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Case Reports
. 2011 Jan 11;21(1):34-8.
doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2010.11.042. Epub 2010 Dec 16.

The human amygdala and the induction and experience of fear

Justin S Feinstein  1 , Ralph Adolphs, Antonio Damasio, Daniel Tranel
Affiliations
Case Reports

The human amygdala and the induction and experience of fear

Justin S Feinstein et al. Curr Biol. .

Abstract

Although clinical observations suggest that humans with amygdala damage have abnormal fear reactions and a reduced experience of fear, these impressions have not been systematically investigated. To address this gap, we conducted a new study in a rare human patient, SM, who has focal bilateral amygdala lesions. To provoke fear in SM, we exposed her to live snakes and spiders, took her on a tour of a haunted house, and showed her emotionally evocative films. On no occasion did SM exhibit fear, and she never endorsed feeling more than minimal levels of fear. Likewise, across a large battery of self-report questionnaires, 3 months of real-life experience sampling, and a life history replete with traumatic events, SM repeatedly demonstrated an absence of overt fear manifestations and an overall impoverished experience of fear. Despite her lack of fear, SM is able to exhibit other basic emotions and experience the respective feelings. The findings support the conclusion that the human amygdala plays a pivotal role in triggering a state of fear and that the absence of such a state precludes the experience of fear itself.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Fear induction in patient SMM
Still-frame pictures of (A) SM handling a snake, (B) the tarantula that SM tried to touch, and (C) the Waverly Hills Sanatorium Haunted House.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Fear induced by film clips
Subjective ratings for the maximum amount of fear induced while watching a series of 10 different scary film clips. Ratings were provided immediately after viewing each individual film clip using a modified visual analogue scale ranging from 0 (no fear) to 8 (extreme fear). Comparison data for films A–G were obtained from five females with no history of neurological or psychiatric illness. Comparison data for films H–J were derived from previous studies that tested large samples of healthy participants [28,41]. Descriptions of all film clips can be found in Table S2. Data for films inducing other emotions can be found in Figure S2. Error bars represent the standard error of the mean.
Figure 3
Figure 3. Fear experience in patient SM
Self-report questionnaires comparing patient SM’s experience of fear to normative samples comprised of healthy individuals. All scores have been converted to POMP units [42] representing the “percent of maximum possible” for each questionnaire. Raw scores and additional information about the questionnaires can be found in Table S1. Data from the experience-sampling study can be found in Figure S3.
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