Welcome to Anger ManagementClass 3Implicit and Explicit Memory and Emotions

Purpose of this Class

The purpose of this class is to learn about

1. The two broad categories of memory in the brain, known as the implicit and explicit memory systems, to understand both how these systems affect anger responses and vice versa.

2. And other emotional responses to provide a context to better understand anger

Implicit and Explicit Memory

There are many memory systems in the brain, but we will only focus on two for our purposes.

Implicit memory is where well-learned associations are stored. The better learned the response, the more automatic it becomes.

Explicit memory deals with new associations.

Implicit Memory

As stated, the better learned the material, the more automatic and unconscious the associated responses. These responses are often referred to as habits. The implicit system operates independent of the explicit.

This occurs by the process of generalization, through both direct stimulus experience and transitive processes, as already presented.

A Case in Point

In 1911, Claparede, a French physician was studying a female patient who lacked the ability to form long term explicit memories. Though she met the doctor nearly everyday, she never remembered who he was and shook hands with him as if meeting for the first time. This happened even if she was away from the doctor for only 5 or so minutes.

A Case in Point, pt 2

One day, Claparede had an idea. Before shaking the patient’s hand, he hid a tack between two fingers and pricked her with it when they shook. When they met the next day, she wouldn’t shake his hand and told him she didn’t know why.

Another Case

There is also the case of the patient known as HM, who had his temporal lobe removed as a treatment for severe epilepsy. After the surgery, he was unable to form conscious long term memories, very much like the patient in the previous case.

He was studied extensively by physicians and psychologists who found that he was still capable of some types of learning. For example, he learned to draw a five point star by only looking at his example and task through a mirror. This skill was retained at later times tested, though he didn’t remember ever learning the skill.

The Point

Implicit expectations can obviously lead to anger responses. These expectations are so well-learned, we may have no idea they even exist.

The previously presented learning principle blocking is an example of this highly generalized learning. Again, blocking is old learning that prevents new learning.

The Point, pt 2

In general, the more emotional we get, the more instinct and implicit memory are involved. Newer learning is crowed out in their favor.

So, it’s important to learn this material well, especially regarding developing skills to deal with anger as it occurs, in addition to the more important goal of preventing it in the first place.

Explicit Memory

We now move on to explicit memory. This is short-term memory that helps us deal with new information. It takes up some of the capacity for attention to external situations.

This is conscious memory, such that we can remember some details about how we learned something. This takes place in the prefrontal cortex, which is the working memory area of the brain and largely the seat of consciousness. This system allows us to think about our thinking and operates best with lower levels of emotion.

An Example

When you are first learning to ride a bike, you have to think about what you’re doing, but gradually over time the skills become automatic and you don’t have to think about it as much. You only think about new situations you encounter, like perhaps off-road terrain.

General Details of These Systems

In the Brain

Other Emotions

Now, let’s put anger into the context with other emotions. This can both increase your understanding of anger and increase the sophistication with which you see emotions and behavior in general.

We start with a definition of emotions.

Emotions

Emotions are reactions to a combination of expectations and subjective outcome values, with associated relevant responses. T

The emotions we will focus on now include:1. Joy2. Fear/Anxiety3. Laughter4. Sadness5. And Guilt

Joy

Let’s start with joy.

Joy is a response to an outcome that’s better than expected. This is the opposite of anger, again which involves outcomes worse than expected.

An example is winning the lottery. To the degree you did not expect to win and the value you place on the money, you will have a joyful response. This represents a surplus of resource intake over expectations, or an increase in mood.

Fear/Anxiety

Fear/Anxiety is a response to an expected loss. Fear and Anxiety are the same emotion.

When anxious, thoughts focus on avoiding possible losses. These cannot only be distracting, but can keep you up at night.

It causes physiological arousal to prepare for the fight or flight response.

Fear/Anxiety, pt 2

This is why people who are anxious have trouble sleeping. In the environments we inhabited for most of 200,000 years, the primary threats were from animal predators and human enemies. Obviously, we were more vulnerable to attacks at night, so sleeping is lighter when anxious.

We can spring up out of anxious sleep when startled, fully on our feet and with fists clenched before we even realize what’s happened. This occurs with people who have sleep anxiety and/or PTSD.

Laughter

Laughter is a response to a net violation of expectations. That is to say, the gap between the expected outcome and actual outcome is greater than the gain or loss of subjective value. In the purest form, it involves only pure novelty.

This sends the social signal that an expectancy violation carries relatively little or no subjective loss. An example is telling a catholic joke to someone who then tells you he/she is catholic. A laugh on the part of the listener often leads to relief, and a lack of perceived social loss for each person.

Laughter, pt. 2

Notice that when someone falls down on television, for example, given that it’s acting, there may be little empathetic loss for the viewer. But, this is not the case if someone the observer cares about falls and hurts him/herself.

Sadness

Sadness occurs when subjective needs are unmet or expected to be unmet. Crying may occur that elicit help from social allies.

Children cry more than adults, because they are less capable of meeting their own needs. Women cry more often than men for a similar reason, given fewer particular physical attributes, such as relative strength, and more connectedness in social networks. Since women more often raise children alone, or at least spend more time nurturing them than the fathers, they require stronger bonds within their social networks.

Sadness, pt. 2

Men on the other hand, more often move on to new families and between social groups, as they’re naturally motivated to have a greater number of sexual partners. This is due in part to the fact that they do not have the burden of pregnancy time and energy-wise, and so a higher quantity, higher diversity strategy is more optimal for passing their genes.

Sadness, pt. 3

Men are larger than women, due to mate competition and their tendency to mate more frequently and with more and different partners.

It is this competition, and the need for social male social allies to help with hunting, protection from predators, and mate competition between cliques that makes men less likely to cry. Men benefit more from independence, especially in the eyes of other men with compatible interests.

Guilt

Guilt is simply a response to actions taken or not taken that lead to a subjective loss. It can weigh on the regretful to motivate attempts to change a socially painful situation and/or learn not to cause themselves similar regret in the future.

End of Class 3