Emotion
Emotion
 It is at the heart of who we are as
people
 It often is a reflection of our mental
state
 We are going to look at different
theories that try to explain how
and why we have emotions
Emotion

Emotion involves …


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feeling, thinking, activation of the nervous system,
and behavioral changes such as facial expressions
Emotions can differ in intensity and quality
Emotions can differ from culture and gender
Which comes first, your emotional
feelings or your bodily sensations??
In other words, does your body react to your
feelings or are your feelings an interpretation of
your bodily sensations??
Evolution Theory of Emotion

Darwin

Said that emotions evolved
because they had adaptive value
What??
 Example – fear evolved because it
helped people act in ways that
enhanced their chances of survival
 Also said…

Facial expressions are innate or hard
wired
The James-Lange Theory

Theorized that we feel emotion because we first
experience and notice biological changes


We don’t cry because we are sad, we are sad because
we cry
So…


biological changes (fast beating heart)
There is a lag between bodily reaction
and the emotion we express
emotion (fear)
Ex: So if I jump out and scare the living daylights out of you, your heart
begins to race and that bodily change causes you to experience and
express fear
Cannon-Bard Theory
(Doubted the J-L order of events)
 C-B said the experience of emotion happens at
the same time that biological change
happens
neither one causes the other (they are
independent of each other)
Ex: We see a bear, we experience fear and a pounding heart at the same
time - - no lag

So…
• Fear + biological changes
reaction
Schacter Two-Factor
Theory of Emotion

Emotion depends on the interaction between biology
and cognition (interpretation of events)


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1st you experience physiological arousal (biology) and then
find a label in our mind (cognition) to explain the emotion
This then leads to a emotion or feeling
So…
• Biology
Cognition
Emotion
EX: My heart races when I see a scary movie and it may
race when my car spins out of control


One is labeled or interpreted as “pleasurable excitement”
and one as “sheer terror”
It depends on my interpretation
Example – Sight of oncoming car
(perception of stimulus)
Schacter
Two-Factor Theory
James-Lange Theory
pounding heart
(arousal)
pounding heart
(arousal)
+
cognitive label
(“I’m afraid)
=
C-B Theory
fear
(emotion)
pounding heart
(arousal)
+
Fear
(emotion)
Fear
(emotion)
The feeling of emotion can happen two different
ways in the brain
“DUAL-PATHWAY MODEL OF FEAR”
 First


path - immediate route
Goes straight to the amygdala allows people to
respond rapidly to events
Fight or Flight Response – “get away fast”
 Second


path - deliberate route
Goes to frontal cortex and allows people to
appraise events more slowly
“should I run?”
“DUAL-PATHWAY MODEL OF FEAR”
1st “Run !!!!”
No thinking
2nd “This could be bad, I should move!!”
Cognition is involved
Measuring Emotion

Galvanic skin response

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measures an increase in the skin’s rate of electrical
conductivity
i.e. muscle contractions
Polygraph tests – or lie detector

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Examines a persons heart rate by asking questions
about a particular subject
not a real good measure
Expression of Emotion
– Are they Universal?
 six basic emotions
• happiness, sadness, anger, fear,
surprise, and disgust
 The Facial-feedback hypothesis
 Emotions
Turn that frown upside down…
See what happens!!!