Chapter 13 Emotion Phineas gage theories of emotion

Theories of Emotion Does your heart pound because you are afraid... or are you afraid because you feel your heart pounding?

Emotion William James and Carl Lange came up with the James-Lange Theory of Emotion. We feel emotion because of biological changes caused by stress. The body changes and our mind recognizes the feeling.

James-Lange Theory of Emotion Experience of emotion is awareness of physiological responses to emotion-arousing stimuli Fear (emotion)‏ Pounding heart (arousal)‏ Sight of oncoming car (perception of stimulus)‏

James-Lange (cont.) Subjects report feeling more sad when viewing scenes of war, sickness, and starvation if their “sad face” muscles are activated. They also find comic strips funnier if their “happy face” muscles are activated.

Cannon-Bard Theory of Emotion The physiological change and cognitive awareness must occur simultaneously. They believed it was the thalamus that helped this happen.

Cannon-Bard Theory of Emotion Sight of oncoming car (perception of stimulus)‏ Pounding heart (arousal)‏ Fear (emotion)‏ Emotion-arousing stimuli simultaneously trigger: physiological responses subjective experience of emotion

Two-Factor Theory of Emotion http://www. youtube. com/watch Stanley Schachter explains emotions more completely that the other two theories. They happen at the same time but… People who are already physiologically aroused experience more intense emotions than unaroused people when both groups are exposed to the same stimuli. Biology and Cognition interact with each other to increase the experience.

Schachter’s Two Factor Theory of Emotion Cognitive label “I’m afraid” Fear (emotion)‏ Sight of oncoming car (perception of stimulus)‏ Pounding heart (arousal)‏ To experience emotion one must: be physically aroused cognitively label the arousal

Schachter’s Two-Factor Epinephrine Study: Injection Told Emotion Group 1 Epinephrine Will increase arousal Mild Group 2 Will have no effect / other side effects Strong

Autonomic nervous system controls physiological arousal Emotional Arousal http://education-portal.com/academy/lesson/fight-or-flight-response.html#lesson Autonomic nervous system controls physiological arousal Sympathetic division (arousing)‏ Pupils dilate Decreases Perspires Increases Accelerates Inhibits Secrete stress hormones Parasympathetic division (calming)‏ Pupils contract Dries Slows Activates secretion of stress EYES SALIVATION SKIN RESPIRATION HEART DIGESTION ADRENAL GLANDS

Arousal and Performance Yerkes-Dodson Law Performance peaks at lower levels of arousal for difficult tasks, and at higher levels for easy or well-learned tasks Performance level Difficult tasks Easy tasks Low Arousal High

Yerkes Dodson Law: What type of motivational level do you need?? TASK MOTIVATIONAL LEVEL easy high moderate moderate difficult low

Arousal Theory We are motivated to seek an optimum level of arousal. Yerkes-Dodson Law

Expressing Emotion Smiles can show different emotions: A) Mask anger B) Overly polite C) Soften criticism D) Reluctant compliance

Experienced Emotion - Fear Learning Fear Observation / Experience Genetic / Evolutionary Predispositions? Biology of Fear Amygdala – emotions of fear Hippocampus – memory of fear

Expressed Emotion People more speedily detect an angry face than a happy one (Ohman, 2001a)

Expressing Emotion How good are you at detecting emotions? Culturally universal expressions

Experiencing Emotion http://education-portal The Amygdala-a neural key to fear learning

Experiencing Emotion Catharsis Feel-good, do-good phenomenon 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

Experiencing Emotion Does money buy happiness? Average per-person Year 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Average per-person after-tax income in 1995 dollars Percentage describing themselves as very happy $20,000 $19,000 $18,000 $17,000 $16,000 $15,000 $14,000 $13,000 $12,000 $11,000 $10,000 $9,000 $8,000 $7,000 $6,000 $5,000 $4,000 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 Percentage very happy Personal income

Experiencing Emotion Adaptation-Level Phenomenon Relative Deprivation tendency to form judgements relative to a “neutral” level Relative Deprivation perception that one is worse off relative to those with whom one compares oneself Is Happines Relative (8 min)

Opponent-Process Theory of Emotion Strong Neutral First experience (a)‏ After repeated experiences (b)‏

Happiness is... However, Happiness Seems Not Much Researchers Have Found That Happy People Tend to Have high self-esteem (in individualistic countries)‏ Be optimistic, outgoing, and agreeable Have close friendships or a satisfying marriage Have work and leisure that engage their skills Have a meaningful religious faith Sleep well and exercise However, Happiness Seems Not Much Related to Other Factors, Such as Age Gender (women are more often depressed, but also more often joyful)‏ Education levels Parenthood (having children or not)‏ Physical attractiveness

Theories of Emotions Review

? Reflection What affects your emotions? What theory do you think is most accurate regarding emotion? Why? How are motivation and emotion connected? ?