Lecture 1 Flashcards
What are the 3 ways to refer to emotions? Give example how they work.
- Phenomenal experience
- Physiological pattern
- Verbal+nonverbal expressions
Example: We’re on a hike -> all of a sudden I see a snake/viper crowling on the side
1. Experience of fear that my dog will see it
2. SNS: pupils enlarge, heart rate increases
3. I scream “Max!” to get his attention
How would you simply define emotions?
= distinct state of the mind, displayed early in life
- But sometimes expressions may not be as “distinct” -> more ambiguous
- Subtle differences among subjects
What could be considered within the 6 basic emotions?
Which muscles do we mainly use for emotional expressions?
Are emotions universal? Argue in the same way as research searched for this answer (first study -> replication -> subsequent study + conclusion).
- Ekman study: showed pictures of facial expressions (6 e.) to people living in tribes -> “asked” them to pick a picture that best suited the story
=> emotions are universal across cultures
-> Validity of this research questions -> actually there was a low agreement in emotions classification
- BUT they used pictures of Caucasian faces
- There may be some cultural differences that add to the noise in emotional interpretation
=> Emotions seem to be universal to a limited degree
- Research: minority groups were able to recognize expressions of majority due to being exposed to them
Do you remember the conclusion of research where Japanese and Americans watched a stressful movie alone or with someone?
Findings:
=> Japanese adapted their expressions to HIDE negative emotions
- e. don’t have to reflect true feelings
=> Japanese were more likely to show surprise than Americans
What’s the difference in positive x negative emotions among Americans or Japanese?
- Americans find it important to show more positive and less negative emotions
- Japanese are going for a balance - when someone had more positive e. they also had more negative e.
What research showed that Japanese pay more attention to socially relevant context/emotions?
Procedure: Japanese/Americans looked at a picture with a central figure and other people standing around -> central had either congruent or incongruent e. to the others -> p. asked to talk about the picture
Finding:
=> Japanese made more statements about the contextual/relationship info
Do different cultures or animals display the same emotions?
Cultures
- yes, but there may be some additional relevant to their context
- Kitsune = being possessed by a fox, affectionate mood
Animals
- yes, seem to sometimes display similar emotional expressions
What 3 principles did Darwin propose regarding e.?
- Principle of serviceable associated habits
- e. must have served an evolutionary purpose (but not anymore necessarily)
- Principle of antithesis = every e. must have its counterpart
- Principle of expressive habits through nervous system = distinct reactions by the brain
What evidence do we have for evolutionary purpose of e. (principle 1)?
- Some emotions may alter our body to enable us to act accordingly
- E.g. disgust
- eyes closed, eyebrows down, nasal path narrowed => protection against the environment - E.g. fear
- eyes opened, eye brows up, airways wider => fight or flight
What evidence do we have for principleof anti-thesis?
- Studies in which they recorded how do the muscles move during expressions i.e. drew an arrow into the direction of muscle movement
=> some faces did show opposite properties
Why do we measure emotions?
- To diagnose mental disorders
- To infer well-being
- For marketing - is this product good or bad?
- Better understand emotions - in other species, cultures, ages
How could we (in short) measure emotions (only 4 general approaches)?
- Questionnaires
- “How do you feel when…?
- Introspection
- “Indicate which areas of the body are activated or deactivated when you feel …”
- Psychological/Cognitive tests
- E.g. Emotional Stroop task
- Physiology
- E.g. pupilometry, heart rate variability, skin conductance
How do emotions work according to James and Lange?
= A phenomenal experience that derives from a physiological reaction to a stimulus
- Both independently came up with the idea
- James focused on conscious experience of emotions
- Lange made James’s theory testable
-> Agreed that if we were to remove the physiological reaction there will be no conscious experience of e.
How would we show that “changes in body alters e.”?
Procedure: P. asked to hold an object (+other instructions) in their mouth in a specific way -> measured their emotions
Finding:
=> The emotion felt depended on the instructions given
How would we show that “Substance induces bodily changes alter emotions and related neuronal activity”?
Procedure: P. asked to imitate emotions based on pictures -> measure their amygdala activity
- people with and witout botox
Finding:
=> Intensity of brow lowering (ability to imitate the emotions) correlated with amygdala activity
Do we have evidence for Canon’s claim:
- Separating body from CNS dos not alter e. behavior in animals
- Patients with spinal cord lesions claim that e.g. “anger doesn’t have the heat to it that it used to have”
- Research observed decrease in emotionality of anger and fear with greater level of spinal cord lesions
=> Claim is FALSE
Do we have evidence for Canon’s claim:
- Relation between body and e. isn’t 1:1?
Procedure: Watch video of a man displaying emotional expressions -> produce the same emotion -> measured heart rate and temperature changes
Findings:
=> negative e. = high HR
=> positive e. = low HR
=> temperature = completaly different pattern
=> Claim is somewhat TRUE
What would be a better way to investigate emotions than categorizing them into basic e.?
= making dimensions
- Procedure: ask p. to group together images of people who feel alike -> rate on similarity (subjective) -> calculate dimensions (objective)
What were the emotional dimensions of Roll?
- Arousal (+ high, - low)
- Valence (+ positive, - negative)
- Goals (+ reward, - punishment)
- Active x passive (+ delivery, - omission)
