Personality 1-2 Flashcards
Fear Conditioning
a type of classical conditioning that involves learning to associate a neutral stimulus with an aversive or fear-inducing stimulus.
Fear Conditioning and Amygdala
The amygdala is crucial in fear conditioning. It links a neutral stimulus with something scary, triggering emotional and physical fear responses, like freezing. It works with other brain areas to manage and eventually reduce fear when the threat is no longer present.
Fear Conditioning and Hippocampus
Provides contextual information. Based on the environment helps determine when and where that response should occur. It allows the brain to recognize the context in which the threat happened, meaning fear responses are stronger or weaker depending on whether the situation resembles the original fear-inducing event. This context-based memory function is essential for both forming and extinguishing fear associations.
Cerebral Cortex
The intricate fabric of interconnected neural cells covering the cerebral hemispheres; the body’s ultimate control and information-processing center.
frontal lobe
A region of the cerebral cortex that has specialized areas for movement, abstract thinking, planning, memory, and judgement
parietal lobe
A region of the cerebral cortex whose functions include processing information about touch.
brainstem
the oldest part and central core of the brain, beginning where the spinal cord swells as it enters the skull; the brainstem is responsible for automatic survival functions
motor strip
band running down the side of the frontal lobe that controls all bodily movements
somatosensory strip
an area of the parietal cortex that processes tactile information coming from our body parts
thalamus
the brain’s sensory switchboard, located on top of the brainstem; it directs messages to the sensory receiving areas in the cortex and transmits replies to the cerebellum and medulla
hypothalamus
A neural structure lying below the thalamus; it directs several maintenance activities (eating, drinking, body temperature), helps govern the endocrine system via the pituitary gland, and is linked to emotion and reward.
hippocampus
A neural center located in the limbic system that helps process explicit memories for storage.
amygdala
two lima bean-sized neural clusters in the limbic system; linked to emotion.
nucleus accumbens
Structure located in the brainstem and part of the dopaminergic reward pathway; releases dopamine in response to many drugs contributing to addictive behavior
limbic system
The neural system (including the hippocampus, amygdala, and hypothalamus) is located below the cerebral hemispheres and is associated with emotions and drives.
