Psychology 40S
Emotion
Carla McMurray
Source:
PSYCHOLOGY
(9th Edition)
David Myers
Worth Publishers, © 2010
1
Motivation and Emotion
Our emotional state is closely related to our
motivation. Emotion influences motivation and
motivation influences emotion.
The word emotion comes from the Latin word
meaning “to move.” First, the body is physically
aroused during emotion. Such bodily stirrings are
what cause us to say we were “moved” by a play, a
funeral, or an act of kindness. Second, we are often
motivated, or moved to take action, by emotions such
as fear, anger or joy.
Source: Psychology A Journey (Nelson)
2
Emotion
Emotions are a mix of:
1) physical arousal
2) expressive behaviors
3) conscious experience
For example, when I am happy…
3
List all of the emotions you have experienced today
4
Emotion
Emotions are states of feeling.
They are our body’s adaptive response.
Emotions are linked to many basic adaptive
behaviours, such as attacking, fleeing, seeking
comfort, helping others, reproducing etc. Such
behaviours help us survive and adjust to changing
conditions. Of course, emotions can have negative
effects. Stage fright or choking up in sports can spoil
performances. Hate, anger, contempt, disgust and
fear disrupt behaviour and relationships.
Source: Psychology A Journey (Nelson)
5
Controversy
1) Does physiological arousal precede or follow
your emotional experience?
2) Does cognition (thinking) precede emotion
(feeling)?
For example:
• Are you happy because you laughed or are you
laughing because you are happy?
• Are you sad because you are crying or crying
because you are sad?
6
Commonsense View
When you become happy, your heart starts
beating faster. First comes conscious
awareness, then comes physiological activity.
Bob Sacha
7
Emotions
Acceptance
Affection
Aggression
Ambivalence
Apathy
Anxiety
Anger
Boredom
Confusion
Curiosity
Disgust
Depression
Doubt
Ecstasy
Empathy
Envy
Embarrassment
Euphoria
Fear
Forgiveness
Frustration
Gratitude
Grief
Guilt
Hatred
Hope
Horror
Hostility
Homesickness
Hunger
Hysteria
Interest
Joy
Loneliness
Love
Paranoia
Pity
Pleasure
Pride
Rage
Regret
Remorse
Sadness
Shame
Suffering
Surprise
Sympathy
List as many emotions as you can think of…
8
There are eight basic emotions that is related
to survival…
Acceptance
Affection
Aggression
Ambivalence
Apathy
Anxiety
Anger
Boredom
Confusion
Curiosity
Disgust
Depression
Doubt
Ecstasy
Empathy
Envy
Embarrassment
Euphoria
Fear
Forgiveness
Frustration
Gratitude
Grief
Guilt
Hatred
Hope
Horror
Hostility
Homesickness
Hunger
Hysteria
Interest
Which ones are they and why?
Joy
Loneliness
Love
Paranoia
Pity
Pleasure
Pride
Rage
Regret
Remorse
Sadness
Shame
Suffering
Surprise
Sympathy
9
Emotions Related to Survival
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Anger leads to destruction of the obstacle
Fear leads to protection
Sadness leads to a search for help and comfort
Disgust leads to rejection and pushing away
Surprise leads to a turning inward
Curiosity which lead to exploration and searching
Acceptance which leads to sharing
Joy which leads to reproduction, courting and mating
(Based on the work of Robert Plutchik in the 1980s)
10
Basic Emotions
Acceptance
Affection
Aggression
Ambivalence
Apathy
Anxiety
Anger
Boredom
Confusion
Curiosity
Disgust
Depression
Doubt
Ecstasy
Empathy
Envy
Embarrassment
Euphoria
Fear
Forgiveness
Frustration
Gratitude
Grief
Guilt
Hatred
Hope
Horror
Hostility
Homesickness
Hunger
Hysteria
Interest
Joy
Loneliness
Love
Paranoia
Pity
Pleasure
Pride
Rage
Regret
Remorse
Sadness
Shame
Suffering
Surprise
Sympathy
11
Emotional Appraisal
Emotional appraisal refers to evaluating the personal
meaning of a stimulus. (Is it good/bad,
threatening/supportive, relevant/irrelevant and so on.)
For example: If another driver cuts you off on the highway, you
could become very angry. But if you do, you will add 15 minutes
of emotional upset to your day. By changing your appraisal, you
could just as easily choose to laugh at the other driver’s childish
behaviour and minimize the emotional wear and tear.
Controlling your emotions is a hard thing to do!!
Source: Psychology A Journey (Nelson)
12
13
Emotional Appraisal
Appraisal:
You have been slighted or demeaned
You feel threatened.
You have experienced a loss
You have broken a moral rule
You have not lived up to your ideals
You desire something another has
You are near something repulsive
You fear the worst but yearn for better
You are moving toward a desired goal
You are linked with a valued object or accomplishment
You have been treated well by another
You desire affection from another person
You are moved by someone’s suffering
Source: Psychology A Journey (Nelson)
14
Emotional Appraisal
Emotion
You have been slighted or demeaned Anger
You feel threatened. Anxiety
You have experienced a loss Sadness
You have broken a moral rule Guilt
You have not lived up to your ideals Shame
You desire something another has Envy
You are near something repulsive Disgust
You fear the worst but yearn for better Hope
You are moving toward a desired goal Happiness
You are linked with a valued object or accomplishment Pride
You have been treated well by another Gratitude
You desire affection from another person Love
You are moved by someone’s suffering Compassion
Source: Psychology A Journey (Nelson)
15
Recipe for Handling Relationships
Smoothly
“Be angry with the right person, to
the right degree, at the right time, for
the right purpose, and in the right
way.” (Aristotle, Greek philosopher)
16
Expressed Emotion
Emotions are expressed on the face, by the body,
and by the intonation of voice. Is this nonverbal
language of emotion universal?
17
Expressed Emotion
Are emotional expressions a carryover from earlier stages
of human evolution?
Charles Darwin thought so. Darwin observed that angry
tigers, monkeys, dogs and humans all bare their teeth in
the same way.
Darwin believed that emotional expressions evolved to
communicate our feelings to other, which aids survival.
Such messages give us valuable hints about what other
people are likely to do next.
18
Detecting Emotion
Most of us are good at deciphering emotions through
nonverbal communication. In a crowd of faces a single
angry face will “pop out” faster than a single happy face.
Presumably, we are especially sensitive to threatening
faces because they warn us of possible harm.
19
Expressed Emotion
Facial expressions of fear, anger,
disgust, sadness and happiness
(enjoyment) are recognized around the
world.
Do we learn facial expressions from
others or are we born with them?
20
Experienced Emotion
Emotions present at birth:
Tom McCarthy/ Rainbow
Patrick Donehue/ Photo Researchers, Inc.
Bob Daemmrich/ The Image Works
Nancy Brown/ The Image Bank
Marc Grimberg/ The Image Bank
Michael Newman/ PhotoEdit
Lew Merrim/ Photo Researchers, Inc.
21
Paul Ekman
Psychologist who has
been a pioneer in the
study or emotions and
their relation to facial
expressions.
22
Name The Emotions 1
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3
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Emotions Revealed
• Emotions Revealed
30
Lie Detectors
Polygraph (a lie detector) records changes in heart
rate, blood pressure, breathing rate and “sweating.”
The device only records general emotional arousal –
it can’t tell the difference between lying and fear,
anxiety or excitement
Read page 389 Nelson’s Psychology A Journey
31
Lie Spotting
• Ted Talk: How to Spot a Liar
32
Emotional Intelligence
Emotional Intelligence is a combination
of skills, such as empathy, self-control
and self-awareness. Such skills can
make us more flexible, adaptable,
emotionally mature. People who excel
in life tend to be emotionally intelligent.
33
Emotionally Intelligent People
1. Self-awareness (tuned in to their own feelings)
2. Empathy (perceive emotions in others)
3. Manage emotions (ability to manage your own
emotions and those of others)
4. Understand emotions (know what causes various
emotions, what they mean and how they affect
behaviour)
5. Use emotions (use their feelings to enhance thinking
and decision making)
Page 397 Nelson’s Psychology A Journey
34
Marshmallow Test
Walter Mischel (1972) presented the
marshmallow delemma to preschoolers at
Stanford University.
“You can have this marshmallow now if you
want, but if you don’t eat it until after I run an
errand, you can have two.”
35
Videos:
• Marshmallow test 2
• Zimbardo: marshmallow test explained
• Watch marshmallow
36
Marshmallow Test Explained
Self-control often requires that we ignore immediate
rewards in favor of larger, delayed rewards.
Compared to the children who failed the
marshmallow test, the children who passed it
demonstrated greater personal and social competence
in adulthood. Consideration of the future
consequences of one’s behaviour seems to be
associated with better health, greater job success, and
stonger interpersonal relations. Self-control may be
the master virtue.
Source: Pursuing Human Strengths
37
Marshmallow Test and
Emotional Intelligence
How does Emotional Intelligence have
anything to do with the Marshmallow Test?
38
Anger
• What makes you angry?
• Why does it make you angry?
• What do you do to alleviate anger?
Anger
• In excess, can lead to heart disease
BUT
• Can also help people alleviate problems in a
healthy manner
Causes of Anger
1. People generally become angry with friends
and loved ones who commit wrongdoings,
especially if they are willful, unjustified, and
avoidable.
2. People are also angered by foul odors, high
temperatures, traffic jams, and aches and
pains.
41
Catharsis
Catharsis is an emotional release
Catharsis Hypothesis
• Releasing aggressive energy through action
or fantasy relieves aggressive urges
Do you agree or disagree?
What does the research say?
• Expressing anger breeds more anger
• Hitting a punching bag leads to more
cruelty
• Venting anger may lead to more hostility
“Venting to reduce anger is like using
gasoline to put out a fire.” Brad Bushman
How should you handle anger?
1. Wait
2. Deal with anger in a way that
involves neither being
chronically angry over every
little annoyance nor passively
sulking
Happiness
People who are happy
perceive the world as
being safer. They are
able to make decisions
easily, are more
cooperative, rate job
applicants more
favorably, and live
healthier, energized,
and more satisfied
lives.
45
Feel-Good, Do-Good Phenomenon
When we feel happy we are more willing to help
others.
46
Predictors of Happiness
Why are some people generally more happy
than others?
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