PSYC201 Test 2, Week 10 Flashcards
(20 cards)
What are the four components of emotion?
Cognition, Feeling, Physiological Response, Action/Response.
What is the evolutionary purpose of the link between feeling and action?
To support survival by prompting adaptive responses to stimuli.
What does Lisa Feldman Barrett propose about emotions?
We construct our own emotions based on context and interpretation.
What is the primary role of the amygdala in emotion?
Detecting the relevance/salience of stimuli.
What are the key subregions of the amygdala and their roles?
Basolateral nucleus (input), Central nucleus (output).
What are the two pathways from the thalamus to the amygdala?
“Low road” (fast, crude) (thalamus -> amygdala) and “High road” (slower, refined) (thalamus -> sensory cortex -> amygdala).
How does the prefrontal cortex (PFC) interact with the amygdala?
It inhibits the amygdala, regulating emotional reactivity and fear extinction.
What role does the hippocampus play in emotion?
Provides contextual information to emotional responses.
What happens when the amygdala is dysfunctional?
Impaired fear recognition, poor social/emotional responses, and altered salience detection.
What is the amygdala’s role in the HPA axis?
It triggers cortisol release to prepare the body for action.
What are the effects of chronic cortisol exposure?
Disruption of brain structure/function, especially in the hippocampus and PFC.
What do startle and fear conditioning studies show about the amygdala?
It modulates fear responses based on context; lesions prevent this modulation.
What does the hippocampus contribute to fear conditioning?
Maintains contextual information for fear memory.
What were the effects of bilateral amygdala damage in Patient S.M.?
No fear of threats, difficulty recognizing fear in faces, reduced personal space.
What is Kluver-Bucy Syndrome?
Amygdala damage in monkeys leading to tameness, fearlessness, and social impairment.
How does the amygdala affect social attention?
It helps detect eye whites and social signals; damage impairs eye contact.
What is the Cooperative Eye Hypothesis?
Human eyes evolved for social communication, supported by amygdala processing.
How does the amygdala respond to ambiguity?
It becomes more active, especially under uncertainty or anxiety.
What is the link between amygdala hyperactivity and mental health?
Associated with anxiety, PTSD, and genetic sensitivity (e.g., SERT polymorphism).
