Neurocognitive Mechanisms: Appetitive & Aversive Emotion

描述：（申请人提供） 我们的团队一直在发展一种理论， 情绪处理和促进情绪处理的大脑区域机制 处理.综合利用的概念和实证工作的研究， 以及各种功能失调的人群。 因此，我们的工作既涉及一般原则，也侧重于 注意力机制的个体差异、大脑局部参与， 以及由此产生的情绪处理和情绪行为的调节。我们 特别感兴趣的是神经元的区域特异性分化， 焦虑和抑郁的活动以及焦虑和抑郁的影响 关于注意力处理拟议的项目将把我们的工作重点放在 心理和神经现象被认为在药物中特别重要 虐待，例如当个人面临情感上的挑战性刺激时。我们将 测试假设有关区域大脑机制参与愉快和 不愉快的情绪，特别是与处理食欲和 厌恶性刺激 该研究计划涉及两个方面的探索性方案制定工作： 受试者表征仪器和功能磁共振成像扫描参数。这两 发展努力直接来自我们最近的行为，脑电图和功能磁共振成像， 注意力和情绪过程的研究，越来越重视 情绪抑制机制的个体差异。主题 （a）需要进行表征，以明确测试某些 情绪处理的个体差异和（B）作为一种潜在的手段， 评估药物滥用的风险。需要开发fMRI扫描参数， 继续我们最近关于眶额皮层的发现，这很可能 在情绪和情绪调节中尤为重要。据此在 在为期3年的项目期的第一年， 建议，开发和验证情绪挑战协议。在 同时，将进行广泛的fMRI试点工作，以优化成像， 眶皮质在第二年和第三年，一个情感挑战实验将 使用改进的fMRI扫描参数进行。

DESCRIPTION: (provided by applicant) Our group has been developing a theoretical integration of attentional and emotional processing and the regional brain mechanisms that subserve that processing. The integration draws on concepts and empirical work in studies of unselected normals as well as a variety of dysfunctional populations. Accordingly, our work involves both general principles and a focus on individual differences in attentional mechanisms, regional brain involvement, and the resulting modulation of emotional processing and emotional behavior. We have been particularly interested in region-specific differentiation of neural activity in anxiety and depression and in the affects of anxiety and depression on attentional processing. The proposed project will focus our work on psychological and neural phenomena believed to be especially important in drug abuse, such as when individuals face emotionally challenging stimuli. We will test hypoththeses about regional brain mechanisms involved in pleasant and unpleasant emotion, specifically related to processing of appetitive and aversive stimuli. The research plan involves exploratory protocol development work on two fronts: subject characterization instruments and & fMRI scan parameters. Both of these development efforts arise directly from our recent behavioral, EEG, and fMRI research on attentional and emotional processes, with an increasing emphasis on individual differences in mechanisms of emotional suppression. Subject characterization is needed (a) to provide clear tests of the effects of certain individual differences on emotional processing and (b) as a potential means of evaluating risk for drug abuse. fMRI scan parameter development is needed to pursue our recent findings involving orbitofrontal cortex, which is likely to be particularly important in emotion and emotion regulation. Accordingly, in the first year of the 3-year project period two behavioral studies are proposed, to develop and validate the emotional challenge protocol. In parallel, extensive fMRI pilot work will be conducted to optimize imaging of orbitofirontal cortex. In years 2 and 3, an emotional challenge experiment will be conducted using the improved fMRI scan parameters.