Deck 6: Brain Mechanisms and Emotion

Question 1

The periaqueductal gray appears to be involved in which one of the following processes related to emotion?

A) It attenuates the pain response.
B) It is activated by signs of distress and negative emotion.
C) It engages caregiving tendencies.
D) All of the above.

Answer 1

All of the above.

Question 2

MacLean (1990, 1993) proposed that the human forebrain includes three distinct systems, each of which developed in a distinct phase of vertebrate evolution. According to MacLean, the striatal region is:

A) the earliest and most basic part of the forebrain.
B) the stream of movement.
C) the system that coordinates marking and patrolling of territory as well as forming social groups.
D) all of the above.

Answer 2

all of the above.

Question 3

Recent work by Carsten de Dreu and colleagues (2010) suggests that oxytocin promotes:

A) prosociality that is directed towards the in-group, but not toward the out-group.
B) in-group favoritism.
C) the automatic assumption that members of one's in-group experience complex moral emotions like embarrassment.
D) all of the above.

Answer 3

all of the above.

Question 4

MacLean (1990, 1993) proposed that the human forebrain includes three distinct systems, each of which developed in a distinct phase of vertebrate evolution. According to MacLean, the limbic system is:

A) the system that coordinates social greeting and grooming.
B) what allows maternal caregiving with infant attachment, vocal signaling, and play, all of which are activities that occur in mammals but not in reptiles.
C) the stream of thinking.
D) all of the above.

Question 5

Davidson et al. (1990) had subjects watch amusing and gruesome film clips. Analysis of electroencephalogram (EEG) recordings and subjects's facial expressions during the viewings of these films revealed that positive facial expressions (e.g., a smile) were associated with _____________; whereas negative facial expressions (e.g., a wrinkling of the nose) were associated with ________________:

A) greater right-sided activation in the frontal region compared with the left frontal region; a significant average increase of activation in the left frontal region of the cortex as compared with the right frontal region.
B) a significant average increase of activation in the left frontal region of the cortex as compared with the right frontal region; greater right-sided activation in the frontal region compared with the left frontal region.
C) below-average activity in the frontal cortex; above-average activity in the frontal cortex.
D) above-average activity in the frontal cortex; below-average activity in the frontal cortex.

Question 6

Genetically based asymmetries of function have been called affective styles by Davidson (1993) who arrived at this formulation in part based on a developmental study in which children encountered a robot and a stranger carrying a tray of toys. Children whose behavior led them to be classified in the uninhibited group ____________________ and showed relatively more EEG activation on the _______________.

A) spent nearly 10 minutes out of the 25-minute session near their mothers; right as compared to the left hemisphere.
B) spent nearly 10 minutes out of the 25-minute session near their mothers; left as compared to the right hemisphere.
C) readily explored the playroom and examined the toys; right as compared to the left hemisphere.
D) readily explored the playroom and examined the toys; left as compared to the right hemisphere.

Question 7

The phenomenon called "sham rage" was documented by Cannon who observed that:

A) monkeys deprived of their amygdala become so frustrated when faced with new tasks that they are unable to solve simple problems.
B) cats deprived of their cerebral cortex are liable to make sudden, inappropriate, and ill-directed attacks.
C) humans with damage to their ventral striatum tend to behave in an antisocial and often aggressive manner, despite lack of provocation.
D) preschoolers with underdeveloped amygdalas tend to throw prolonged temper tantrums.

Question 8

The basic tendency underlying desire, compassion, and enthusiasm is:

A) approach
B) communication
C) imitation
D) self-control

Question 9

Joseph LeDoux (1993, 1996) proposed that it is the amygdala, rather than the limbic system as a whole, that is the emotional computer for the brain. LeDoux's thesis derives from evidence including that the amygdala:

A) receives visual and auditory inputs directly from the thalamus.
B) has rich interconnections with the hippocampus.
C) if damaged, is associated with greater potential for an animal to learn via emotional conditioning.
D) shows decreased activation in individuals with depression.

Question 10

Lane et al. (1997) would predict that a person's response to the sweet taste of a ripe strawberry would be associated with:

A) above-average activity within one's visual cortex.
B) more left-frontal than right-frontal activation in the brain.
C) above-average activity within one's amygdala.
D) all of the above.

Question 11

According to Kent Berridge, the nucleus accumbens and dopamine are central to:

A) the experience of pleasure.
B) liking the taste of sucrose.
C) wanting; and approach-related, goal-oriented behaviors.
D) all of the above.

Question 12

Neurotransmitters are:

A) neurochemicals that are released into the synapses of neurons and which diffuse in milliseconds across synaptic gaps to activate or inhibit the receiving neuron or muscle fiber.
B) substances that are carried in the blood to affect organs that are sensitive to them.
C) diverse in size, including small molecules like adrenaline and larger molecules like peptides.
D) neuro-modulators that are released by some neurons and that diffuse some distance to affect many thousands of nearby neurons.

Question 13

The opiates are central to:

A) the experience of pleasure and liking of stimuli.
B) wanting; they motivate the approach to rewards.
C) one's thoughts about being in love with another person.
D) both b &c.

Question 14

Affiliative behaviours like touch and soothing vocalizations elicit the release of _________; which in turn bring about the powerful feelings of warmth, calmness, and intimacy:

A) naltrexone
B) opiates
C) dopamine
D) all of the above.

Question 15

Eisenberger and her colleagues have proposed a social rejection thesis that implicates the dorsal region of the anterior cingulate in which of the following ways?

A) This region is particularly active in bullies who reject others.
B) In mammalian species, ablating this region leads to an increase in social distress calls and social anxiety.
C) This region helps humans detect and respond to cues of rejection, separation, and exclusion.
D) Extroverts who have many friends experience greater activation in this region than introverts with more limited social networks.

Question 16

The _________ portions of the prefrontal cortex are centrally involved in self-representation, empathy, and experiences of reward, receiving input from the nucleus accumbens.

A) limbic
B) orbitofrontal
C) dorsolateral prefrontal
D) medial prefrontal

Question 17

The ____________ region of the prefrontal cortex is centrally involved in the representation of goals, approach- and withdrawal-related tendencies, and is thought to represent anticipated rewards and punishment in consciousness.

A) limbic
B) orbitofrontal
C) dorsolateral prefrontal
D) medial prefrontal

Question 18

Cunningham and colleagues (2004) asked participants to make judgments about the valence and emotional intensity of positively and negatively valenced concepts such as murder, love, gun control, and abortion while fMRI technologies captured activation in different areas of the brain. The key conclusion drawn by Cunningham et al. was that the amygdala is:

A) central to appraisals of fear.
B) central to appraisals of valence (goodness or badness) of stimuli in one's environment.
C) responsive to the emotional intensity or salience of the stimulus.
D) responsive to the social aspects of one's environment.

Question 19

Distal affiliative cues like smiles and gestures serve as incentive stumuli; they motivate approach-related tendencies served by the release of:

A) dopamine
B) serotonin
C) adrenaline
D) opiates

Question 20

Important biological functions like eating, sexual behavior, aggression, and bodily temperature are controlled by which one of the following brain regions?

A) medulla
B) hippocampus
C) thalamus
D) hypothalamus