Biological Psych Emotions. Limbic System Thalamus Hypothalamus Pituitary Pineal Gland Amygdala

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1 Biological Psych Emotions Limbic System Thalamus Hypothalamus Pituitary Pineal Gland Amygdala Amygdala Also called nucleus amygdalæ Almond-shaped groups of nuclei Medial temporal lobes Part of basal ganglia? Processes emotional memories Linked to both fear & pleasure Several structures basolateral complex cortical nucleus medial nucleus central nucleus Output = Hypothalamus Activates sympathetic nerves Thalamic reticular nucleus Increases reflexes Trigeminal & facial nerves Expressions Activates dopamine, epinephrine and norepinephrine Memory formation & storage Memories of emotional events Mediate long-term signal potentiation of neurons? Memories of emotional exper. trigger fear behavior Freeze (immobility) Stress hormone (heart rate ) Damage Impairs classical conditioning Both acquiring and expressing

2 Pavlovian fear conditioning Positive reinforcement Classical conditioning Separate neurons for pos. & neg., not anatomically different No clear wiring plan Memory Consolidation Convert to long-term storage Learning can occur without it Help regulate hippocampus? Strength of emotion impacts strength of memory Add stress hormone after learn, recall better (at least in rats) What amygdala does Evaluate significance of stimuli Generate emotional responses Generate hormonal secretions Generate autonomic reactions come with strong emotions Involved with? Post-traumatic stress disorder Depression Phobias Anxiety Autism Anything Emotional Emotions What Is Emotion? Category of stimuli high significance to an individual high arousal (strong feelings) subjective response quick & automatic Sympathetic nervous system Prepares for brief-vigorous action Parasympathetic alters activities to save energy and prepare for long-term Strong emotions increase readiness to act Identifying Emotions Facial Expressions 10,000 expressions 40 muscles

3 Voluntary Making movement doesn t always cause emotion Involuntary Some are same across cultures Display rules vary Quickly cover up Some are same across species Micro Expressions Less than a second Examples Surprise is shortest expression Who is worried? BBC program: The Human Face Gestures Emblems Differ by culture Yes = nod head up and down No = shake head left-right Egyptian culture Tomorrow = hand loop After tomorrow = two loops Distress = hands on head (one pat other) Not Quite Words Puh Basic Emotions Hard-wired Can feel more than one at once Wundt Classified along two dimensions Pleasant or unpleasant Level of activation (arousal) No agreed upon list: Fear Anger Disgust Sad Surprise Happiness

4 Fear Decrease in skin temp (cold-feet) blood flow to feet? Includes: Thoughts (worries, etc) Physical sensation (heart, breath) Behaviors (run, escape, avoid) fight or flight Heart Increased force & rate pounding heart Muscles Increased tension Sweaty-cold palms Nausea & diarrhea Tremors Fear Conditioning Even minor $ can cause fear Un-erasable fear response? PTSD Rat is shocked (electrical) Fears stimulus Fears old cage & new cages Fears new situations Humans Attacked or trauma More fearful in many situations Generalized emotional arousal Stimulus generalization Amygdala Makes associations of events with emotional sensations Mediate long-term signal potentiation of neurons? Anger Characteristics Eyebrows together Eyes glare Narrow lips Causes increase in skin temp (hot under the collar) blood flow to arms

5 Display Rules Animals Make loud sounds Try to look larger Bare teeth Stare Humans Display as social manipulation Cultural rules Impacts Less self-monitoring Less objective observations Increased activity in left hem. Particularly frontal & temporal Lateral orbitofrontal cortex Inhibits anger Approach motivation Positive affective processes Underestimate risk Believe ventures will succeed Feel less likely for heart disease Feel more likely get raise More prejudiced against outsiders Less trusting On alert Look for other attacks Anticipate more angry events Not sad events Disust Revulsion Withdraw Contamination Seen is all cultures different cultures find different things disgusting Cross-Cultural Widely recognized Shown by slightly narrowed brows curled upper lip, wrinkling nose stick out tongue

6 Children 5-month olds avoid toy parents make negative faces at Until 10, interpret it as anger Related to sense of taste-smell disgusted by inharmonious Impact Facial expression Moldy milk Eeuu! Triggered if people look ill? Feces, urine, body fluids Blood & gore Gender differences Women more than men Especially sexual disgust Also thinking about dentists Anterior insula Activated by unpleasant tastes, smells and images Active when disgusted Active when nauseated Damage to anterior insula Can t experience disgust Trouble recognizing facial expressions of disgust Mirror-neuron matching system Triggers in us what we see in others Intensifies moral judgments Those people are more guilty SAD Emotional pain Temporary (depression chronic) Loss, despair, helplessness Crying Crying is bad criterion Separation from parent Sad Afraid Pupil size Faces with small pupils rated more sad Your pupil size smaller when sad

7 Depression Sad, anxious, empty, hopeless Aversion to activity Lose of interest SURPRISE Shortest expression Brief emotional state unexpected event Is long-lasting surprise shock? Characteristics Raised eyebrows curved and high most important cue Horizontal wrinkles on forehead Dropped jaw Intensity = how much jaw drops Open eyelids See whites of their eyes Lasts fraction of a second Followed by fear, joy, etc. 1. Hard to fake expression 2. Hard to fake feeling Raising eyebrows won t give feeling Startle response Reaches pons 3-8 ms Followed by reappraisal shift emotion to joy, etc. HAPPINESS Martin Selligman s PERMA Pleasure (tasty food, warm bath) Engagement (flow) (challenging activity) Relationships Significant others Spending money on others Meaning (quest for something bigger) Accomplishments (completed tangible goals) Damage to brain reduces it Huntington's disease Parkinson's disease

8 Multiple sclerosis Epilepsy Stroke No validated way to increase Don t know how to substantially improve long-term happiness Theories of Emotion Components Body sensations (heart rate, etc) Perception of danger Emotion (fear) Behavior (run) Stimulus 1. Common Sense See a bear Feel fear Run 2. James-Lange See the bear, run, feel fear Emotion is interpretation of physiological $ I run, therefore I am afraid Action first, think about it later Find ourselves trembling, experience fear But internal organs are relatively insensitive Can t respond quickly Feedback from them could account for our feelings of emotions? Theory difficult to verify experimentally Emotion is a label ANS and skeletal actions occur before emotion I see bear, run, then feel fear 3. Two Factor Theory Schachter and Singer Ss told given vitamin shot Received either adrenaline or placebo (saline) Put in room with another person (experimenter) Took cues from person with playful angry

9 Need both bio reaction and cognitive cues I see bear I feel sensations I see what other people are doing If they are afraid, I am afraid I see bear I feel sensations Use cues to determine what I think trembling caused by Fear 4. Cognitive Mediation Component process model Brain senses lots of things Make low-level appraisal of rel. Triggers bodily reactions, behaviors & feelings I see the bear I think I m in trouble I breathe fast, run, and feel fear Cognitive awareness is fast Brain can categorize events as pleasant or unpleasant as quickly as 120 ms