Emotion

Question 1

What is emotion?

Answer 1

An evaluative response to a situation that typically includes

1. Physiological arousal
2. Subjective experience
3. Behavioral or emotional expression

Question 2

Emotion can be a ‘what’ response?

Answer 2

A positive or negative one.

Question 3

What do emotions involve?

Answer 3

1. Physiological arousal
2. Expressive behaviors
3. Conscious experience.

Question 4

What is affect?

Answer 4

The pattern of observable behaviors that express an individuals emotions.

Question 5

What is a characteristic of affect?

Answer 5

It is variable, fluctuating in response to changing emotional states.

Question 6

What is mood in relation to affect?

Answer 6

Longer lasting and more general than affect: Can be unseen by the observer.

Question 7

What is James’ Peripheral theory of emotion?

Answer 7

Emotions arise out of bodily experience.

Question 8

According to James’ Peripheral theory, what does an emotion-inducing experience elicit?

Answer 8

1. Physiological reactions (eg. accelerated heart beat)

2. Voluntary behaviors (eg. running away)

Question 9

According to James’ Peripheral theory, what do physical responses stimulate?

Answer 9

The subjective experience.

Question 10

What is the James-Lange theory of emotion?

Answer 10

Emotions organize in the Peripheral Nervous System (PNS) causing responses that the Central Nervous System (CNS) then interprets.

Question 11

According to the James-Lange model, the subjective experience of emotion is neither more nor less than the…

Answer 11

Awareness of our own body changes in the presence of certain arousing stimuli.
We consciously process our emotional state from the type of physiological arousal we are experiencing.

Question 12

What is the Cannon-Bard theory of emotion?

Answer 12

Emotion inducing stimuli simultaneously elicit and emotional experience and body responds.

Question 13

What do both the James-Lange and the Cannon-Bard fail to account for?

Answer 13

The cognitive component of emotions.

Question 14

What is subjective experience?

Answer 14

What it feels like to be happy, sad, or elated.

Question 15

Emotional intensity is spread along a bell shaped curve. What is at each end?

Answer 15

1. People with severe personality disorder who display intense anger and sadness.
2. People who appear to have no emotional states (Alexithymia)

Question 16

What is emotional expression?

Answer 16

The overt behavioral signs of emotion: Facial expressions, gestures, posture, tone of voice etc.

Question 17

What are two components of facial expressions?

Answer 17

1. They indicate a persons emotional state

2. They influence the physiological and subjective components of an emotion.

Question 18

What are six facial expressions recognized cross-culturally?

Answer 18

Surprise
Fear
Anger
Disgust
Happiness
Sadness

Question 19

What are display rules?

Answer 19

Emotional displays considered appropriate within a specific culture.

Question 20

What is positive affect?

Answer 20

Pleasant emotions.

Question 21

What is negative affect?

Answer 21

Unpleasant emotions.

Question 22

Describe the hierarchical system for classifying emotions.

Answer 22

1. Superordinate level - positive and negative affect.
2. Basic level - emotions apply cross-culturally.
3. Subordinate level - emotions are more culturally defined.

Question 23

What three neural regions are important in emotion?

Answer 23

1. The hypothalamus
2. The limbic system
3. Cortex.

Question 24

What is the role of the hypothalamus in emotion?

Answer 24

link in circuit that converts emotional signals into automatic and endocrine responses.

Question 25

What is the role of the limbic system in emotion?

Answer 25

Amygdala plays central role in linking sensory stimuli with feelings.

Question 26

What is the role of the cortex in emotion?

Answer 26

Allows assessment of whether stimulus is safe or not, interpretation of meaning of peripheral responses (eg. dry mouth).

Question 27

Explain the neuropsychology of emotion.

Answer 27

Affect, like cognition is distributed throughout the nervous system and not located in any one particular region.

Question 28

What is meant by emotional regulation?

Answer 28

because emotions feel good or bad and can draw positive or negative responses from people, people learn to regulate their emotions early in life - the efforts to control emotional states.

Question 29

What does suppression of emotion lead to?

Answer 29

Increased sympathetic nervous system activity.

Question 30

What does suppression of emotion interfere with?

Answer 30

The ability to engage in other tasks as it essentially keeps the person working overtime to keep the feeling at bay.

Question 31

What is the psychodynamic perspective of emotion?

Answer 31

1. People can be unconscious of their own emotional state.
2. Unconscious emotional processes can influence thought, behavior and health
3. We regularly delude ourselves to avoid unpleasant emotional experiences.

Question 32

What are attributions?

Answer 32

Inferences about causes one makes about bodily sensations.

Question 33

What is Schachter and Singer Attribution of Arousal Theory?

Answer 33

Emotions involve two factors: physiological arousal and cognitive interpretation.
2. Emotional experience is not simply the subjective awareness of arousal - it is the complex cognitive-affective state that includes inferences about the meaning of the arousal.