Emotion, Stress, and Health Chapter 11

Emotion Emotions are a mix of physiological arousal, expressive behaviors, conscious experience Three theories describing the cause of emotion James – Lange Theory - The James-Lange theory refers to a hypothesis on the origin and nature of emotions developed independently by two 19th-century scholars, William James and Carl Lange. The theory states that within human beings, as a response to experiences in the world, the autonomic nervous system creates physiological events such as muscular tension, a rise in heart rate, perspiration, and dryness of the mouth. Emotions, then, are feelings which come about as a result of these physiological changes, rather than being their cause. James and Lange arrived at the theory independently. Cannon – Bard Theory - The Cannon-Bard theory is a psychological theory developed by physiologists Walter Cannon and Philip Bard, which suggests that people feel emotions first and then act upon them. These actions include changes in muscular tension, perspiration, etc. The theory was formulated following the introduction of the James-Lange theory of Emotion in the late 1800s, which alternately suggested that emotion is the result of one's perception of their reaction, or "bodily change." Schacter and Singer - The two factor theory of emotion is a social psychology theory that views emotion as having two components (factors): physiological arousal and cognition. According to the theory, "cognitions are used to interpret the meaning of physiological reactions to outside events."

Emotion And the Body Autonomic nervous system responsible for the arousal of emotion There is an ‘optimum’ level of arousal

Emotions And the Body Similarities in emotions Differences in emotions Physiologically, sexual arousal, anger and fear look the same show up in the areas of the brain, and facial movements Negative emotions (disgust, depression) are located in the right prefrontal cortex Positive emotions (joy, contentment) are located in the left prefrontal cortex

Emotions And Cognition Depending on how we interpret the arousal, it can be either good or bad Fear is not always ‘felt’ in the cortex The amygdala often senses fear and reacts before the cortex has time to know what is going on

Emotions And Cognition The amygdala sends more neurons up to the cortex than it receives, allowing it to ‘hijack’ thoughts Our simple fears, likes/dislikes may occur without conscious knowledge More complex emotions (depression, hatred, love) involve the cortex, and are affected by interpretations, memories, expectations

Emotions Expressing Sensitization to Emotion Detection of Emotion Most people can correctly identify anger in a foreign tongue A single angry face will ‘pop’ out faster than a happy one We read fear/anger from the eyes, happiness from the mouth Introverts can detect emotion better, extraverts are easier to ‘read’

Emotions: Culture Cultures assign different meanings to gestures Simple test… On a scrap piece of paper, write down your guess as to which emotion the following faces are expressing:

Emotions Expression Facial expression of emotion Even individuals blind from birth will express the emotions the same way in the face Cultures DO differ in how much emotion they express In individualistic cultures, emotional displays are grand In collectivistic cultures, emotional displays are muted Forcing a facial emotion can cause the brain to experience the emotion, when no other information is present

Emotion: Experience Anger Happiness Releasing anger can cause a reverse effect: people actually become angrier Perception of safer, make decisions faster, rate job applicants higher, cooperative, live longer **When we feel happy, we are more likely to help out others**

Emotion Experience Just as everything else, the highs and lows tend to equal out Adaptation Relative Deprivation

Stress: And Health Stress Stress Response System Alarm Resistance Exhaustion is very simply how we evaluate and cope with environmental threats and challenges Include: Tests, meeting new people, driving somewhere new, starting a new job Stress can be positive when viewed as a challenge and is short lived When stress becomes chronic, either positive or negative, it has detrimental effects on the body Alarm Becomes activated by ANY stressor Has the same response to all stressors Sympathetic nervous system kicks in, raising blood pressure, dilating pupils, heart and breathing rate increases

Stress: And the Immune System Stress hormones inhibit the white blood cells of the immune system In animals, loss of dominance has been shown to increase vulnerability to disease Linked to increases in the virality of HIV Linked to increases in tumor growth

Influences on Stress Perceived Control Explanatory Style (Attribution) Social Support Excercise