COGS 17Week 8Emotion

Theories of emotion: All theories are based on this relationship:
stimulus à emotion (response) *(see below)…you feel an emotion b/c something triggered it
*from lecture*
1) Biological External stimulus à Biological signal à Take physical action (i.e. change behavior)
2) Evolutionary External stimulus à Biological signal à Act to survive (ex. fight or flight response)
3) Psychological External stimulus à Catharsis à Release aggressive energy
a) à Feel good à Do good (be helpful)
b) à Feel good à Promote well-being
*Emotional response includes 3 things = 1 physiological “activation”/“response” *(see below),
2 “expressive behavior”/“emotion communication”, 3 “conscious experience”/“feelings” *from lecture/book*
*(1.) Physiological response has 3 components = 1 behavioral component (via muscular system),
2 autonomic component (via nervous system), 3 hormonal component (via endocrine system) *from book*
[[[ This physiological response is also known as “arousal” = activation of the autonomic N.S. *from lecture* ]]]

*from lecture *

Performance vs arousal: *from lecture*

*important things know about the physiological response*
Norepinephrine – secreted by both locus coeruleus and adrenal medulla; both a hormone (emotion) and NT (arousal)
Adrenal medulla – sits atop kidney, not in brain; purpose is to secrete hormones
Hormone – targets organs Neurotransmitter (NT) – targets brain – remember? It acts between neurons.
What drives emotions? *from lecture*
1) Cognition – think Schacter’s Two Factor Theory;
e.g. “That spider looks creepy.” à fear or “I’ve been treated less than my worth” à anger
2) Behavior – think Facial Feedback Hypothesis; e.g. force a smile à generate happy emotion
Emotion The Brain: Limbic system *from lecture*
Location: deep within brain, on top of stem, surrounds corpus callosum, partly in temporal lobe
Overall purpose: to integrate information from association cortices (not sensory or motor) to produce emotional response
à Know Kluver-Bucy Syndrome: remove temporal lobe à loss of fear response to aversive stimuli & hypersexual

*Thalamus – directly connects limbic system to cortex
so you can cognitively and consciously know your feelings

*Hypothalamus – releases hormones for autonomic response
integrates emotional responses (the physiological components)
à know the ablation and stimulation studies in cats
cortical input, reticular formation output
(also sleep/wake cycle & 4F’s: feed, fight, flee, f*ck)

*Amygdala – integrates components for fear/anger response
via having connections everywhere (inputs and outputs)

*(Hippocampus) – learning and memory (not really emotion)

*(Sensory cortex) – receives sensory input from limbic system
and sends output back to limbic system; control emotional responses

*(Association cortex) – the cortical areas that aren’t sensory/motor
also involved with control of emotional responses

Connections within the limbic system *from lecture*
Instant fear response: (no cognition) Scary stimulus à eyes see à amygdala à fear!
Slower fear response: (cognition) Scary stimulus à eyes see à thalamus (LGN) à visual cortex à amygdala à fear!
Other parts of the emotional response: *from lecture and textbook*
2. Expressive behavior / emotion communication (how emotions are communicated between people)
1. Emotion recognition – right hemisphere, amygdala plays a role (seen with lesions) *see textbook*, culturally universal
2. Emotion expression – depends on culture and gender, e.g. fake smiles (mask anger, overly polite, etc)

3. Conscious experience/feelings (feelings are explained in terms of theories)

Specific Theories / Step 1 / Step 2 / Step 3 / Step 4
1) James-Lange Theory
"Experience of emotion = awareness of physiological responses to emotion-arousing stimuli." / Perception of stimulus
/ à / Arousal / à / Emotion
Example / Tiger / à / Fight or flight / à / Fear
2) Cannon-Bard Theory
Subjective emotion comes with simultaneous physiological arousal. / Perception of stimulus
/ à / Arousal / + / Emotion
Example / Tiger / à / Fight or flight / + / Fear
3) Schacter's Two Factor Theory Two things lead to emotion. / Perception of stimulus / à / Arousal / + / Cognitive Label / à / Emotion
Example / Tiger / à / Fight or flight / + / “OMG, that’s scary!” / à / Fear