I. The WHAT and WHY of EMOTION
A. Defining emotion - Emotions
involve physiological and behavioral changes elicited by stimuli
B. Relating emotions and behavior
1. Darwin's evolutionary perspective -
Emotions prepare us, signal to others, guide our behavior
II. The PHYSIOLOGICAL COMPONENTS of
EMOTIONS
Emotional response components:
behavioral - muscular movements
appropriate to the situation (cat arches back, may attack)
autonomic - facilitates the
behaviors; sympathetic branch activates (increases in HR, blood shunted from the digestive
organs to the muscles)
hormonal - reinforce the autonomic
responses; adrenal medulla secretes E and NE to increase blood flow to muscles, cause
nutrients in muscles to be converted to glucose; adrenal ctx secretes steroids, also make
glucose available to muscles
A. The first theories
1. James-Lange theory
a. Reverses "common-sense" theory of
emotion
b. Argues that physiological change precedes
and causes emotion
2. Cannon-Bard theory
a. Feelings and physiological change produced
simultaneously
B. Physiological differences among
emotions
1. Scherer and Wallbott's large scale
cross-cultural study
a. Agreement in physiological change with
specific emotions
2. Ekman, Levenson, and Friesen's studies of
physiological changes
a. Autonomic nervous system activity
distinguishes emotions
b. Cross-cultural support among the
Minangkabau
C. The role of the brain
1. Limbic system is important in emotion -
Amygdala, hippocampus, hypothalamus
2. Amygdala allows emotional response to begin
before full awareness
3. Two major aspects of the amygdala
Central n.
lesions = no signs of fear when confronted with previously fearful event, act more tamely,
blood levels of stress hormones lower
stimulation (electrical or chemical) =
animal shows fear and agitation
Lateral n.
stimulation = increased defensive aggression
Receptors for GABA in amygdala involved
in:
- anxiolytic effects of benzodiazepines
(like Valium) and alcohol
- anxiety-producing effects of CCK (a
neuropeptide hormone)
4. The brain's hemispheres and emotions
a. Hemispheres may be specialized for
expression and recognition
b. Emotion recognition in
humans occurs mainly in right hemisphere of brain
-left eye (faces) and ear (voices)
advantage in emotion recognition
-left hemisphere better at recognizing
words or letter strings but right hemisphere better at detecting facial expressions of
emotion
-left hemisphere better at understanding
verbal content but right hemisphere can judge emotion in voice better
-Facial expressions stronger and begin
sooner on left side of face (right hemisphere controlled)
5. Lack of emotion - Alexithymia sheds some
light on unemotionality
6. Opponent-process theory
a. Brain initiates opponent-process to achieve
homeostasis
i. A and B process differ in intensity and
duration
D. Evaluating the lie detector
1. Polygraphs
a. Electronic device that measures multiple
physiological responses
i. Idea is that lying should increase arousal
b. Guilty knowledge test, control questions
test, are part of procedure
c. Countermeasures, physical and mental
methods can alter recordings
d. Typical error is concluding innocent person
is lying
III. The EXPRESSIVE COMPONENTS of
EMOTIONS
A. Universal elements in the facial
expression of emotion
1. The expression of six primary emotions has
a universal quality
a. Cross-cultural studies overwhelmingly
support this conclusion
i. True in both literate and preliterate
cultures
b. Studies of infant facial expressions also
lend support
2. How many emotions are there?
a. Happiness, sadness, anger, fear, surprise,
disgust
i. Family of negative emotions have more
distinct displays
ii. Family of positive emotions are less
distinct
- Evolutionary advantage to this distinction
b. Usually highest recognition agreement for
happiness, lowest for sad
c. Plutchik's "emotion solid" offers
another perspective
i. Emotions vary by intensity, purity
3. The facial feedback hypothesis
a. Facial muscle feedback influences emotional
experience
i. Facial feedback causes, or intensifies,
emotional experience?
B. Display rules: The effects of
culture
1. Culturally-governed rules about the display
of emotion, to whom, and when
a. Differences in Japanese and American
reactions to stressful film
2. Smiling
a. Masking, false, miserable, Duchenne smiles
show wide variety
b. Obicularis oculi is key to true (Duchenne)
smile of happiness
i. Ignore the mouth; look for crow's feet
C. Nonverbal communication
1. Tone of voice, posture, gestures, facial
expressions, gait, touch, distance
2. Body language
a. Emblems: Gestures with specific meanings
i. "Thumbs-up," "one-fingered
salute," "A-OK," "bye-bye"
b. Illustrators: Gestures that accompany
speech
i. Amplify, accent, reinforce verbal content
c. Regulators: Coordinate flow of
communication
i. Eye contact, head nods
d. Adaptors: Manipulations for a purpose,
little specific meaning
i. Scratches, picking, rubbing, fiddling,
grooming
3. Paralanguage: Vocal cues that accompany
verbal content
D. Gender effects
1. Women generally more accurate than men at
decoding expressions
2. Women seem to have more frequent and
intense experiences than men
a. Socialization, role expectations may be the
real causes at work
3. Gender differences in judging sad faces of
other men and women
a. Women accurate for both sexes; men accurate
mainly for men
IV. The COGNITIVE COMPONENTS of
EMOTIONS
A. The language of emotion
1. Cultures differ in the number of terms
available to describe emotions
a. English has comparatively many: Some 2,000
emotion terms
2. Cultures differ in the meaning, precision,
application of emotion terms
a. Some terms express emotional states that
lack easy translation
3. Schachter and Singer as an example of
interpreting undifferentiated arousal
4. Other appraisal theories of emotiona.
Novelty, pleasure, control may be dimensions of appraisal
B. The development of emotion
1. Emotional repertoire is established within
first few years of life
2. Self-conscious emotions (guilt, shame,
pride) develop later in this period
3. Emotional intelligence
a. Distinct from "cognitive"
intelligence, an important skill - Mood regulation,
impulse control, empathy are components
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