CHAPTER 6 - Emotion & Affect

Emotion

Conscious, evaluative reaction to a specific event.

Mood

A general feeling state not linked to any specific event.

Affect

An automatic, nonconscious response to an event.

Emotional Intelligence

The ability to perceive, access, generate, understand, and regulate emotions.

Narcissism

Excessive self-centeredness.

Psychopathy

Lack of empathy and guilt, impulsivity.

Machiavellianism

Manipulation, deceit, doing whatever it takes to get what you want.

Sadism

Deriving pleasure from the pain of others.

Feedback System

Emotions provide feedback on goals and actions.

Promote Belongingness

Emotions help us feel accepted in social groups.

Communicate Social Information

Emotional expressions convey messages to others.

Guide Thinking and Learning

Emotions influence our decision-making and cognitive processes.

Affect-as-Information Hypothesis

If you feel good about something, it must be good.

Risk-as-Feelings Hypothesis

People rely on emotional responses to evaluate risks versus rewards.

Positive Emotions

Fewer and less differentiated than negative emotions, they counteract negative emotions.

Broaden-and-Build Theory

Positive emotions aid in resource building: intellectual, physical, social, and psychological.

Gender Differences in Emotion

Daily emotional experiences are similar for men and women, with women reporting emotions more readily.

Affective Forecasting

Predicting how you'll feel in the future.

Universal Emotions

Six basic emotions: Anger, Fear, Sadness, Happiness, Disgust, Surprise.

Guilt

Occurs when someone believes they've acted wrongly.

Functions of Guilt

Motivates good actions, prevents negative actions, signals valence for relationships.

Shame

A negative feeling that affects one’s entire sense of self.

Guilt: 'I did a bad thing.' Shame: 'I am a bad person’

Difference between Guilt and Shame

Study - Becker et al. (2006)

Participants categorized faces by expressions faster when associated with stronger emotions.

Old View of Emotion

Emotions are bidimensional based on arousal and valence.

New View of Emotion

Emotions are domain-specific and motivated by specific situations.

Study - Maner et al. (2008)

Participants primed with love spent less time looking at attractive same sex faces.

Study - White et al. (1981)

Misattribution of arousal influenced men's perception of attractiveness.

Emotion Regulation Strategies

Activities that generate good feelings, distract from problems, or seek social support.

Study - Tamir et al. (2008)

Emotions affect preferences and performance in confrontational versus non-confrontational contexts.