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Parietal somatosensory association cortex mediates affective blindsight.
Silke Anders1, Niels Birbaumer, Bettina Sadowski
1Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Gartenstrasse 29, 72074 Tuebingen, Germany. silke.anders@med.uni-tuebingen.de
Nature Neuroscience
|March 23, 2004
Summary
This study shows that physical emotional states, not conscious perception, drive feelings. Somatosensory cortex activity predicted emotional responses even without awareness of the stimulus.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychology
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Emotional feelings are typically linked to conscious perception of stimuli.
- The neural basis of emotions experienced without conscious awareness remains unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the neural mechanisms of emotional feelings independent of conscious stimulus perception.
- To determine if bodily emotional states can influence feelings without visual awareness.
Main Methods:
- Utilized functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to measure brain activity.
- Presented visual stimuli in the blind field of partially cortically blind patients.
- Paired visual stimuli with aversive events and analyzed subsequent brain responses and self-reported feelings.
Main Results:
- Enhanced negative emotional valence and blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) responses in somatosensory association areas after stimulus-aversive pairing.
- Somatosensory activity significantly predicted self-reported feelings and startle reflex amplitudes.
- Demonstrated a correlation between physical emotional states and subjective emotional experience.
Conclusions:
- Cortical activity representing physical emotional states is a key determinant of emotional feelings.
- Emotional feelings can be generated and modulated by neural processes occurring outside of conscious awareness.
- Findings support a model where interoception and bodily feedback play a crucial role in subjective emotional experience.