a role in understanding context.

Question 24

What is social cognition?

Answer 24

Social cognition is the interdisciplinary field of social neuroscience, which seeks to understand how the brain mediates social interactions.

Question 25

What are the six main behavioral changes associated with emotional processes after frontal lesions?

Answer 25

The six main behavioral changes associated with emotional processes after frontal lesions are:
1. Reduced social interaction
2. Loss of social dominance
3. Inappropriate social interaction
4. Altered social preference
5. Reduced affect
6. Reduced vocalization

Question 26

How is reduced social interaction manifested after a frontal lesion?

Answer 26

Individuals socially withdraw and fail to re-establish close relationships with family members.

Question 27

How is loss of social dominance manifested after a frontal lesion?

Answer 27

Those who were formally dominant in social hierarchies tend to lose their dominance or social status.

Question 28

How is inappropriate social interaction manifested after a frontal lesion?

Answer 28

Individuals fail to exhibit appropriate gestures of submission to dominant animals or people

Question 29

How is altered social preference manifested after a frontal lesion?

Answer 29

Individuals will prefer to sit with a monkey of the same sex who has a lesion as well.

Question 30

How is reduced affect manifested after a frontal lesion?

Answer 30

Individuals show a loss of facial expressions, posturing, and gestures in social situations.

Question 31

How is reduced vocalization manifested after a frontal lesion?

Answer 31

Individuals will stop making typical vocalizations.

Question 32

What are the deficits produced by frontal and temporal lesions?

Answer 32

Frontal and temporal lesions produce deficits in:
○ Producing facial expressions and social speech.
○ Perceiving facial expressions and emotions relative to specific social contexts.

Question 33

What effect do lesions to the insula have on pain?

Answer 33

Lesions to the insula increase our pain threshold.

Question 34

What is the effect of amygdala lesions on fear recognition?

Answer 34

Amygdala lesions impair the recognition of fear in others.

Question 35

What are the four main brain networks proposed for social behavior?

Answer 35

The four main brain networks proposed for social behavior are:
1. Amygdala Network: Triggers emotional responses and detects socially relevant stimuli.
2. Mentalizing Network: Related to thinking about the internal states of others and understanding their actions.
3. Empathy Network: Involves empathizing with others (insula, sigillate cortex).
4. Mirror/Simulation/Action-Perception Network: Activated when observing the actions of others. Also involved in developing our concept of self (parietal & premotor cortex, mirror neurons).

Question 36

Which frontal lobe neural networks are critical for the “self”?

Answer 36

Two distinct frontal lobe neural networks are critical for the “self”:
1. A right frontoparietal network that overlaps with the mirror/simulation/action-perception network.
2. A cortical midline network

Question 37

What does self-recognition include?

Answer 37

○ Recognition of our face (frontal-parietal network).
○ Recognition of our voice (cortical midline network)
○ An abstract mental self also exists (how we think of ourselves).

Question 38

What is cognitive control of emotion?

Answer 38

Also known as emotional regulation, it is our ability to effectively manage and respond to an emotional experience.

Question 39

How do people cope with difficult situations?

Answer 39

People can consciously and unconsciously use strategies to cope with difficult situations.

Question 40

How can expectations affect emotional experience?

Answer 40

Our expectations of something can alter our feelings when we actually experience the event.

Question 41

How can we alter our emotional experience?

Answer 41

We can alter our emotional experience by using self-emotions.

Question 42

What is the role of the hypothalamus in motivated behavior?

Answer 42

The hypothalamus plays a central role in controlling motivated behavior but takes instructions from the limbic system and frontal lobes.

Question 43

What is the role of the limbic system in emotion?

Answer 43

The limbic system and associated subcortical structures provide the neural basis of emotion. These structures all connect with the hypothalamus.

Question 44

What is the role of the prefrontal cortex in emotional processing?

Answer 44

The PFC helps the amygdala perceive tense situations and is involved with emotional responses.