Emotional Development

What are emotions?

internal experiences (feelings) that influence our behavior and bodily functions

Physiological arousal

• the bodily changes that occur when a person experiences an emotion or is alert to a situation

• heart rate, sweating, muscle tension, breathing

Subjective feeling

• the “what it feels like” part of an emotion

• how you experience it (fear, happiness)

Valence

the positive or negative quality of an emotion

Expressive behavior

• how emotions are outwardly displayed

• facial expressions, body language

Action tendencies

• the behaviors emotions motivate you to do

• urge to act (run, hug, fight)

What emotions do?

they guide behavior, thinking, and social interactions

Survival

• fear helps avoid danger

• how emotions help humans respond to threats or opportunities to stay alive and healthy

Motivation

pushes behavior (goals)

Communication

facial expressions signal feelings

Social Coordination

the way emotions and behaviors help individuals interact and cooperate effectively with others

Mating

emotions and behaviors that help form and maintain romantic or se*ual relationships

James-Lange Theory

• body first, emotion second

• stimulus→ physiological response→ emotion

• “I am afraid because my heart is racing”

Facial Feedback Hypothesis

• facial expressions influence emotions

• ex: smiling can make you feel happier

Cannon-Bard Theory

• emotion + body happen at the same time

• stimulus→ brain→ emotion & physiological arousal

Thalamus

• the brain’s relay center that channels sensory information and contributes to emotion

• sensory relay

Hypothalamus

• brain region that controls bodily states, hormones, and basic emotional drives

• emotion + body responses

Cortex

• the brain’s outer layer that handles thinking, perception, and regulating emotions

• thinking/ interpretation

Schacter-Singer (Two-Factor Theory)

• emotion = arousal + interpretation

• step 1: physiological arousal

• step 2: interpret situation→ label emotion

Epinephrine Study

participants injected with epinephrine (adrenaline)

Placebo

“fake” treatment that can still produce real effects due to expectation

Correctly informed

knew side effects

Misinformed

wrong information

No Information (Neutral)

no explanation

What were the outcomes?

• misinformation/ no information→ used environment to label emotion

• correctly information→ less influenced

What did it show?

emotions depend on cognitive interpretation, not just arousal

Basic Emotions

• anger

• disgust

• fear

• happiness

• sadness

• surprise

Recognizing emotions in faces

• people can recognize these in faces across cultures

Developmental sequence

• Distress (Birth)

• Smile (6 weeks)

• Laughter (3-4 months)

• Anger/Fear (6-8 months)

Long lasting

a deep emotional connection that stays stable over time

Emotional connection

• bond between individuals based on shared feelings, affection, and responsiveness to each other’s emotions

Act to maintain closeness

behaviors that keep a child near their caregiver for comfort and security

Act to ensure the relationship continues

behaviors used to keep a caregiver nearby

Strange Situation by Ainsworth

It involves a series of short episodes (about 20 minutes total), including:

1. Child and caregiver are together

2. A stranger enters

3. Caregiver leaves (child is with stranger)

4. Caregiver returns (reunion)

5. Caregiver leaves again (child alone briefly)

6. Stranger returns

7. Caregiver returns again

Secure Attachment

• Upset when caregiver leaves

• Happy and easily comforted when they return

Insecure Avoidant Attachment

• Doesn’t show much distress

• Avoids caregiver on return

Insecure Resistant Attachment

• Very upset when caregiver leaves

• Not easily comforted; may resist caregiver

Insecure Disorganized Attachment

• Confused or inconsistent behavior

• May freeze, act fearful, or show no clear pattern

Stranger Anxiety (when it occurs, when are the two peaks)

• fear of strangers

• begins ~6-8 months

• two peaks:

• 1. infancy (~8-10 months)

• 2. toddlerhood

Separation Anxiety

distress when caregiver leaves

Bowlby’s Theory

children are biologically programmed to form attachments with caregivers for survival and emotional security

Secure Base

• caregiver acts as a safe base

• child explores the world but returns for comfort

Internal working model

• early attachment experiences create mental models of relationships

• these influence future trust, relationships, and emotions

Temperament

• refers to a child’s inborn patterns of emotional reactivity and self-regulation

• biologically based individual differences in how children feel and react

Thomas & Chess: NY Longitudinal Study

• a long-term study that identified different temperament types in children

Dimensions of Temperament

• Activity

• Rhythmicity

• Approach/Withdrawal

• Adaptability

• Intensity

• Threshold of Responsiveness

• Mood

• Distractibility

• Persistence

Thomas & Chess: The Three Temperament Types

• easy (~40%)

  • regular routines (sleep, eating)

  • adaptable to new situations

  • generally positive mood

• difficult (~10%)

  • irregular routines

  • intense emotional reactions

  • slow to adapt, often negative mood

• slow-to-warm-up (~15%)

  • low activity level

  • cautious in new situations

  • gradually becomes more comfortable

Easy

Difficult

Slow-to-warm-up

Thomas & Chess: Goodness of Fit

Kagan – Reactivity to novelty

High-reactive infants

Low-reactive infants

Emotion labeling

Causes of emotions

Mixed emotions

Emotion display rules