Separating emotion and motivational direction in fear and anger: effects on frontal asymmetry

State effects on frontal alpha electroencephalograph asymmetry (ASY) are thought to reflect approach and withdrawal motivational tendencies. Although this motivational direction model has inspired a large body of research, efforts to disentangle influences of emotion (EMO) and motivational direction...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inEmotion (Washington, D.C.) Vol. 3; no. 2; p. 167
Main Authors Wacker, Jan, Heldmann, Marcus, Stemmler, Gerhard
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States 01.06.2003
Subjects
Adolescent
Adult
Anger - classification
Anger - physiology
Brain Mapping
Dominance, Cerebral - physiology
Electroencephalography
Emotions - classification
Emotions - physiology
Fear - classification
Fear - physiology
Fourier Analysis
Frontal Lobe - physiology
Humans
Imagination - physiology
Male
Motivation
Personality Inventory
Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted
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Summary:State effects on frontal alpha electroencephalograph asymmetry (ASY) are thought to reflect approach and withdrawal motivational tendencies. Although this motivational direction model has inspired a large body of research, efforts to disentangle influences of emotion (EMO) and motivational direction (MOT) on ASY are rare. The authors independently manipulated EMO (fear and anger) and MOT (approach and withdrawal) in a between-subjects design. Irrespective of MOT, anger led to greater changes toward relative left frontal activation (LFA) than did fear. Conversely, higher ratings of negative valence were associated with greater changes toward LFA in withdrawal but with greater changes toward relative right frontal activation in approach. Results are discussed within a model based on behavioral inhibition system-behavioral activation system theory.
ISSN:1528-3542
DOI:10.1037/1528-3542.3.2.167