Joseph LeDoux

Fear and anxiety are normal adaptive functions of the brain. However, millions of people suffer from disorders involving excess or inappropriate fear and anxiety. Included are phobic, panic, posttraumatic stress, generalized anxiety, and obsessive compulsive disorder. Research on the brain mechanisms of fear and anxiety gives us clues about how these normally function, what changes in the brain when they malfunction, and how specific malfunctions might be most effectively treated. Better control of inappropriate and excess fear and anxiety would improve health and well-being, both for individuals and societies.