Psychology I / Biological Basis of Emotion
Practice question · Put in order

Order what happens when a stick-shaped shadow triggers both of LeDoux's pathways.

Hints
  1. The fast crude reaction happens BEFORE the slow accurate identification.
  2. The cortex's correction arrives after the defensive jump, not before.
Show the answer
  1. Sensory information about the shadow reaches the thalamus
  2. The low road rushes a crude signal straight to the amygdala
  3. You jump back defensively before consciously recognizing it
  4. The high road's cortical processing identifies it as a harmless stick
  5. The amygdala's alarm is dialed back once the 'all clear' arrives
Why

The thalamus feeds both roads; the low road fires the defensive jump before recognition, then the slower high road identifies the harmless stick and calls off the alarm. Speed first, accuracy just after - the point of the two-pathway design.

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