Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 10, 2026

A Novel Pavlovian Fear Conditioning Paradigm to Study Freezing and Flight Behavior
Published on: January 5, 2021
Sustained amygdala response to both novel and newly familiar faces characterizes inhibited temperament
Jennifer Urbano Blackford1, Suzanne N Avery, Ronald L Cowan
1Department of Psychiatry, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37212, USA. Jennifer.Blackford@Vanderbilt.edu
Abstract:
Previous theories have proposed that the amygdala is hyper-responsive to novel stimuli in persons with an inhibited temperament-a biologically based predisposition to respond to novelty with wariness or avoidance behavior. In the current study, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to assess amygdala blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) response when viewing novel or recently familiarized faces in persons with an extreme inhibited or uninhibited temperament. In persons with an inhibited temperament, the amygdala showed increased BOLD response when viewing both novel and recently familiarized faces. In contrast, in persons with an uninhibited temperament, BOLD response in the amygdala was increased only when viewing novel faces. These findings suggest that inhibited temperament is characterized not by a simple exaggerated response to novel faces, but rather by a sustained increase in amygdala response to faces even after the faces have become familiarized. In individuals with an inhibited temperament, this sustained response may be related to the wariness of social situations that persists beyond initial exposure.
Related Concept Videos
Role of Amygdala in Memory
One of the...
Socioemotional Development during Infancy
Primary Temperament Types
Stella Chess...
Piaget's Stage 1 of Cognitive Development
Exploration...
Attachment
Theory of Romantic Attachment in Adulthood
Functional Brain Systems: Limbic System
