Unit 3: Physiological systems

What is the sequence in James–Lange theory?

See the bear → bodily response → feel fear.

What happens in Cannon–Bard theory?

Seeing the bear produces fear and a bodily response at the same time.

What two factors produce emotion in Schachter–Singer theory?

Bodily arousal + a cognitive label (“It’s a bear!”) → feel fear.

How does the modern view explain emotion?

Perception, bodily responses, and feelings all influence one another.

What examples of bodily arousal appear in the classic theories of emotion picture?

Increased heart rate and muscle tension.

How are emotions represented in a dimensional view?

As positions within a continuous, multidimensional space, rather than simply distinct categories.

Can emotions have similar arousal but substantially different valence?

Yes. Emotions can have similar levels of activation (arousal) but differ in how pleasant or unpleasant they are (valence).

What are the four components of emotion?

Psychophysiological activity, motor behavior, self-reported cognition, and unconscious processing.

What does the psychophysiological component of emotion include?

CNS activity and changes in hormonal and visceral (internal organ) activity.

What does the motor behavior component of emotion include, and why is it important?

Facial expressions, voice tone, and body movement provide cues for understanding others’ emotional states.

What does the self-reported cognition component of emotion include?

Subjective experiences that a person reports, such as feeling love.

What is unconscious processing, and how does it relate to behavior?

Cognitive processes we are unaware of that still influence our behavior, including processes involved in emotion, reward, and habit learning.

What are examples of visceral activity associated with emotion?

Heart rate and gastric (stomach) activity.

How can subjective emotional states be measured through self-report?

By asking people to rate how strongly they feel emotions, such as happiness, anxiety, or stress.

What does the drinking example illustrate about unconscious emotional processing?

Emotional cues can influence drinking behavior without conscious awareness, with the effect depending on thirst level.

How is emotion organized in the brain?

Emotion is a distributed brain process integrated across interacting systems.

What roles does the amygdala play in emotion?

Biological significance, associative learning, and fear conditioning.

What roles does the hippocampus play in emotion?

Context and episodic memory.

What roles does the prefrontal cortex play in emotion?

Evaluation and regulation.

What roles does the hypothalamus play in emotion?

Autonomic modulation (adjusting automatic bodily responses) and endocrine coordination (coordinating hormonal activity).

How do different amygdala nuclei contribute to emotion?

They make distinct contributions to emotional learning and defensive responding.

What are the functions of the basolateral complex (BLA)?

Receives sensory information and is critical for associative (cue–outcome) learning.

What are the functions of the central nucleus (CeA)?

Coordinates output to hypothalamic and brainstem pathways, supporting defensive physiological and behavioral responses.

How does damage to either the BLA or CeA affect conditioned defensive responding?

Damage to either region disrupts conditioned defensive responding.

How is a conditioned defensive response learned in this experiment?

A neutral tone is paired with an aversive footshock. The animal learns that the tone predicts the shock, so the tone alone produces increased startle.

What are the conditioned stimulus (CS), unconditioned stimulus (US), and conditioned response? (in rat study)

CS: tone.
US: footshock.
Conditioned response: increased startle to the tone.

What do the lesion graphs show about the BLA and CeA?

Damage to either region after training reduces or eliminates conditioned defensive responding to both auditory and visual cues, compared with controls.

How do lateral hypothalamus lesions affect conditioned responses?

They reduce conditioned autonomic responses, while freezing remains relatively intact.

How do caudal central gray lesions affect conditioned responses?

They reduce conditioned freezing, while autonomic responses remain relatively intact.

What autonomic response was measured in the hypothalamus lesion study experiments?

Changes in mean arterial blood pressure.

What do these findings show about conditioned defensive responses?

Autonomic responses and freezing depend on different brain pathways and can be disrupted separately.

What is contextual fear conditioning?

Learning that an environment predicts a threat, allowing that environment to influence defensive responses.

How does cued fear conditioning differ from contextual fear conditioning?

Cued: A specific cue, such as a tone, triggers a learned defensive response.

Contextual: The environment associated with the threat triggers a learned defensive response, even without the tone

What role does the hippocampus play in emotional circuitry?

It contributes to contextual fear conditioning, linking the environment in which a threat occurs to defensive responses

How do hippocampal lesions affect conditioned freezing to a tone versus an environment?

Freezing to the conditioned tone remains intact, but freezing to the environment is reduced.

What type of learning is impaired by hippocampal lesions?

Learning about the context in which threats occur (contextual fear conditioning).

How do amygdala lesions affect cued and contextual fear conditioning?

They impair both, producing very little freezing to either the tone or the environment.

What happens to conditioned freezing during extinction?

It gradually decreases when the tone is repeatedly presented without the shock.

How do amygdala and hippocampal contributions to learning differ in this experiment?

The amygdala supports conditioned fear learning and autonomic responses; the hippocampus supports explicit (declarative) knowledge of the cue–outcome association.

How does amygdala damage affect conditioned fear learning and explicit knowledge?

Conditioned fear learning is impaired and autonomic responses are reduced, but explicit knowledge of the cue–outcome association remains intact.

How does hippocampal damage affect conditioned fear learning and explicit knowledge?

Explicit knowledge of the cue–outcome association is impaired, but conditioned fear learning and autonomic responses remain intact.

What happens when both the amygdala and hippocampus are damaged?

Both conditioned fear learning and explicit knowledge are impaired, and autonomic responses are reduced.

What physiological measure of conditioning is shown in the graphs of amygdala + hippocampus circuitry of emotions?

Skin conductance response (SCR), a measure of autonomic responding.

What are the main roles of the prefrontal cortex in emotion?

Evaluating emotional significance, guiding decisions, and regulating emotional responses.

How does the prefrontal cortex help guide decisions?

It evaluates outcomes and updates choices based on rewards and punishments.

What functions are associated with the medial orbitofrontal cortex (OFC)?

Monitoring rewards, predicting reward value, and reward-related learning and memory.

What function is associated with the lateral orbitofrontal cortex (OFC)?

Monitoring punishment.

What types of pleasure are represented in the orbitofrontal cortex?

Subjective pleasure and sensory pleasure.

How does the prefrontal cortex help regulate emotional responses?

Through reappraisal—changing how we interpret a situation—and goal-directed control—adjusting emotional responses to support our goals.

How is depression associated with medial OFC responses to reward?

Reduced sensitivity to rewards or wins, which may contribute to anhedonia—reduced pleasure or interest.

How is depression associated with lateral OFC responses to non-reward?

Increased sensitivity to non-reward (not winning), which may contribute to persistent negative emotional evaluations.

What overall pattern does the picture show in depression?

• Medial OFC: less sensitive to reward.
  Lateral OFC: more sensitive to non-reward

What is cognitive reappraisal?

Changing how you interpret a situation to change your emotional response.

How does left ventral LPFC activity change during reappraisal compared with simply viewing negative images?

It increases, consistent with its role in cognitive control of emotion.

How does right amygdala activity change during reappraisal compared with simply viewing negative images?

It decreases, consistent with a reduced emotional response.

How does left medial orbitofrontal cortex (MOFC) activity change during reappraisal compared with simply viewing negative images?

It decreases.

What relationship does graph A show during reappraisal?

Greater left ventral LPFC activity is associated with lower MOFC activity.

What relationship does graph B show during reappraisal?

Greater left ventral LPFC activity is associated with lower right amygdala activity.

What is the main takeaway from the image about reappraisal?

Reappraisal involves increased activity in a prefrontal control region and decreased amygdala activity, supporting the role of the prefrontal cortex in regulating emotional responses.

What do participants do in the card-selection experiment?

Select cards from four decks that differ in their immediate rewards and long-term outcomes.

What makes a deck “bad” in this experiment?

It provides larger immediate rewards but greater long-term losses.

How do control participants’ choices differ from those of participants with VMPFC injury?

Controls select more cards from good decks, while participants with VMPFC injury select more cards from bad decks.

What are anticipatory SCRs in this experiment?

Physiological arousal responses measured before selecting a card.

What is a skin conductance response (SCR)?

A change in the skin’s electrical conductance related to sweating that indicates physiological arousal.

How do control participants’ anticipatory SCRs differ for good and bad decks?

They show greater anticipatory arousal before choosing from bad decks than from good decks.

How does VMPFC injury affect anticipatory arousal before card selection?

Participants show reduced anticipatory arousal and lack the stronger response to bad decks seen in controls.

Do participants with VMPFC injury still show SCRs to a loud sound?

Yes. This suggests they can still produce physiological arousal responses, even though their anticipatory responses during decision-making are impaired.

What do these findings (experiment on decisions) suggest about the VMPFC’s role in decision-making?

The VMPFC helps use emotional signals about potential outcomes to guide choices away from options with long-term losses.

How can VMPFC injury affect choices between immediate rewards and long-term outcomes?

It can lead people to favor larger immediate rewards despite greater long-term losses.

How can reduced emotional responses affect moral decision-making?

They may make people more willing to accept a utilitarian outcome in emotionally conflicting situations.

What is a utilitarian outcome?

An outcome that benefits the greatest number of people, even if it involves harming one person.

What is an example of a non-moral decision in this experiment?

Deciding whether to substitute macadamia nuts for walnuts to avoid eating walnuts.

What is an example of a moral impersonal decision in this experiment?

Deciding whether to hit a switch to prevent the deaths of five workmen.

What is an example of a moral personal decision in this experiment?

Deciding whether to smother your child to save yourself and other townspeople.

What distinguishes the moral personal example from the moral impersonal example?

The personal example involves directly inflicting harm on another person and creates a strong emotional conflict.

How does ventromedial prefrontal/orbitofrontal cortex damage affect the speed of utilitarian decisions?

Patients decide more quickly to accept the utilitarian outcome.

How does ventromedial prefrontal/orbitofrontal cortex damage affect arousal during emotionally conflicting decisions?

Patients show blunted arousal, meaning a reduced physiological emotional response.

What do these findings suggest about the role of the ventromedial prefrontal/orbitofrontal cortex in moral decision-making?

it contributes to emotional responses that influence decisions involving moral conflict.