Emotion, motivation, decision-making, the orbitofrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, and the amygdala

The orbitofrontal cortex and amygdala are involved in emotion and in motivation, but the relationship between these functions performed by these brain structures is not clear. To address this, a unified theory of emotion and motivation is described in which motivational states are states in which instrumental goal-directed actions are performed to obtain rewards or avoid punishers, and emotional states are states that are elicited when the reward or punisher is or is not received. This greatly simplifies our understanding of emotion and motivation, for the same set of genes and associated brain systems can define the primary or unlearned rewards and punishers such as sweet taste or pain. Recent evidence on the connectivity of human brain systems involved in emotion and motivation indicates that the orbitofrontal cortex is involved in reward value and experienced emotion with outputs to cortical regions including those involved in language, and is a key brain region involved in depression and the associated changes in motivation. The amygdala has weak effective connectivity back to the cortex in humans, and is implicated in brainstem-mediated responses to stimuli such as freezing and autonomic activity, rather than in declarative emotion. The anterior cingulate cortex is involved in learning actions to obtain rewards, and with the orbitofrontal cortex and ventromedial prefrontal cortex in providing the goals for navigation and in reward-related effects on memory consolidation mediated partly via the cholinergic system.

Automated summary

The orbitofrontal cortex and amygdala are involved in emotion and motivation, but the relationship between these functions is not clear. A unified theory of emotion and motivation is described, in which motivational states involve instrumental goal-directed actions for rewards or punishment avoidance, while emotional states are elicited by received or not received rewards or punishment. Recent evidence suggests that the orbitofrontal cortex is involved in reward value and depression, while the amygdala is implicated in brainstem-mediated responses to stimuli and not declarative emotion. The anterior cingulate cortex is involved in learning actions for rewards and provides goals for navigation, along with the orbitofrontal and ventromedial prefrontal cortex.