COGS 17
Week 8
Theories of emotion: All theories are based on this relationship:
Emotion
stimulus  emotion (response) *(see below)…you feel an emotion b/c something triggered it
*from lecture*
1) Biological
2) Evolutionary
3) Psychological
External stimulus
 Biological signal
External stimulus
 Biological signal
External stimulus
 Catharsis
a)  Feel good  Do good (be helpful)
b)  Feel good  Promote well-being
 Take physical action (i.e. change behavior)
 Act to survive (ex. fight or flight response)
 Release aggressive energy
*Emotional response includes 3 things = 1 physiological “activation”/“response” *(see below),
2 “expressive behavior”/“emotion communication”, 3 “conscious experience”/“feelings”
*from lecture/book*
*(1.) Physiological response has 3 components = 1 behavioral component (via muscular system),
2 autonomic component (via nervous system), 3 hormonal component (via endocrine system)
*from book*
[[[ This physiological response is also known as “arousal” = activation of the autonomic N.S. *from lecture* ]]]
*from lecture *
* Stimulus  Autonomic component  Physiological
response  Emotional response… The autonomic
component refers to the autonomic division of the nervous
system.
* There are two branches: sympathetic and parasympathetic.
* They act as opposites.
If there is something scary (arousing), your
sympathetic system is activated.
Sympathetic = FIGHT OR FLIGHT!!!
If there is something peaceful (calming),
your parasympathetic is activated.
Parasympathetic = Rest and digest
Performance vs arousal: *from lecture*
Think in terms of competition in sport, or performing on stage…
A little excitement and stress associated with can boost
performance, but too much stress is detrimental to performance
Why is it inverted U-shaped? There is an optimum level of arousal
that leads to peak performance, and too little or too much arousal
can weaken performance.
COGS 17
Week 8
Emotion
*important things know about the physiological response*
Norepinephrine – secreted by both locus coeruleus and adrenal medulla; both a hormone (emotion) and NT (arousal)
Adrenal medulla – sits atop kidney, not in brain; purpose is to secrete hormones
Hormone – targets organs
Neurotransmitter (NT) – targets brain – remember? It acts between neurons.
What drives emotions? *from lecture*
1) Cognition – think Schacter’s Two Factor Theory;
e.g. “That spider looks creepy.”  fear
or
“I’ve been treated less than my worth”  anger
2) Behavior – think Facial Feedback Hypothesis; e.g. force a smile  generate happy emotion
Emotion & The Brain: Limbic system *from lecture*
Location: deep within brain, on top of stem, surrounds corpus callosum, partly in temporal lobe
Overall purpose: to integrate information from association cortices (not sensory or motor) to produce emotional response
 Know Kluver-Bucy Syndrome: remove temporal lobe  loss of fear response to aversive stimuli & hypersexual
*Thalamus – directly connects limbic system to cortex
so you can cognitively and consciously know your feelings
*Hypothalamus – releases hormones for autonomic response
& integrates emotional responses (the physiological components)
 know the ablation and stimulation studies in cats
cortical input, reticular formation output
(also sleep/wake cycle & 4F’s: feed, fight, flee, f*ck)
*Amygdala – integrates components for fear/anger response
via having connections everywhere (inputs and outputs)
*(Hippocampus) – learning and memory (not really emotion)
*(Sensory cortex) – receives sensory input from limbic system
and sends output back to limbic system; control emotional responses
*(Association cortex) – the cortical areas that aren’t sensory/motor
also involved with control of emotional responses
Connections within the limbic system *from lecture*
Instant fear response: (no cognition) Scary stimulus  eyes see  amygdala  fear!
Slower fear response: (cognition) Scary stimulus  eyes see  thalamus (LGN)  visual cortex  amygdala  fear!
Other parts of the emotional response: *from lecture and textbook*
2. Expressive behavior / emotion communication (how emotions are communicated between people)
1. Emotion recognition – right hemisphere, amygdala plays a role (seen with lesions) *see textbook*, culturally universal
2. Emotion expression – depends on culture and gender, e.g. fake smiles (mask anger, overly polite, etc)
3. Conscious experience/feelings (feelings are explained in terms of theories)
Specific Theories
1) James-Lange Theory
Step 1
Perception
of stimulus

Example
Tiger

Fight or flight

Fear
2) Cannon-Bard Theory
Perception
of stimulus

Arousal
+
Emotion
Example
Tiger

Fight or flight
+
Fear
3) Schacter's Two Factor
Theory Two things lead to emotion.
Perception
of stimulus

Arousal
+
Cognitive Label

Emotion
Example
Tiger

Fight or flight
+
“OMG, that’s scary!”

Fear
"Experience of emotion = awareness
of physiological responses to
emotion-arousing stimuli."
Subjective emotion comes with
simultaneous physiological arousal.
Step 2
Arousal

Step 3
Emotion
Step 4