 Prototype: The best or average exemplar of a category.  In our case….an emotion that is typical of the category of emotions and represents all other emotions

 Let’s think about the prototype of a dog…  List all the breeds that meet the requirements for the category “dog…”  List the things that help you determine whether an object is a dog…  Which breeds fit this “prototype?”  Which breeds do not fit this “prototype?”

 The best or average exemplar of a category.  In our case….an emotion that is typical of the category of emotions and represents all other emotions  Psychological states that are closer to our prototype for emotions (e.g., changes in feelings/physiology) are more likely to be emotions.  Ex: Joy vs. Happiness

 Free Listing - happiness, anger, sadness, love, fear, hate, joy, excitement, anxiety, depression  Provide General Category – love, sadness, hate, happiness, joy, anger, depression, envy, disgust, fear  Rate the top 20 emotions – love, hate, anger, sadness, happiness, joy, fear, depression [Fehr, B., & Russell, J.A. (1984). Concept of emotion viewed from a prototype perspective. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 113, doi: / ]

 Basic Emotions – Universality!  Social Constructivist – Culture!  Cognitive Appraisal – Universality or Culture!  Dimensional – Universality or Culture!  Prototype Approach – helps us to better understand new emotions