PSYCH261 Chapter Notes - Chapter 11: Benzodiazepine, Thalamus, Anxiolytic

• School: University of Waterloo
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYCH261
• Professor: Daniel Smilek

Document Summary

E(cid:373)otio(cid:374) is (cid:862)e(cid:373)bodied(cid:863) what you are doing affects how you feel. Serotonin: serotonin also tends to inhibit violent impulses, so impulsive aggression is highest when testosterone levels are high and both cortisol and serotonin are low. Turnover: the amount that neurons released and replaced. Researchers measure serotonin turnover by the [] of 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid (5-hiaa), seroto(cid:374)i(cid:374)"s (cid:373)ai(cid:374) (cid:373)etabolite, i(cid:374) the cerebrospinal fluid (csf) The more 5-hiaa, the more serotonin has been released and presumably resynthesized. Genes influence violent behavior in many ways, including autonomic arousal. People with lower than average autonomic arousal tend to be more aggressive, probably because they react less strongly to fear of the consequences. Low serotonin activity is weakly associated with increased aggression, but the form of the mao gene that strongly breaks down serotonin links to less aggression, and only for people with a history of childhood maltreatment.