Role of Limbic System Structures
Although the theory is named "cortical," higher nervous activity cannot be considered in isolation from subcortical structures. The limbic system acts as a crucial modulator of affective states.
The following key structures participate in regulation:
- Amygdala;
- Hippocampus;
- Septum.
The main physiological task of these formations is their direct influence on the intensity of experiences. They provide either pronounced suppression (inhibition) or significant enhancement (activation) of the emotional background, depending on the current needs of the organism and incoming signals.
Effects of Cerebral Cortex Removal (Decortication)
Our understanding of cortical functions is largely based on experiments involving its removal—decortication. Animal experiments have convincingly proven that in the physical absence of the cerebral hemispheres, the capacity to experience emotions is fully preserved, but their nature undergoes profound qualitative changes.
Key consequences of decortication:
- Change in response character: Emotional responses to any external stimuli become excessively vivid, hypertrophied, and intense. Unmotivated aggression becomes the dominant type of reaction.
- Loss of direction: The animal loses the ability to adequately assess the object that triggered the emotion and to direct the reaction toward the correct target. Affect generalization occurs.
Classic experimental example: Dogs that have undergone decortication surgery completely lose the ability to recognize their owner. Instead of expected positive emotions (joy, attachment), they display pronounced aggression upon the owner's appearance.
Influence of the Cortex on Behavior and Social Hierarchy
The cerebral cortex does not merely restrain primitive instincts; it performs the intricate work of integrating emotions into the complex fabric of behavior. The main function of the cortex in this context is the "fine-tuning" (precise adaptation) of emotional reactions to specific goal-directed behavioral acts. Thanks to the cortex, our emotions are appropriate and help achieve results rather than disrupt plans.
The temporal lobe of the cerebral cortex occupies a special place in the regulation of complex social behavior. Animal social group experiments have demonstrated the critical influence of this area on an individual's status.
If an animal occupying a dominant position (high social rank) undergoes experimental destruction of the temporal lobe, its behavior changes dramatically. As a result, such an individual fails to maintain leadership and rapidly drops to the lowest step of the intragroup hierarchy.