The early detection of emotion by the human brain

Emotions comprise a somatic and a psychological dimension. Indeed, they are both behavioural responses to internal or external stimuli and subjective experiences or feelings. Emotional perception can be defined as the detection and the appraisal of the emotional value of encountered stimuli. Attention capture and perceptual amplification are two important properties of emotional perception, which can result in enhanced conscious perception and increased processing of emotional stimuli. It has been proposed that amygdala plays a central role in the early detection of emotional stimuli. This paper presents the evidence accumulated in support of this proposal. In particular, recent studies showing emotional modulation of early brain responses (C1 and P1) to visual stimuli with electro- and magneto-encephalography (EEG and MEG) are reviewed. (C) 2011 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.