Individual differences in some (but not all) medial prefrontal regions reflect cognitive demand while regulating unpleasant emotion.

ABSTRACT: The present study investigated the premise that individual differences in autonomic physiology could be used to specify the nature and consequences of information processing taking place in medial prefrontal regions during cognitive reappraisal of unpleasant pictures. Neural (blood oxygenation level-dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging) and autonomic (electrodermal [EDA], pupil diameter, cardiac acceleration) signals were recorded simultaneously as twenty-six older people (ages 64-66 years) used reappraisal to increase, maintain, or decrease their responses to unpleasant pictures. EDA was higher when increasing and lower when decreasing compared to maintaining. This suggested modulation of emotional arousal by reappraisal. By contrast, pupil diameter and cardiac acceleration wer

SUBMITTER: Urry HL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2766667 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature