Cited by 371Neural and Behavioral Psychology StudiesNeurotransmitter Receptor Influence on BehaviorAnxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes

The neurobiology of emotion–cognition interactions: fundamental questions and strategies for future research

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Okon-Singer, Hadas, Hendler, Talma, Pessoa, Luiz, Shackman, Alexander J.·2015·Frontiers in Human Neuroscience

Abstract

Recent years have witnessed the emergence of powerful new tools for assaying the brain and a remarkable acceleration of research focused on the interplay of emotion and cognition. This work has begun to yield new insights into fundamental questions about the nature of the mind and important clues about the origins of mental illness. In particular, this research demonstrates that stress, anxiety, and other kinds of emotion can profoundly influence key elements of cognition, including selective attention, working memory, and cognitive control. Often, this influence persists beyond the duration of transient emotional challenges, partially reflecting the slower molecular dynamics of catecholamine and hormonal neurochemistry. In turn, circuits involved in attention, executive control, and working memory contribute to the regulation of emotion. The distinction between the 'emotional' and the 'cognitive' brain is fuzzy and context-dependent. Indeed, there is compelling evidence that brain territories and psychological processes commonly associated with cognition, such as the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and working memory, play a central role in emotion. Furthermore, putatively emotional and cognitive regions influence one another via a complex web of connections in ways that jointly contribute to adaptive and maladaptive behavior. This work demonstrates that emotion and cognition are deeply interwoven in the fabric of the brain, suggesting that widely held beliefs about the key constituents of 'the emotional brain' and 'the cognitive brain' are fundamentally flawed. We conclude by outlining several strategies for enhancing future research. Developing a deeper understanding of the emotional-cognitive brain is important, not just for understanding the mind but also for elucidating the root causes of its disorders.

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Crossref · 10.3389/fnhum.2015.00058

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  • There is little support for a general division between an emotional and a non-emotional cingulate.

    “Importantly, although the rACC and cACC differ in their involvement in attentional tasks—as has long been suggested (Bush et al., 2000)—there is little support for a general division between an emotional and a non-emotional cingulate (Etkin et al., 2011; Okon-Singer et al., 2015).”

    From Top-Down Dysregulation—From ADHD to Emotional Instability (2016) · cites this paper as Okon-Singer et al., 2015

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2 of the 255 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.

Research works printed but not linked: 2

  1. Damasio A. (2005a). Descartes’ Error: Emotion, Reason, and the Human Brain. New York, NY: Penguin.
  2. Todd R. M. Anderson A. K. (2013). Salience, State, and expression: the influence of specific aspects of emotion on attention and perception. Oxford Handbook Cogn. Neurosci. 2 11.

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Authors
Okon-Singer, H., Hendler, T., Pessoa, L., & Shackman, A. J.
Affiliations
  • Tel Aviv University (IL)
  • University of Maryland, College Park (US)
Corresponding author
Shackman, Alexander J.
Venue
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
Published
2015-02-17
Volume
9
Pages
58-58
ISSN
1662-5161 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W1989777370
Cited by
371
References
255
Citations by year
2026: 34 · 2025: 27 · 2024: 30 · 2023: 24 · 2022: 46 · 2021: 36 · 2020: 36 · 2019: 33 · 2018: 34 · 2017: 19 · 2016: 32 · 2015: 19
FWCI
3.45
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by
Locations
  • Frontiers in Human Neuroscience (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • MPG.PuRe (Max Planck Society) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders
  • European Commission (334206, 602186)
  • National Institute of Mental Health (MH071589, R01MH071589)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
Keywords
emotion-cognition interaction, stress, anxiety, selective attention, working memory, cognitive control, executive function, catecholamines, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, emotion regulation, neural circuits, emotional brain

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