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Psych 1 Cabrillo College
Instructor: Charlotte Reyes, Phd
Emotion and Motivation Worksheet Responses
April 14 2014
Emotional Styles
After watching the video you should be able to associate aspects of
emotional responding with activation of central and autonomic nervous
system structures.
“The Emotional Life of Your Brain” with Richard J Davidson and
Sharon Begley. (March 12, 2012). Charlie Rose.
http://www.bloomberg.com/video/88241918-charlie-rose-theemotional-life-of-your-brain.html
Davidson’s research indicates that we each have different emotional
styles—for how we respond differently to emotional challenges—
comprised of six dimensions:
 Resilience: capacity to recover from adversity (Are you quick to
recover or slow?)
 Outlook: capacity to sustain positive emotion over time (Is your glass
half empty or half full?)
 Context: sensitivity to context (How able are you to modulate your
emotions in a context-sensitive way?)
 Social intuition: sensitivity to social cues (How sensitive to are you to
the facial expression and tone of voice of others?)
 Self-awareness: sensitivity to internal bodily cues to emotion (How
aware are you of your own emotions?
 Attention: the ability to hone one’s focus (How scattered or focused
are you in your attentional style?)
2. Develop a recipe for your own current emotional style. That is, how
much of each of the six “ingredients” would you mix to form your style?
They may want to think of each of these dimensions as existing on a
continuum. Are they highly resilient, bouncing back quickly (cupfuls) or
are they lower on resilience, and slow to recover (a teaspoon)? Avoid
thinking of any of these dimensions as being inherently positive or
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negative—some styles serve one well in one situation and less so in
another.
Micro Emotions
Evaluate the roles of nature, nurture, and their interaction in
explaining human communication of emotion, based on research
evidence.
o \
“Recognizing Feelings and Faces” with Paul Ekman. (May 22, 2003).
Fresh Air. NPR.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1271998
(23:52)
o “Facial Expressions Test” by Meredith Levinson. CIO.
http://www.cio.com/article/facial-expressions-test [Accessed 07
June 2012].
When people deliberately try to conceal (or unconsciously repress) their
emotions, a very brief, involuntary facial expression may occur. These
“micro expressions” only last 1/15 to 1/25 of a second, but may offer a clue
as to how another person is really feeling—or even if he or she may be
lying.
Paul Ekman, a psychologist, has conducted over 40 years of research on
micro expressions and deception and has developed a method, The Micro
Expression Training Tool (METT), which is designed to help you recognize
and identify these flashes of emotion. Play the NPR podcast with Paul
Elman.
When finished, test your ability to recognize micro emotions by taking
the Facial Expressions Test. This tool is similar to Ekman’s METT.
Pressing a number will display a face. A micro expression will quickly flash
across the face. You should then be able to say which of the seven emotions
(sadness, anger, surprise, fear, disgust, contempt, or happiness) you saw. If
correct, the box in the upper right hand corner will read “right.” If not, the
box will read “wrong.” Keep track of your scores in a notebook and be
ready to discuss and answer the questions below.
Reflections
Answer following questions in one to two sentences each:
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 How challenging was this task for you?
 Which emotions did you find easiest to identify? Most difficult?
 What do you think a micro emotion might be able to tell you? What
are its limitations?
 Would you make an accusation based on a micro emotion? Why or
why not?
Emotions to Know: Primary or Seconday?
Happiness
Anger
Disgust
Surprise
Pride
Fear
Jealousy
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Sadness
Excitement
Disappointment
Frustration
Awe
“Daniel Pink on the Surprising Science of Motivation.” (July 2009).
TedTalks http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_pink_on_motivation.html (18:40).
1. Answer the following questions in one to two sentences each:
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When are extrinsic rewards effective? Give examples from your
life.
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When do intrinsic rewards serve to inhibit motivated behavior?
Give examples from your life.