CHAPTER 12: EMOTION Jacquelyn Eisen and Maya Strauss EMOTIONS: HUMANS VS. ANIMALS Fear Anger Sadness Joy Love PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES Challenges: Heart races Pace quickens Senses on high alert MORE PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES Getting Good News: Eyes tear up Exuberance Newfound Confidence DEFINING TERMS: Emotions: Response of the whole organism involving physical arousal, expressive behaviors, and conscious experience James-Lange Theory: Experience of emotion is our awareness of our physiological responses to emotion-arousing stimuli Sight of oncoming car (perception of stimulus) Pounding heart (arousal) Fear (emotion) Cannon-Bard Theory: Emotion-arousing stimulus simultaneously triggers physiological responses and the subjective experience of emotion Pounding heart (arousal) Sight of oncoming car (perception of stimulus) Fear (emotion) Two-Factor Theory: Experience emotion one must be physically aroused and cognitively label the arousal Two Factor Theory: Stanley Schacter and Jerome Singer Pounding heart (arousal) Sight of oncoming car (perception of stimulus) Fear (emotion) Cognitive label “I’m afraid” MORE ABOUT THEORIES William James: We don’t cry because we’re sad, we’re sad because we cry because we’re sad. Walter Cannon: Body’s responses are not distinct enough to evoke different emotions. THEORIES OF EMOTION AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM Sympathetic sympathizing with the plight of your body Parasympathetic decrease in emotional arousal AROUSAL BARRETT 2006 Fear, anger, and sexual arousal do not have distinct biological signatures. They feel/look different, but have similar brain patterns. When you think happy, you smile. If you think scared, your pulse quickens. Autonomic nervous system controls physiological arousal Sympathetic division (arousing) Parasympathetic division (calming) Pupils dilate EYES Pupils contract Decreases SALIVATION Increases Perspires SKIN Dries Increases RESPIRATION Decreases Accelerates HEART Slows Inhibits DIGESTION Activates Secrete stress hormones ADRENAL GLANDS Decreases secretion of stress hormones The amygdala is most active when viewing fearful faces. Emotions in the right hemisphere are disgust. Emotions in the left hemisphere are happy. People more speedily detect an angry face than a happy one (Ohman, 2001a) Positive personalities: More activity in left frontal lobe. Negative personalities: more activity in right frontal lobe. Dopamine: left frontal lobe, supports happy DEFINING TERMS Spillover Effect: puts things on something that it didn’t originate on. Ex: Play tennis bad upset still upset when doing homework Polygraph: (lie detector) measures physiological responses accompanying emotion (sweat, breathing changes) QUESTIONING Control Question: aim to make you a little nervous Critical Question: If the response is less than the control’s response, it is inferred to be true. Critical > Control Lie POLYGRAPH ISSUES Physiological Arousal is the same from one emotion to another Tests err about one third of the time. Respiration Perspiration Heart rate Control Relevant question question (a) Control question Relevant question (b) MORE POLYGRAPH ISSUES Adrich Ames was a Russian spy in the CIA that passed all the polygraph tests. POLYGRAPH REPLACEMENT Guilty Knowledge Test is more effective because only someone who knows information would react to details. LIAR, LIAR BRAINS ON FIRE Anterior cingulate cortex and left prefrontal cortex light up when lying. SHORTCUTS It skips the cortex, and goes from thalamus to the amygdala Emotional before intellect intervenes. Some emotional responses have no thinking. Thinking occurs after the fact. READING FACIAL EXPRESSIONS Possible to tell what mood someone is in. Look at: Eyebrows Eyes Cheeks DOWNSIDE OF COMPUTER COMMUNICATION Downside to computer communication: No tone of voice No gestures No facial expressions WOMEN’S INTUITION Nonverbal sensitivity gives them an edge in spotting lies Greater emotional responses in both negative and positive situations. Number of expressions Sad Men Women Happy Scary Film Type “FOR NEWS OF THE HEART, ASK THE FACE” Faces show feeling. MOVIES AND EMOTION Judge feelings/emotions of characters based off the situation. Soundtracks are used to amplify emotions. CULTURAL DIFFERENCES Dominant religion varies between nations. 3 THINGS THAT INFLUENCE EMOTION (PBS) FEEDBACK Facial Feedback: Use muscles and enhances mood Behavior Feedback: Acting silly so you feel better. TEN DISTINCT EMOTIONS Joy Interest Excitement Surprise Sadness Anger Disgust Contempt Fear Shame Guilt TWO DIMENSIONS OF EMOTION Positive valence pleasant relaxation joy Low arousal High arousal fear anger sadness Negative valence WHAT IS A PHOBIA? Phobia: intense fear of a specific object to the point where you are unable to cope. Heritable – there is a gene that influences amygdala’s response EXPERIENCED EMOTION Catharsis: Emotional release Catharsis Hypothesis: “releasing” aggressive energy (through action or fantasy) relieves aggressive urges Feel-good, do-good phenomenon: people’s tendency to be helpful when already in a good mood EXPERIENCED EMOTION Moods across the day TWO ROUTES TO EMOTION EXPERIENCED EMOTION Subjective Well-Being: self-perceived happiness or satisfaction with life. used along with measures of objective well-being physical and economic indicators to evaluate people’s quality of life EXPERIENCED EMOTION Changing materialism EXPERIENCED EMOTION Does money buy happiness? Average per-person after-tax income in 1995 dollars $20,000 $19,000 $18,000 100% $17,000 90% $16,000 $15,000 80% $14,000 70% $13,000 Personal income $12,000 60% $11,000 50% $10,000 Percentage very happy 40% $9,000 30% $8,000 $7,000 20% $6,000 10% $5,000 0% $4,000 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 Year Percentage describing themselves as very happy EXPERIENCED EMOTION Values and life satisfaction 0.6 Importance scores 0.4 Money Love 0.2 0.0 -0.2 -0.4 1.00 2.00 3.00 4.00 5.00 Life satisfaction 6.00 7.00 EXPERIENCED EMOTION Adaptation-Level Phenomenon: tendency to form judgments relative to a “neutral” level Ex: brightness of lights volume of sound level of income defined by our prior experience Relative Deprivation: perception that one is worse off relative to those with whom one compares oneself A CANCER PATIENT: (BEFORE & AFTER FINDING OUT CANCER FREE) Upset Elated Back to Normal “I CRIED BECAUSE I HAD NO SHOES... UNTIL I MET A MAN WHO HAD NO FEET” HAPPINESS IS... Researchers Have Found That Happy People Tend to However, Happiness Seems Not Much Related to Other Factors, Such as Have high self-esteem (in individualistic countries) Age Be optimistic, outgoing, and agreeable Gender (women are more often depressed, but also more often joyful) Have close friendships or a satisfying marriage Education levels Have work and leisure that engage their skills Parenthood (having children or not) Have a meaningful religious faith Physical attractiveness Sleep well and exercise