Grays RST Flashcards
What does Gray’s RST stand for?
Gray’s Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory
What are the 3 trait approaches to personality?
Eysenck’s PEN model, Gray’s RST and FFM.
Like Eysenck’s model, Gray’s RST model also has…
a biological basis
What are Gray’s hypothesised 3 biological systems?
- Behavioural inhibition system(BIS)
- Behavioural Activation System(BAS)
- Fight-Flight System(FFS)
What is BIS?
Responsive to punishment stimuli Found in the septo-hippocampal system Withdrawal and avoidance displayed Responsible for anxiety
What is BAS?
Responsive to rewarding stimuli and incentives
Found in the dopaminergic systems
Key behaviour is approach and impulsivity
What is FFS?
Relating to to avoidance of unconditioned aversive stimuli. Withdrawal and avoidance seen.
How did Gray determine that there were biological systems?
Lesion- based animal studies based on brain function and bottom up theory of basic personality.
In what way did Gray disagree with Eysenck’s PEN model?
Gray proposed impulsivity and anxiety as an alternative to E & N & E & N as subsystems of RST. Impulsivity relating to BAS and anxiety relating to BIS.
How else did Gray disagree with Eysenck?
Gray believed that personality differences weren’t because of differences in cortical arousal but instead sensitivity to BIS and BAS.
What does Grays RST say about introverts?
Introverts BIS systems are more activated, leading to high anxiety and thus higher sensitivity to punishment. Eysenck’s N is used to measure sensitivity to BIS.
How does Gray’s & Mc Naughton’s revised RST in 2000 differ?
stimulus-BIS-BAS/FFFS
BIS acts as an alarm alerting to the possibility of threat
BAS is no sensitive to unconditioned and conditioned reward stimuli
FFFS- fight-flight-freeze system sensitive to unconditioned and conditioned aversive stimuli
What evidence is there for physiological substrates in Gray’s RST?
Fuentes et al 2012
Greater BIS sensitivity negatively correlated with regional volume of OFC which we now know is associated with emotional control.
