Neurobiology of Emotion Flashcards
Emotion
positive/negative feelings that are produced in a particular situation
- Bx: muscle movements appropriate to situation
- Autonomic: responses facilitate behaviors and provide quick energy and vigorous movements
sympathetic and parasympathetic NS
- Hormonal: hormones support SNS and PNS
James Lange Theory
physical changes in body lead to the experiencing of emotion
Cannon-Bard theory
begins to localize emotional center in brain
diencephalon - thalamus and hypothalamus
simultaneous processing theory
Papez Circuit
localization is too simple for him - it is about interconnectivity
hypothalamus - autonomic nervous system
anterior thalamus - sensory relay
cingulate gyrus - behavior
hippocampal formation - memory
Kluver-Bucy Syndrom
if you lesion the BILATERAL TEMPORAL LOBES (specifically the amygdala and inferior temporal cortex) monkey will demonstrate a specific bx pattern
implications on the role of the amygdala in coordinating emotion
hyperorality - constant eating
hypoemotionality - flat affect
hypersexuality - engage in sexual bx
visual agnosia for emotionally provocative stimuli
Limbic System
MacLean - believes LS cx emotion. Involves cortical and subcortical structures, mixes conscious and subconscious processing to formulate emotion. In addition to Papez circuit:
Amygdala: coordination
- classical conditioning, coping response, fear/aggression response, emo memory
Hippocampus: contextual cues to remember environmental contexts
Cingulate gyrus: HR, BP, pupil dilation, respiratory arrest
Orbitofrontal area - bx regulation and adjustments - impulse control, delay of gratification
Septum
Basal Ganglia
Left Hemisphere Damage
depression
flat affect
aphasia
- accurate prosody and inflection (you can tell what they are feeling)
Can perceive emotions of others
Right Hemisphere Damage
anosagnosia
impaired social awareness
strong verbal skills
externalizing bx
no depression
flat tone (aprosodia)
impaired understanding of other’s cues
Limbic System Lesions
lability - rapid vacillation between emotions
uncontrolled laughing/crying (psuedobulbar symptoms) - response is out of proportion to situation
aggression, anger, violence - rage syndromes (amygdala damage)
apathy - reduction in activity, lack of initiation
adynamia: medial-frontal lobe. extremely reduced motivation (anergia)
Stress
physiological rxn prpduced by the perception of possible aversive or threatening situations
Negative effects of stress on health
ulcers
impact on immune system fx
heart attacks
central serous retinopathy
alteration of brain anatomy
reduced right hippocampal volume
Physiology of Stress
Sympathetic nervous sys: heart race, sweating (epinephrine, norepinephrine)
Release of steroids: cortisol-glucocorticoid
- helpful short term, bad long term = inc BP, damage to muscle tissue, steroid diabetes, infertility, inhibition of growth
Functional Disorders
presence of symptoms affecting voluntary motor and sensory fx that suggests a neurological or other medical condition
psychological factors initiate or exacerbate symptoms (deficits often preceded by stressor)
symptoms not intentional
symptoms not diagnosed as neurological or due to med condition, substance use, or culture
Symptoms in Fx Disorders
balance/coordination issues
paralysis
aphonia
difficulty swallowing
astereoblindness
optokinetic reflex
sensory loss
double vision
blindness
deafness
Common Features of Fx Disorder
hx of abuse/trauma
recent stressor
la belle indifference
dramatic/histrionic features
suggestible symptoms
women > men
low SES > higher SES
more common on left side of body
