BIOLY 4380 Emotion and Memory Research

Overview of Course Expectations

• Students can choose any topic from the course for the final class presentation, covering subjects like vision or audition.
• Aim is to ensure students are comfortable reading and discussing research papers.

Final Exam Format

• 450 multiple choice questions, similar to midterm format.
• Emphasis on reduced stress with the familiar format.

Emotion Studies Overview

• Emotion as Communication: Emotions serve as signposts for internal states, often communicated through facial expressions and voice tone.

Emotional Theories

• James-Lange Theory: Physiological reactions lead to emotional experiences. For example, seeing a snake increases heart rate, leading to the emotion of fear.
• Cannon-Bard Theory: Challenges James-Lange, stating emotions can occur without physiological feedback (e.g., spinal cord injury patients still experience emotions).
• Two-Factor Theory: Emotions arise from both physiological arousal and cognitive labeling of that arousal.

Emotion Categories

• Six basic emotions identified by Paul Ekman: anger, fear, disgust, surprise, happiness, and sadness.
• Facial Action Coding System quantifies facial expressions by breaking them into action units, e.g., brow raisers, lip movements.

Facial Expressions vs. Emotional Responses

• Distinction made between understanding a facial expression (e.g., sadness) and one’s own emotional response to it (e.g., feeling amused).

Historical Context of Emotion Theory

• Early observations suggested a link between physiological states and emotional experiences, leading to foundational theories.
• Charles Darwin's work on emotional expressions influenced early theories.

Action Units in Facial Expressions

• There are typically 44 action units detailing facial muscle movements correlated with emotions, although fewer may be used in different studies.

Emotions and Physiological Feedback

• James-Lange theory faced criticism; physiological responses can be slow, and similar responses may indicate different emotions.
• Studies on spinal cord injury patients demonstrate emotions can occur without physiological changes, refuting the James-Lange theory.

Emotional Studies and Experiment Design

• Importance of well-designed experiment to test theories about emotions:
  • Hypothesis testing to confirm or falsify existing theories based on observed data.

Limbic System and Emotional Processing

• Key structures involved in emotion include:
  • Amygdala: Processes emotions, especially fear.
  • Hippocampus: Involved in memory, influencing emotional responses.
  • Septal Nuclei: Related to pleasure and reinforcement.
  • Cingulate Cortex: Links emotion and memory processes.

Theories and Models of Emotion Processing

• Distinctions between top-down (cognitive) and bottom-up (physiological) models in emotion processing.
• Memorable studies illustrating how different emotional states are influenced by various physiological and cognitive factors.

Memory Processing Overview

• Long-term vs. Short-term Memory:
  • Declarative (facts and events) vs. Non-declarative (skills and tasks).
  • Working memory (short-term tasks) influences how memories are encoded and retrieved.

Key Functions of the Hippocampus

• Plays a critical role in the formation of new memories and navigation.
• Studies on place cells and grid cells in relation to spatial memory and navigation.

Place and Grid Cells

• Place Cells: Fire in response to specific locations in an environment, assisting in spatial memory.
• Grid Cells: Create a coordinate system for navigation, generating a hexagonal grid to understand the spatial layout.

Implications of Memory Research

• New findings show that sleep is essential for memory consolidation, linking animal studies with human learning.
• Variability in memorability based on individual differences and experiences.

Conclusion

• The overlapping functions of the limbic system structures showcase the intricate relationship between emotions, memory processing, and physiological feedback mechanisms in the brain. Emphasis on continuous exploration in neuroscience, particularly in understanding the nuances of how we express, perceive, and remember emotions.