Emotion Flashcards
Are emotion and reason linked?
Yes. Without emotion we can’t make rational decisions
Who is phineas gage
Explosion sent an iron rod through his skull his general function was okay but his personality and emotions were different
Who is Elliot in relation to emotion
He had brain surgery to remove a frontal lobe tumour he was different after the operation he seemed devoid of emotion and made foolish decisions
What is emotion
Evaluative response either positive or negative
What does emotion include
Physiological arousal
Subjective experience
Behavioural/emotional expression
What is expression
Overt signs of emotion
What is mood
More general emotional state that may or may not be externally expressed
What is the affect of emotion
Pattern of behaviour that express emotions
Emotional Valence?
Emotions can be classified according to their emotions
- positive
- negative
Can emotional valence impact on behaviour
Yes there is a positive effect associated with pleasure seeking approach orientated behaviour
And a negative affect related to the avoidance of behaviours
What is the discrete emotions theory
Humans experience a small number of distinct emotions that:
- serve distinct evolutionary purposes
- have distinct physiological responses
- are universal across cultures (the way we express is different)
- occurs before thought
What did Darwin say about emotions
They serve adaptive purposes and increase the chances of survival
How do emotions help survival
Social communication and internal motivator for example fear
How many primary emotions are in the discrete emotion theory
Seven
What are the primary emotions involved in the discrete emotion theory
Anger Fear Disgust Surprised Happy Sad Contempt
Are positive or negative emotions easier to recognise
Positive are more easily recognisable
What are secondary emotions in the discrete emotions theory
They are when you combine two or more primary emotions
Eg. Anger and disgust
What does the German word schadenfreude mean?
Glee of experiencing misfortune of others
Does the discrete emotions theory claim to be culturally consistent?
Cross cultural studies have found the seven primary emotions are universally recognised and expressed
However different cultures give different weight to emotions
What do display rules mean? (Discrete emotions theory)
Cultures have different rules about how and when to express emotions
Which brain region produces fear
The amygdala
Which brain region produces disgust
The insula
What are the cognitive theories of emotion
The James-Lange theory
The somatic marker theory
Cannon-bard theory
Appraisal theory
Two factor theory of emotion (singer-shacter)
Explain the James-Lange theory
There is an emotion inducing stimulus that leads to behavioural and bodily responses there is a subjective interpretation of arousal emotion
This means that responses are driven by what was feeling emotions result from interpretations of our bodily reaction to stimuli
What is the evidence for the James-Lange theory
higher spinal damage associated with reduced subjective emotion
What is the evidence against the James-Lange theory
Emotional responses can be faster than physiological and we are not always aware of our bodily reactions
Explain the somatic marker theory
Gut reactions and physiological response unconsciously directs our decision-making and emotional reactions
What is the evidence against the somatic marker theory
People with pure autonomic failure can make decisions without any bodily feedback
Explain the cannon-bard theory
Emotional and behavioural responses are elicited simultaneously and independently
So an emotion provoking event produces an emotion and a bodily reaction at the same time
What is the evidence against the Canon bared theory
It is argued that most physiological changes occur to slowly to trigger emotional reactions that happen quickly
The somatic and autonomic responses can influence emotional experience in some cases
What is the appraisal theory?
Emotions are extracted from our appraisal to a stimulus
Emotions will vary depending on the significance of the stimulus
What is the two-factor theory of emotion?
Two psychological events required to produce an emotion
Emotions are the explanation we attach to our arousal
- Unspecified physiological/autonomic arousal
- Cognitive interpretation asked on internal/external event
What is the criticism of the two-factor theory of emotion?
Emotion can occur in the absence of arousal
What is an example of the two factor theory of emotion
People rate the opposite sex as more attractive if they have just been on a roller coaster
What are the effects of cognitive appraisal have on us
Can influence how we perceive the emotions of others
What are the different types of emotional regulation
Reframing
Suppressing
What is reframing?
Creating a different way of looking at a situation
Reframing the meaning of an event before emotional response occurs reduces negative affect
What is suppressing?
Preventing the development or expression.
Suppressing emotions after the emotional response leads to increased autonomic arousal
What effect does emotion have on cognition
It affects mood and can influence memory capacity, problem-solving, decision-making, judgements, inferences, predictions
Biases our attention and recall of particular information
Influences expectations for the future
What is the facial feedback hypothesis?
You are more likely to feel emotions that correspond to your facial features
What is the supporting evidence for the facial feedback hypothesis
There was a study and participants contracted face muscles and the autonomic response was measured participants felt the emotion they displayed but this could be due to classical conditioning
How does the limbic system play a role in emotion?
It produces and regulates emotional responses and helps us to interpret the emotions of others
What is the cingulate cortex
A part of the limbic system and is involved in emotional expression and interpreting and engaging in social behaviour
Explain Kluver-Bucy syndrome
Bilateral removal or damage to the amygdala
The main symptoms were a lack of fear, an urge to put objects in mouth, memory loss, hypersexuality, visual distractibility, placidity and emotional blunting
What is the insula cortex?
Involved in the recognition and experience of disgust
Explain the high and low road
The low road means to be fast: it is a fast subcortical pathway by the thalamus for rapid threat detection
The high road means to be sure: slower cortical path with more complex analysis
Are there any brain structures linked to just one emotion
No
What are some non-verbal expressions of emotion
Facial expressions
Posture
Gestures
Emblems (ok sign, waving, thumbs up)
Explain non-verbal leakage
Often a powerful cue that we are trying to hide an emotion
Unconscious spillover of emotions into non-verbal behaviour
What are micro expressions
Brief expressions which occur when trying to conceal emotions
Explain emotional distance
There are four levels: public social personal and intimate
What is proxemics
The study of personal space
Public level of distance?
12 ft or more
Eg. Public speaking
Social level of distance?
4-12 ft.
Eg. Conversation among strangers
Personal level of distance?
1.5-4ft
Eg. Conversations among close friends
Intimate level of distance?
0-1.5ft
Eg. Kissing and hugging
What is happiness good for?
May produce enduring physical and psychological benefits
What is the broadens and build theory?
Happiness predisposes is to think more openly which allows us to see the bigger picture
Why do happier people tend to live longer?
They tend to cope better with bad life events
What makes us happy?
Marriage Friendship Education Religion Exercise Gratitude Giving Flow
What doesn’t make us happy?
What happens to us
Money
Youth
Never being worried
What is self esteem
A persons evaluation of their worth.
What are the benefits of self esteem?
High self esteem is associated with greater initiative and persistence.
Related to positive illusions which are the tendencies to perceive ourselves more positively than others do
What is a downside to self esteem
Can be maladaptive in extreme amounts
What is positive psychology
Emphasises human strengths (resilience, coping, life satisfaction, love and happiness)
Interventions help people incorporate character strengths and virtues into daily life
