Motivation and Emotion

Question 1

Define motivation

Answer 1

Behaviour that seems purposeful and goal-directed

Question 2

Define emotion

Answer 2

Cognitive interpretation of subjective feelings

Question 3

What is the impact of sensory deprivation on behaviour?

Answer 3

Brain has an inherent need to stimulation. Most participants were content for about 4 hours but afterwards craved any kind of stimulation. Few lasted more than 24 hours. In absence of stimulation, brain will seek it out.

Question 4

What are innate releasing mechanisms (IRM)?

Answer 4

Inborn, adaptive responses that improve an animal’s survival. They are present from birth and aid feeding, reproduction and escape.

Question 5

What were the findings of Field et. al. (1982) of IRM in humans?

Answer 5

Adult performed exaggerated facial expressions, babies imitated them. Newborns are too young to imitate so it is more likely that they are matching the expressions to internal templates as they are important for communication.

Question 6

What is learned taste aversion?

Answer 6

Taste of a certain food paired with illness, brain associates the two.

Question 7

What is biological preparedness?

Answer 7

Brain is inherently inclined to form associations between certain stimuli and responses (fear response - adaptive)

Question 8

What are regulatory behaviours?

Answer 8

Behaviours motivated by survival and controlled by homeostatic mechanisms.

Question 9

What is the role of the hypothalamus in regulatory behaviours?

Answer 9

Maintains critical body functions

E.g. holds body temperature at 37 degrees

Question 10

What are non-regulatory behaviours?

Answer 10

Behaviours not required to meet survival needs. Not necessary and are often controlled by forebrain structures

Question 11

Describe neuroanatomy of emotion

Answer 11

The expression of emotion involves many physiological changes: heart rate, blood pressure, hormone secretion, motor responses, movement of facial muscles and tear production

Question 12

Describe neuroanatomy of motivated behaviour

Answer 12

Critical structures involves are hypothalamus and pituitary gland, as well as limbic system and frontal lobes which both project to the hypothalamus.

Question 13

Describe regulatory motivated behaviours.

Answer 13

Motivated to meet basic survival needs
Controlled by homeostatic mechanisms
Involves hypothalamus (e.g. eating, drinking, body temp.)

Question 14

Describe non-regulatory motivated behaviours

Answer 14

Not motivated to meet basic survival needs
Not controlled by homeostatic mechanisms
Most involve frontal lobes more than hypothalamus (e.g. sex, food preference, curiosity)

Question 15

What is the hypothalamus and its role?

Answer 15

Links the nervous system to the endocrine system via the pituitary gland. Has functions such as: hormone release, fear processing, coordinating hormonal and behavioural circadian rhythms, control food intake, defensive behaviours, HR.

Question 16

What are the three regions of the hypothalamus?

Answer 16

Lateral, medial and periventricular. Contain the nuclei. The lateral hypo contains nuclei and nerve tracts that connect the lower brainstem into the forebrain. Principle tract is the medial forebrain bundle (MFB).

Question 17

What is the role of the medial forebrain bundle?

Answer 17

Connects brain stem and limbic system
Projects from brainstem to basal ganglia and frontal cortex
Contributes to motivated behaviours

Question 18

What are the factors involved in controlling hypothalamic activity?

Answer 18

Feedback loops
Neural control
Experiential responses

Question 19

Describe neural control

Answer 19

Regulation by other brain structures

e.g. breastfeeding - infant suckling is a stimulation that causes hypothalamic cells to release oxytocin.

Question 20

Describe experiential responses

Answer 20

Brain responds to experience throughout our lives. Experience causes neurons to undergo structural and chemical changes. Changes in hypothalamic neurons affect the output of hormones.

Question 21

What is the link between the hypothalamus and behaviour?

Answer 21

Electrical stimulation of hypothalamus leads to changes in, and production of, complex behaviours
Behaviours produced by stimulation of hypothalamus include: eating/drinking, digging, fear, violence, reproduction.

Question 22

Describe eating as a regulatory behaviour.

Answer 22

The act of eating and digestion is regulated by a range of cortical areas. Reward of eating is initiated by dopaminergic systems.

Question 23

What cognitive factors are apart of eating?

Answer 23

Pleasure (or absence of) is a contributory factor - thinking about food makes us hungry
Learned associations (e.g. taste aversion) impact eating

Question 24

What two brain structures are involved in eating behaviour?

Answer 24

Amygdala - food preferences and taste aversion

Orbital prefrontal cortex

Question 25

What is the effect of sex hormones on the brain?

Answer 25

Gonadal hormones impact upon preoptic areas of medial hypothalamus and amygdala, prefrontal cortex and spinal cord.

Question 26

What are the activating effects of sex hormones?

Answer 26

Ovarian hormones alter brain activity and behaviour in rats. Impact of ovarian hormones observed in hippocampus as changes in dendritic spines.

Question 27

What brain structures are involves in sexual motivation?

Answer 27

Ventromedial hypothalamus - controls female sexual receptivity
Preoptic area of the medial hypothalamus - controls copulatory behaviour in males
Amygdala - controls sexual motivation
Frontal lobes - reasoning

Question 28

What is the role of the mesolimbic system in reward?

Answer 28

Dopaminergic pathway linked by the amygdala, nucleus accumbens, medial prefrontal cortex and hippocampus to the limbic system. Associated with pleasure and reward.

Question 29

What are the two independent processes of reward?

Answer 29

Wanting (incentive) and liking (evaluation of pleasure). Usually occur togethers, but can sometimes be separate.

Question 30

What is the limbic system?

Answer 30

Complex collection of primitive brain structures that are important for generating motivated and emotional behaviours.

Question 31

What connections are involved in the limbic system?

Answer 31

Hippocampus, amygdala and prefrontal cortex connect with hypothalamus. Mammillary nucleus of hypothalamus connects with anterior thalamus, which connects with cingulate cortex. Cortex completes the circuit.

Question 32

Why is the hypothalamus referred to as a spout?

Answer 32

Behaviour is “funnelled” by the hypothalamus. The limbic system and frontal lobes filter into the hypothalamus in order to generate behaviour.

Question 33

What are the three components of emotion?

Answer 33

1. Autonomic response (e.g. increased HR) - hypothalamus
2. Subjective feelings (e.g. fear) - amygdala & frontal lobes
3. Cognitions (thoughts) - cerebral cortex

Question 34

What are is James-Lange’s explanation for emotion?

Answer 34

brain interprets autonomic changes as emotions

Question 35

What is the somatic marker hypothesis?

Answer 35

Damasio (1999) suggests that “marker” signals arising from emotions and feelings act to guide behaviour and decision making.

Question 36

What are some physiological changes that impact emotion?

Answer 36

Spinal cord injury - decrease in perceived emotion

Severity of ‘emotion loss’ relies on point of severance in spinal cord. Loss is greatest when lesion is higher.

Question 37

What would happen as a result of damage to the amygdala?

Answer 37

Klüver-Bucy syndrome
Hypersexuality
Hyperphagia - increased appetite
Hyperorality - compulsion to examine objects by mouth
Docility - reduced fear responses/low aggression