The act of arousing or the state of being aroused. (noun)
Sexual arousal. (noun)
A physiological and psychological state of being awake or reactive to stimuli, including elevated heart rate and blood pressure and a condition of sensory alertness, mobility and readiness to respond. (noun)
Examples of word arousal
Sessions involve watching pornographic movies featuring a young boy masturbating while the offender's sexual arousal is measured and punishment administered.
When arousal is too low, we become bored, and seek out activities to stimulate our minds; when arousal is too high, we seek to reduce or find something that will calm us down in some way.
Arguments against violent media imagery promoting violent behaviour often actually support the idea: James Paul Gee promotes video games as very effective teaching tools and arousal is at the heart of his argument.
I think that's the first time the phrase arousal of the amygdala has ever been in the cable news.
In Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers: The Acclaimed Guide to Stress, Stress-Related Diseases, and Coping, Robert Sapolsky describes the way stress relates to memory: a little bit of arousal heightens learning, but long-term arousal eventually burns out memory.