*
Meanwhile, in the opposite room, we are also watching a television screen.
Remarkably, all of his reactions are the same.
He responds to each with a lighthearted laugh.
Catherine MacBride / Getty Images
A love scene, a comedy, or a murder scene are equally amusing.
After each, he confidently states that he feels wonderful.
The gentleman hasbehavioral variant frontotemporal dementia.
His emotions no longer vary appropriately with the world around him.
These responses are usually very helpful and immediate ways the mind and body coordinate for emergent situations.
The brain processes emotions in a series of steps.
First, incoming information must be appraised and assigned an emotional value.
This process is often very quick and may go beyond our conscious awareness.
Even so, our initial emotional reaction depends on a number of individual biases and contexts.
We can then identify and feel the emotion.
Depending on the social situation, we may then have to regulate that emotion’s expression.
These responses occur in an ancient part of our brain known as thelimbic system.
Unlike the more recently developed cortex, the limbic system has fewer layers of neurons to process information.
The functions of the limbic system also extend beyond emotion to include memory,olfaction, andautonomic function.
Appraisal
There are several different systems in the brain that connect a stimulus with an emotional value.
These systems are also highly connected with motivation, as our emotions often lead us to action.
Emotional systems do not exist in isolation, but rather communicate with and influence each other.
This system responds to rewards, and motivates us to repeat something that feels “good.”
The second system involves the circuits of the amygdalae.
These are two clusters of nerves about the size of an almond that sit in each temporal lobe.
These predominantly mediate responses of anger, fear, and aggression.
Other structures, such as the insula, are also involved with emotion.
The anterior part helps mediate reactions of disgust.
The insula is connected to visceral nervous tracts that can make the stomach feel nauseous.
Our body can pick up on these symptoms and recognize an emotion.
Regulation of Emotion
There are times in which an emotion must be regulated.
For example, we shouldn’t laugh at a funeral even if someone is wearing a ridiculous dress.
As an emotion comes forward, we may have to regulate that emotion’s expression.
For example, if we see a tiger, we may still take a stab at behave courageously.
We may reappraise, meaning consciously reframing the context of the stimulus that first made us emotional.
According to the reports of his physician, he was more emotional and impulsive shortly after the accident.
Other studies have shown that patients are unable to reappraise an emotional value when conditions change.
The left hemisphere has been suggested to be more involved with happiness and perhaps anger.
These are likely oversimplifications, though several studies to support the basic concept.
*Some details have been changed to protect confidentiality.
