Flashcards on Human Affective and Social Neuroscience
Human Affective and Social Neuroscience: Student Guide
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Motivation and reward
42 cards
Card 1
Question: What discovery did Olds and Milner (1953) make about rat behavior and brain stimulation?
Answer: Rats worked hard to receive electrical stimulation in the medial forebrain bundle–lateral hypothalamus (MFB-LH) area, prompting scientists to label it
Card 2
Question: List different terms used historically to describe the brain system identified by Olds and Milner.
Answer: Pleasure system; Brain reward system; Reinforcement system; Liking system; SEEKING system.
Card 3
Question: What is the main trajectory of structures involved in the anatomy of motivation as presented?
Answer: Ventral tegmental area (VTA) → medial forebrain bundle–lateral hypothalamus (MFB-LH) → nucleus accumbens (NAS) → prefrontal cortex.
Card 4
Question: How did animals' behavior differ when working for MFB-LH self-stimulation versus a natural reward like food?
Answer: For food they showed persistent lever pressing that continued after reward stopped; for MFB-LH self-stimulation the pressing was less persistent and s
Card 5
Question: What did stimulation of the lateral hypothalamus (LH) actually increase: consumatory pleasure or something else?
Answer: LH stimulation did not increase consumatory pleasure; it increased search/anticipatory behavior (motivation) rather than pleasure during consumption.
Card 6
Question: What was the original hypothesis about LH neurons and feeding, and how was it disproved?
Answer: Hypothesis: LH neurons register pleasure of consumption and fire when animals eat. Disproved: LH neurons were active when animals searched for food an
Card 7
Question: How did sugar water stimulation compare to LH electric stimulation in rats' hedonic behaviors?
Answer: Sugar water produced more pleasurable, pleasure-like behaviors; LH electric stimulation diminished pleasure-like behaviors despite driving action.
Card 8
Question: What key question about 'reward' terminology is raised by the behavioral and stimulation findings?
Answer: Whether the brain 'reward system' reflects actual reward (pleasure) or rather reward anticipation/motivation.
Card 9
Question: Where does dopamine involved in the motivation circuit originate, and why is it implicated in addiction?
Answer: Dopamine originates in the ventral tegmental area (VTA). Drugs like cocaine and amphetamines enhance dopamine effects, contributing to addiction.
Card 10
Question: What behavioral effects result from overstimulation of the dopamine system?
Answer: Stereotyped behaviors, intense interest in banal things, and possible suspicion and paranoid tendencies.