Neuropsychology of fear and loathing

For over 60 years, ideas about emotion in neuroscience and psychology have been dominated by a debate on whether emotion can be encompassed within a s ingle. unifying model. In neuroscience, this approach is epitomized by the limbic system theory and, in psychology, by dimensional models of emotion. Comparative research has gradually eroded the limbic model, and some scient ists have proposed that certain individual emotions are represented separat ely in the brain. Evidence from humans consistent with this approach has re cently been obtained by studies indicating that signals of fear and disgust are processed by distinct neural substrates. We review this research and i ts implications for theories of emotion.