Hemispheric Asymmetry and Positive-Negative Affect

  • Howard Ehrlichman
Chapter
Part of the Wenner-Gren Center International Symposium Series book series (WGS)

Abstract

For more than a century, functional asymmetry of the human brain was considered a matter of the lateralization of cognitive processes. Yet today most investigators would probably agree that emotional and affective processes, as well as cognitive processes, are lateralized in the brain. The inclusion of affect within the domain of cerebral laterality represents one of the most important and far-reaching consequences of the large body of research in functional brain asymmetry that has developed during the past two decades. Nevertheless, despite the evidence from many studies using a variety of laterality paradigms that affective processes are in some way lateralized, there remain major controversies as to the nature of emotional laterality. Most important, there continue to be fundamental disagreements as to exactly what is lateralized where.

Keywords

Positive Affect Hemispheric Asymmetry Affective Experience Affective Process Unpleasant Odor 
These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.
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© The Wenner-Gren Center 1987

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  • Howard Ehrlichman

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