PSYC 211 Study Guide - Midterm Guide: Paul Bucy, Papez Circuit, Peripheral Nervous System
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23 Jul 2016
School
Department
Course
Professor

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Emotion:&positive&or&negative&reactions&to&particular&situations,&no&such&thing&as&neutral&emotion&&
Emotional&Response:&&
• Behavioral:&consists&of&muscular&movements&that&are&appropriate&to&the&situation&that&elicits&
them,&i.e.&posture&&
• Autonomic:&facilitate&the&behaviors&and&provide&quick&mobilization&of&energy&for&vigorous&
movement,&i.e.&heart&rate&
• Hormonal:&reinforce&the&autonomic&responses&
These&components&are&controlled&by&separate&neural&systems,&and&integrated&by&the&amygdala&&
&
An&evolutionary&Perspective:&Charles&Darwin&&
• Cross]species&similarities&&
• The&principle&of&antithesis:&Opposite&messages&are&signaled&by&opposite&movements&and&postures&&
&
Theories&of&Emotion:&The&Commonsense&view&
1. Perception&of&the&emotion]eliciting&event&(e.g.&see&a&bear)&&
2. Subjective&feelings&of&emotion&(e.g.&fear)&&
3. Behavioral&and&adaptive&physiological&responses&(e.g.&trembling,&sweating&and&
running&away)&&
Therefore,&the&emotional&feelings&cause&the&emotional&response&&
&
The&James&Lange&Theory:&&
1. Perception&of&emotion]eliciting&event&(e.g.&see&a&bear)&
2. Appropriate&set&of&physiological&responses&are&triggered&(e.g.&sweating,&
trembling,&increased&heart&rate)&&
3. The&emotional&event&also&triggers&adaptive&behaviors&(e.g.&clench&fists,&run&
away)&
4. The&brain&receives&feedback&from&the&peripheral&nervous&system&which&
constitutes&our&feelings&of&emotion&&
&
Walter&Cannon’s&Problems&with&the&James]Lange&Theory&&
1. Internal&organs&(or&viscera)&are&relatively&insensitive&and&do¬&respond&
quickly&enough&to&account&for&our&emotional&feelings&
2. Cutting&the&sensory&nerves&between&the&internal&organs&and&the¢ral&
nervous&system&does¬&abolish&emotional&behavior&in&animals&&
&
Support&for&James]Lange&Theory&&
Hoffman:&&
• Studied¶plegics&who&had&spinal&cord&surgery&at&different&levels&&
• Patients&were&asked&about&their&emotional&feelings&&
• Those&with&highest&transections&(i.e.&surgery&high&up&the&spinal&cord)&showed&less&intense&
emotional&feelings&&
• Other&subjects&showed&angry&behavior&(the&emotional&response)&without&feeling&angry&&
• Thus&the&emotional&experience&lacked&the&intensity&that&was&experienced&before&the&surgery&&
&
The&Limbic&System&and&Emotion:&The&Papez&Circuit&&
• Sensory&input&diverged&into&different&pathways&or&‘streams’:&a&stream&of&thought&and&a&stream&of&
feeling&&
• The&pathway&could&be&transmitted&upstream&(towards&the&cortex)&or&downstream&(to&the&brain&
stem&and&spinal&cord)&&
• Pathway&from&hypothalamus&to&cingulate&cortex&involved&in&subjective&emotional&experience&
• Connections&back&to&the&hypothalamus&via&hippocampus&enabled&expression&of&emotion&&