Affective Neuroscience

Some investigators have argued that emotions, especially animal emotions, are illusory concepts outside the realm of scientific inquiry. However, with advances in neurobiology and neuroscience, researchers are demonstrating that this position is wrong as they move closer to a lasting understanding of the biology and psychology of emotion. In Affective Neuroscience, Jaak Panksepp provides the most up-to-date information about the brain-operating systems that organize the fundamental emotional tendencies of all mammals. Presenting complex material in a readable manner, the book offers a comprehensive summary of the fundamental neural sources of human and animal feelings, as well as a conceptual framework for studying emotional systems of the brain. Panksepp approaches emotions from the perspective of basic emotion theory but does not fail to address the complex issues raised by constructionist approaches. These issues include relations to human consciousness and the psychiatric implications of this knowledge. The book includes chapters on sleep and arousal, pleasure and fear systems, the sources of rage and anger, and the neural control of sexuality, as well as the more subtle emotions related to maternal care, social loss, and playfulness. Representing a synthetic integration of vast amounts of neurobehavioral knowledge, including relevant neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, and neurochemistry, this book will be one of the most important contributions to understanding the biology of emotions since Darwins The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals

- Part I. Conceptual Background
- 1: Affective Neuroscience: History and Major Concepts
- 2: Brain-Organ Systems and the Neurobiological Analysis of Affect
- 3: Varieties of Emotional Systems in the Brin-Theories, Taxonomies, and Semantics
- 4: Neurostatics: The Anatomy of the Mind-Brain
- 5: Neurodynamics: The Electrical Languages of the Brain
- 6: Neurodynamics: Neurochemical Maps of the Brain
- Part II. Basic Emotional and Motivational Processes
- 7: Sleep, Arousal, and Myth Making in the Brain
- 8: SEEKING Systems and Anticipatory States of the Nervous System
- 9: Energy Is Delight - The Pleasures and Pains of Brain Regulatory Systems
- 10: Nature Red in Tooth and Claw: The Neurobiological Sources of Rage and Anger
- 11: Sources of Fear and Anxiety in the Brain
- Part III. The Social Emotions
- 12: Varieties of Love and Lust: Neural Control of Sexuality
- 13: Love and The Social Bond: Sources of Nurturance and Maternal Behavior
- 14: Loneliness and The Social Bond: The Sources of Sorrow and Grief
- 15: Rough-and-Tumble Play: The Biological Sources of Joy
- 16: Emotions: The Higher Cerebral Processes and the SELF
- Appendix A. Bones, Brains, and Human Origins
- Appendix B. Brain, Language, and Affective Neuroscience
- Appendix C. Dualism and the Neurosciences
- Notes and References
- Author Index
- Subject Index