Sex differences in brain activation patterns during processing of positively and negatively valenced emotional words

Hofer, Alex; Siedentopf, Christian; Ischebeck, Anja; Rettenbacher, Maria A.; Verius, Michael; Felber, Stephan; Fleischhacker, W. Wolfgang

doi:10.1017/s0033291706008919

Cited by 86 publications

(58 citation statements)

References 34 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…One finding is the gender differences in brain activationpattern (fMRI) between women and men during processing of negatively valenced 52 words versus non-words (Hofer et al, 2007). Women showed greater activation in areas participating in understanding and expressing language and processing emotions and memories.…”

Section: Discussion Of the Main Findingsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transference Interpretations in Dynamic Psychotherapy: Do They Really Yield Sustained Effects?

Høglend¹,

Bøgwald²,

Amlo³

et al. 2008

AJP

199

157

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Section: Discussion Of the Main Findingsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transference Interpretations in Dynamic Psychotherapy: Do They Really Yield Sustained Effects?

Høglend¹,

Bøgwald²,

Amlo³

et al. 2008

AJP

199

157

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…While there is some significant overlap, men and women show several distinct regions of activation correlated with arousal ratings while viewing emotional images, including the post-central gyrus and hippocampus in women, and the putamen in men (Canli et al 2002). Similarly, during the processing of negatively valenced words, women show increased activity relative to men in the right putamen, right superior temporal gyrus, and left supramarginal gyrus (Hofer et al 2007). ERP studies have also shown differing response patterns to emotional material between men and women (Orozco and Ehlers 1998;Gasbarri et al 2007).…”

Section: The Affective Intensity Hypothesismentioning

confidence: 99%

Sex influences on the neurobiology of learning and memory

Andreano¹,

Cahill²

2009

Learn. Mem.

609

400

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In essentially every domain of neuroscience, the generally implicit assumption that few, if any, meaningful differences exist between male and female brain function is being challenged. Here we address how this development is influencing studies of the neurobiology of learning and memory. While it has been commonly held that males show an advantage on spatial tasks, and females on verbal tasks, there is increasing evidence that sex differences are more widespread than previously supposed. Differing performance between the sexes have been observed on a number of common learning tasks in both the human and animal literature, many neither purely spatial nor verbal. We review sex differences reported in various areas to date, while attempting to identify common features of sexually dimorphic tasks, and to place these differences in a neurobiological context. This discussion focuses on studies of four classes of memory tasks for which sex differences have been frequently reported: spatial, verbal, autobiographical, and emotional memory. We conclude that the female verbal advantage extends into numerous tasks, including tests of spatial and autobiographical abilities, but that a small but significant advantage may exist for general episodic memory. We further suggest that for some tasks, stress evokes sex differences, which are not normally observed, and that these differences are mediated largely by interactions between stress and sex hormones.Sex influences on brain function are ubiquitous. Differences between the sexes have been documented at every level of neuroscience, from single neurons in cell culture to systems level processes as measured by neuroimaging. In some cases, consideration of sex may significantly alter, even reverse, conclusions about brain function drawn from the study of one sex alone (Cahill 2006). In some fields, such as the study of drug addiction, the evidence for sex differences is so strong that consideration of sex as a factor is becoming the norm, rather than the exception (Wetherington 2007).The claim that these neurobiological sex differences extend to the behavioral level has typically been more controversial. A recent review of the literature on this topic warns against the ''costs of overinflated claims of gender differences.'' The review holds that overall ''males and females are alike on most-but not all-psychological variables'' (Hyde 2005), but notes exceptions where sex does have an effect, including sexual and aggressive behaviors. Still, given how broadly sex differences are distributed on the neural level, it seems unlikely that their behavioral effects would be restricted solely to these domains.One area of behavior not considered in Hyde's review is the influence of sex on learning and memory. It is becoming increasingly clear, however, that an understanding of the neurobiological and cognitive consequences of sex is relevant across this field. In the review that follows, behavioral evidence indicating differences between men and women from numerous memory tasks will be co...

show abstract

“…Furthermore, we included only female participants in our study, limiting the generalizability of our results. On the other hand, the generally greater prevalence of social phobia in women 1 is reflected, and additional variance owing to existing differences in brain activation between men and women 64 has been avoided. Another limitation is that we did not control for menstrual cycle, which has been shown to influence brain activation.…”

Section: Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Have we met before? Neural correlates of emotional learning in women with social phobia

Laeger

Keuper

Heitmann

et al. 2014

J Psychiatry Neurosci

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Sex differences in brain activation patterns during processing of positively and negatively valenced emotional words

Abstract: Our findings suggest gender-related neural responses to emotional stimuli and could contribute to the understanding of mechanisms underlying the gender disparity of neuropsychiatric diseases such as mood disorders.

Cited by 86 publications

References 34 publications

Transference Interpretations in Dynamic Psychotherapy: Do They Really Yield Sustained Effects?

Transference Interpretations in Dynamic Psychotherapy: Do They Really Yield Sustained Effects?

Sex influences on the neurobiology of learning and memory

Have we met before? Neural correlates of emotional learning in women with social phobia

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About