Role of the Amygdala

• What is the Amygdala responsible for?

  Controlling human emotions and determining how we respond.
• What response does the amygdala trigger?

  Fight or flight
• What can damage to the amygdala lead to?

  The person being presented as unemotional or reacting excessively and spontaneously .
• What group of people have been found to have smaller amygdalae?

  Individuals with psychopathic personalities.
• What did Pardini find in support of this theory?

  Individuals with smaller amygdalae were 3x more likely to exhibit aggression, violence, and psychopathic features 3 years later than those with larger amygdalae. Suggests size of amygdalae can predict future violence
• What did Raine find in support of this theory?

  murderers had lower levels of activity in the left amygdala compared to the control group.