Module 4.8a Emotion: Theories and Physiology of Emotion
Learning Targets
4.8-1 Explain how arousal, expressive behavior, and cognition interact in emotion.
4.8-2 Explain whether we can experience emotions without consciously interpreting and labeling them.
4.8-3 Identify some of the basic emotions.
4.8-4 Explain the link between emotional arousal and the autonomic nervous system.
4.8-5 Explain how emotions activate different physiological and brain-pattern responses.
Introduction to Emotion
Motivated behavior is often connected to powerful emotions.
Personal anecdote: A memory of panicwhen the author's toddler went missing in a store illustrates the visceral nature of emotional experience.
Emotions can be subjective but are also very real.
Researcher Lisa Feldman Barrett emphasizes that emotional experiences are strong and tangible (Barrett, 2012, 2013).
Emotions are viewed as adaptive responses ensuring behavior beneficial for survival (Frans de Waal, 2019).
Examples of emotions and their roles:
Anger can lead to concessions.
Gratitude strengthens relationships.
Pride motivates hard work.
Fear can inspire action or self-preservation.
In moments of challenge, emotions direct focus and energize efforts (Cyders & Smith, 2008).
Interaction of Arousal, Behavior, and Cognition
4.8-1: Emotion: Arousal, Behavior, and Cognition
Emotions, or affect, involve a complex interaction of:
Bodily arousal (e.g., heart pounding).
Expressive behaviors (e.g., quickened pace).
Conscious experience (e.g., interpreting the situation).
Key Questions in Emotional Psychology
A chicken-and-egg debate: Is bodily arousal a precursor or result of emotional feelings?
Example: Did noticing a racing heart come before feeling terror, or vice versa?
Cognition and feeling interaction: Does cognition precede emotion?
Example: Did thinking of a kidnapping threat trigger fear?
Early Theories of Emotion
James-Lange Theory:
Proposed by William James and Carl Lange.
States emotions result from noticing bodily responses.
Example: "We feel sorry because we cry; we feel angry because we strike."
Cannon-Bard Theory:
Proposed by Walter Cannon and later Philip Bard.
Argues emotions and physiological responses occur simultaneously and independently.
Example: Heart racing happens at the same time as subjective fear.
Spillover Effect:
Arousal from one event can influence emotional responses to another.
The Role of Cognition in Emotion
4.8-2: Arousal + Label = Emotion
Stanley Schachter and Jerome Singer’s two-factor theory posits that emotion arises from a combination of physiological arousal and cognitive appraisal of the situation.
Example of spillover effect experiment with college men injected with epinephrine.
If told feelings were due to the drug, emotional reactions were muted; if told they were for eyesight, emotions mirrored the emotional state of accomplices present.
Importance: Arousal fuels emotion; cognition channels the interpretation of that feeling.
Importance of Cognitive Appraisal
Robert Zajonc’s Perspective: Proposed that some emotional responses occur immediately, before or without conscious interpretation.
Example: Liking something without understanding the reason or context.
Automatic Emotional Responses:
Emotional reactions can occur via automatic processes or routes in the brain that bypass deliberate cognition (low road vs. high road).
The Low Road: Simple emotions bypass the cortex and go directly to the amygdala, producing rapid reactions (for fear, disgust).
The High Road: More complex emotions are processed by the cortex before an emotional response triggers (e.g., deep analysis of a threat).
The Basic Emotions
4.8-3: Identification of Basic Emotions
Most emotion scientists identify the following as basic human emotions:
Anger
Fear
Disgust
Sadness
Happiness
Carroll Izard’s expanded list includes more emotions: joy, interest-excitement, surprise, contempt, shame, and guilt.
Some believe there are as many as 28 distinct emotions.
Emotional Arousal and the Autonomic Nervous System
4.8-4: Link Between Emotional Arousal and the Autonomic Nervous System
Emotional arousal is regulated by the autonomic nervous system, which includes two divisions:
Sympathetic Division: Mobilizes the body for action (i.e., fight or flight).
Parasympathetic Division: Calms the body once the crisis passes.
Process during crisis:
Triggers release of stress hormones (epinephrine and norepinephrine).
Prepares body for action: increases heart rate, dilates pupils, limits non-essential functions (like digestion).
Physiological and Brain Responses to Emotion
4.8-5: Activation of Physiological Responses
Emotional experiences elicit specific physiological responses that vary across emotions, although some responses overlap (e.g., increased perspiration and heart rate).
Studies show that different emotions can share common biological signatures.
Key Studies:
Grief can show similar reactions to fear (C.S. Lewis).
The insula activates during various negative emotions and can serve multiple emotional functions.
Neuroimaging reveals distinct areas activated for different emotions, such as the amygdala's role in fear responses compared to others.
Summary Table of Emotion Theories
Theorist | Explanation of Emotions | Example |
|---|---|---|
James; Lange | Emotions arise from awareness of our bodily responses. | Heart races after threat, then fear felt. |
Cannon; Bard | Bodily responses and emotional experience occur simultaneously. | Heart races and fear is felt at the same time. |
Schachter; Singer | Two-factor theory: physical arousal + conscious cognitive label. | Arousal interpreted as fear vs excitement depending on the context. |
Zajonc; LeDoux | Some responses occur instantly, without conscious appraisal. | Startled by a sound before labeling it a threat. |
Lazarus | Cognitive appraisal defines emotion, sometimes without awareness. | Sound of bushes appraised as threat versus harmless. |
Exam Preparation Section
Review Questions
4.8-1: Interaction of arousal, behavior, and cognition in emotion.
4.8-2: Importance of conscious interpretation in emotions.
4.8-3: Identification of basic emotions and their significance.
4.8-4: Functional role of the autonomic nervous system in emotional arousal.
4.8-5: Understanding differences in physiological and brain responses to emotions.
AP® Practice Multiple Choice Questions
Johari noticed he was having an emotional reaction. What responses did he experience?
a. Bodily arousal and expressive behaviors only
b. Expressive behaviors and conscious experience only
c. Bodily arousal, expressive behaviors, and conscious experience
d. Bodily arousal and conscious experience only
Kellen started his paper on emotion theories with a question about emotional responses. What question did he consider?
a. Does cognition always come before emotion?
b. Is nature or nurture more important in emotional responses?
c. Which division of the nervous system is activated first in an emotional response?
d. What is the evolutionary purpose of emotions?
Amanda felt fear, which traveled on the "low road" neural pathway. What is true?
a. Information travels directly from the thalamus to the amygdala.
b. The emotional response happens more slowly than via the "high road."
c. This pathway is more likely utilized for complex feelings.
d. This pathway passes through the brain's cortex.
Nellie believes that she gets sweaty and nervous at the same moment when giving a speech. What research challenges this belief?
a. Research indicates that bodily arousal precedes subjective experience of emotions.
b. Research indicates that bodily arousal and subjective experience of emotions are not entirely independent.
c. Research shows that bodily arousal must be interpreted before emotional experience.
Wanda was dancing at a concert. What contributed to her feeling ecstatic?
a. Bodily arousal.
b. The spillover effect.
c. Valence.
d. Lie detection.