When I was a child my older brother locked me in a shed where my mother kept chemicals, like pesticides. The shed was dark, hot and musky. Since then anytime I’m in an enclosed, small space, I feel claustrophobic and scared. What brain area is most responsible for me forming this connection?

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

This question asks which brain area is most involved in forming a conditioned fear response to a frightening enclosed space.
Option 1: occipital lobe. The occipital lobe is primarily responsible for visual processing, not for fear conditioning or emotional associations. While vision may play a role in recognizing the enclosed space, this area does not underlie the fear memory formation itself.
Option 2: amygdala. The amygdala is the key structure for processing emotions, especially fear, and for forming conditioned fear memories by linking aversive stimuli with environmental cues, such as a small, enclosed space. This makes it the best fit for forming the claustrophobic association described.
Option 3: basal ganglia. The basal ganglia are involved in motor control and procedural learning, not in emotional learning or fear conditioning to a context. They don’t play the central role in forming fear associations with a mirror of that experience.
Option 4: pons. The pons participates in basic life-sustaining functions and some sleep and autonomic processes, but it is not the primary region for encoding fear memories or contextual associations arising from a scary experience.
In summary, the scenario aligns with conditioned fear learning mediated by the amygdala, whereas the other regions are linked to vision, motor/procedural learning, or autonomic control without accounting for the emotional memory linkage involved in this case.

W25 PSYC D024 01Z Intro Psychobiology Assignment #7: Learning & Memory

When I was a child my older brother locked me in a shed where my mother kept chemicals, like pesticides. The shed was dark, hot and musky. Since then anytime I’m in an enclosed, small space, I feel claustrophobic and scared. What brain area is most responsible for me forming this connection?

View Explanation

Log in for full answers

Similar Questions

Question at position 50 Which structure in the limbic system is responsible for emotions like anger and rage?AmygdalaMammillary bodiesFornixCingulate gyrus

Humans report fear upon electrical stimulation of the

Which part of the brain is strongly involved in the experience of fear and the fight or flight response?

Which is the 'emotional seat' of the brain?

In a consumer society, many adults channel creativity into buying things

Economic stress and unpredictable times have resulted in a booming industry for self-help products

People born without creativity never can develop it

A product has a selling price of $20, a contribution margin ratio of 40% and fixed cost of $120,000. To make a profit of $30,000. The number of units that must be sold is: Type the number without $ and a comma. Eg: 20000

More Practical Tools for Students Powered by AI Study Helper

Homework AI Solver

Stylized AI Paper Writer

Plagiarism Checker Assistant

Citation AI Academic Writing Tool

In-Class Translation Assistant

AI Note Generator

AI Quiz Answers

Past Exam Questions from University Test Bank

Smart Practice Assistant

Adaptive Practice

Making Your Study Simpler