What we imagine is what we do? A critical overview about mental imagery as a strategy to study human defensive responses.
What we imagine is what we do? A critical overview about mental imagery as a strategy to study human defensive responses.
Behav Brain Res. 2017 Jul 14;:
Authors: Shuhama R, Blanchard DC, Graeff FG, Del-Ben CM
Abstract
There is not a single and perfect instinctive behavior to react to threatening situations. However, the study of particular features of these situations suggests the existence of prototypical emotional reactions and associated defensive behaviors. Since all living beings are subjected to common evolutionary pressures, such as predation and conspecific competition, it is plausible that there is conservation of some basic defensive responses in their behavioral repertoire. The choice for approaching or withdrawing from a given situation depends, among others things, on environmental features, including the threat intensity and the distance from the source of the threat. If these basic responses were conserved in humans, they should be expressed in ways similar to those observed in non-human animals. Due to ethical reasons and easy application, mental imagery has been used to test this hypothesis. The studies included in this review point to the validity of this method, with both self-report and neurophysiological findings corroborating the hypothesis under scrutiny. Despite the need for additional investigation to deal with some limitations, the information obtained with this method can help to a better understanding of t...
Source: Behavioural Brain Research - Category: Neurology Authors: Shuhama R, Blanchard DC, Graeff FG, Del-Ben CM Tags: Behav Brain Res Source Type: research