LeDoux – Fear in rats experiment (Biological factors in emotion) |
[A] |
Investigate the role of the amygdala. |
[P] |
- Rats were conditioned to feel fear when they hear the sound of a bell.
- Assumption that the brian has made a connection between the bell and fear.
- LeDoux lesioned the rats to find out which part of the brain made the connection between the bell and fear.
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[F] |
- After several lesions, they removed the Auditory Thalamus.
- The rats did not show respond to the bell with fear anymore.
- In further studies, they found out that lesions on one site of the amygdala was able to stop blood pressure from rising.
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[C] |
- This shows that there are biological interactions with emotions.
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[E] |
- Unethical study
- Induced feat in subjects, caused mental harm.
- Performed lesioning on subjects, cause physical harm.
- Subjects did not have rights to withdraw.
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Schachter & Singer – Injection study (Two Factor Theory of Emotion) |
[A] |
Show that both cognition and biological factors interact with emotion. |
[P] |
- 184 male college students participated in the experiment. They were taken to a private room.
- The experimenter told them the aim of the experiment was to see “the effect of vitamin injection on visual skills”.
- Deception: In actual fact the aim of the experiment was to test the Two Factor Theory of Emotion.
- The participants were given either a placebo shot (with no side effects) or an adrenalin shot.
- The effects was increased heart rates, blood pressure, blood sugar level and respiration.
- The effects started showing at 3 minutes and lasted for 10 minutes to an hour.
- Participants were put into one of the 4 experimental conditions.
1. Adrenalin ignorant – participants with adrenalin were not told of the effects.
2. Adrenalin informed – participants were informed with the side effects so they were prepared.
3. Adrenalin misinformed – participants were not informed with the true side effects.
4. Control – placebo injection without being told what side effects to expect.
- Participants were then assigned either
- Euphoria (feeling of happy) condition – Assistant in the waiting room carried out silly actions to entertain participants.
- Anger condition – Assistant in the waiting room annoyed the participant.
- Researchers observed through one-way mirror.
- Participants filled in a self appraisal form.
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[F] |
- Euphoria condition
- Misinformed participants were feeling happier than all other groups.
- Ignorant participants were the second happiest.
- Anger condition
- Ignorant participants felt the angriest.
- Placebo participants felt the second angriest.
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[C] |
- Participants were more influenced by the assistant because they had no explanation for the emotion high.
- Leads to a wrong labeling of the physiological responses.
- Supports the Two Factor Theory of Emotion.
- Physiological arousal in different emotion is entirely the same.
- We label our arousal according to cognition.
- Cannot fully evaluate the feeling of emotional arousal.
- Leading to misattribution
- Influenced by surrounding situation.
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[E] |
- Observations and self appraisal of emotion was subjective.
- Measurements were rudimentary, only pulse was measured.
- Low in ecologically validity
- Lab experiment, unlikely to have a sudden emotional arousal.
- Emotion arousal might be caused by external stimuli (i.e. the other way around).
- Unethical: Induced anger and aggression in participants.
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