EMOTION
● Human beings are full of feelings, or emotions, and although emotions may be
internal processes, there are outward physical signs of what people are feeling.
● The Latin root word mot, meaning “to move,” is the source of both of the
words—motive and emotion.
● Emotion can be defined as the “feeling” aspect of consciousness, characterized
by three elements: a certain physical arousal, a certain behavior that reveals the
feeling to the outside world, and an inner awareness of the feeling.
THREE ELEMENTS OF EMOTION
1) The Physiology of Emotion
● Physically, when a person experiences an emotion, an arousal is created by the
sympathetic nervous system.
● When experiencing emotions like anger or fear, the body undergoes similar
physiological reactions, such as increased heart rate, rapid breathing, and pupil
dilation. Though emotions have distinct facial expressions, their physical
symptoms are often hard to differentiate.
● The polygraph test, originally thought to detect lying based on physiological
responses, has been shown to be unreliable for this purpose. It measures
general emotional responses rather than specific reactions to lying, making it
controversial and inadmissible as evidence in many legal contexts.
● The amygdala, part of the brain's limbic system, plays a key role in emotions like
fear and pleasure.
● Damage to the amygdala impairs fear responses and the ability to recognize
emotions in others' facial expressions.
● Dr Joseph LeDoux’s work has provided many insights into the brain’s processing
of emotional information and the role of the amygdala
● Emotional stimuli are processed through two pathways- low road and high road.
● Emotional stimuli travel to the amygdala by both a fast, crude “low road”
(subcortical) and a slower but more involved cortical “high road”
● The “low road” is the pathway underneath the cortex and is a faster, simpler
path, allowing for quick responses to the stimulus, sometimes before we are
consciously aware of the nature of the stimulus.
● The “high road” uses cortical pathways and is slower and more complex, but it
allows us to recognize the threat and, when needed, take more conscious control
of our emotional responses
● Positive emotions are linked to the left frontal lobe, while negative emotions are
associated with the right frontal lobe.
● Research also suggests that individuals trained in meditation show increased left
frontal lobe activity, which is related to reduced anxiety and improved immune
function.
● The right hemisphere of the brain is more involved in recognizing emotions,
especially negative ones, in facial expressions. This ability increases with age,
with adults better able to interpret negative emotions than children.
● The brain’s ability to control emotions involves several areas, including the
lateral prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, and [Link]
like distraction and reappraisal engage different brain regions, with reappraisal
being linked to the lateral orbitofrontal cortex and both strategies leading to
reduced amygdala activity.
2) The Behavior of Emotion: Emotional Expressions
● The behavior of emotion is expressed through various actions, such as facial
expressions, body movements, and verbal cues.
● These behaviors communicate a person’s emotional state to others.
● Common actions driven by emotions include fighting, running, kissing, and
yelling.
● Facial expressions can vary across cultures, but certain emotional expressions
seem universal.
● Charles Darwin first suggested that emotions are biologically evolved, and thus
their expressions are consistent across all humans.
● Research supports this, with studies showing that even blind children make
appropriate facial expressions for different emotions, indicating these
expressions are biologically driven, not learned.
● Psychologists Ekman and Friesen found that people from various cultures
consistently recognize seven basic emotions: anger, fear, disgust, happiness,
surprise, sadness, and contempt.
● Although the facial expressions themselves may be universal, cultural
norms—called "display rules"—dictate when and how emotions are expressed.
For example, in Japanese culture, people generally suppress emotions in public
but may express anger more openly in private settings.
● Display rules vary between individualistic cultures (like the U.S.) and collectivistic
ones (like Japan), and these rules can also differ based on gender. For instance,
girls are often encouraged to express emotions openly, while boys are
discouraged from discussing feelings.
● Crying is another emotional behavior, which can occur due to sadness, grief,
anger, or even happiness.
● Although many people dislike crying, it is often seen as cathartic.
● Research has shown that crying may lead to an initial dip in mood but can
improve mood over time, which may explain why some people feel "better" after
a good cry.
3) Subjective Experience: Labeling Emotion
● The third element of emotion involves labeling the subjective
experience—identifying an emotion with terms like anger, fear, happiness, or
sadness.
● This labeling is often considered a cognitive element because it involves
recalling past experiences, understanding the context, and then assigning a label
to the feeling.
● The labels people use are influenced by language and culture, meaning
different cultures may use distinct labels for similar emotional experiences. For
instance, a study found that Chinese Americans who retained their cultural ties
tended to describe emotions in terms of bodily sensations (e.g., "dizzy") or social
relationships (e.g., "friendship"), while more "Americanized" Chinese Americans
and European Americans used direct emotional terms like "liking" or "love."
● Cultural differences also extend to happiness.
● A study showed that Japanese students linked happiness to social
engagement, while American students associated it more with individualistic
feelings like pride.
● These findings reflect broader cultural distinctions: collectivistic cultures (like
Japan) prioritize social harmony, while individualistic cultures (like the U.S.)
emphasize personal achievement.