Introduction to Psychology

PSYC 101

Chapter 10: Emotion and Motivation

What Are Emotions?

Learning Objectives

• Distinguish between primary and secondary emotions.
• Compare and contrast the James-Lange, Cannon-Bard, and Schachter-Singer two-factor theories of emotion.
• Define misattribution of arousal and excitation transfer.

Definitions and Distinctions

• Emotion: An immediate, specific negative or positive response to environmental events or internal thoughts, sometimes referred to as "affect."
• Feeling: A subjective experience that is part of the emotional response.
• Mood: Diffuse, long-lasting emotional states that do not have a specific object; they influence thoughts and behaviors without abruptly interrupting ongoing activities.

Components of Emotion

• For psychologists, emotion (affect) encompasses three components:
    - Physiological Process: Such as heart rate increase or sweating.
    - Behavioral Response: Observable reactions like wide-open eyes or a dropped jaw.
    - Feeling: Mental appraisals of the situation and interpretations of bodily states (e.g., "I feel scared!").

10.1 Emotions Vary in Valence and Arousal

Primary and Secondary Emotions

• Primary Emotions: Innate, evolutionarily adaptive, and universal emotions shared across cultures, including:
    - Anger
    - Fear
    - Sadness
    - Disgust
    - Happiness
    - Surprise
    - Contempt
• Secondary Emotions: Blends of primary emotions which include:
    - Remorse
    - Guilt
    - Submission
    - Shame
    - Love
    - Bitterness
    - Jealousy

The Circumplex Model

• Circumplex Model of Emotion: Classifies emotions using two continuums:
    - Valence: Represents the positivity or negativity of the emotion.
    - Arousal: Describes the level of physiological activation, including increased brain activity or autonomic responses.
      - Examples of emotional states based on valence and arousal:
        - Feeling excited = positively valenced affect and high arousal.
        - Depression = negatively valenced affect and low arousal.

10.2 Emotions Have a Physiological Component

• Emotions trigger activation in the autonomic nervous system to prepare the body for environmental challenges.
• Research on various cultures indicated specific areas of the body are involved in feeling various emotions.

10.4 There Are Three Major Theories of Emotion

The three main theories of emotion include:

• James-Lange Theory
• Cannon-Bard Theory
• Schachter-Singer Two-Factor Theory

James-Lange Theory

• Proposed by William James and independently by Carl Lange in 1884.
• James-Lange Theory of Emotion: Emphasizes that a person's interpretation of physical changes in response to a stimulus leads to the realization of emotion.
    - Example:
      - Stimulus: A threatening grizzly bear approaching
      - Physiological Arousal: Heart pounding, trembling, sweating, running away.
      - Emotion: Fear.
• Facial Feedback Hypothesis: Suggests that facial movements can trigger emotional experiences; for instance, smiling can induce feelings of happiness.

Cannon-Bard Theory

• Proposed by Walter Cannon and Philip Bard.
• Asserts that the mind and body experience emotions independently: the mind processes emotions quickly while the body responds more slowly.
• Cannon-Bard Theory of Emotion: Claims that emotional stimuli simultaneously send information to both the cortex (for emotional experience) and the body (for physical reactions).

Schachter-Singer Two-Factor Theory

• Developed by social psychologists Stanley Schachter and Jerome Singer.
• Two-Factor Theory of Emotion: Suggests that a labeled physiological arousal leads to the experienced emotion.
    - Example:
      - Stimulus: A threatening grizzly bear approaching
      - Physiological Arousal: Heart pounding, trembling, sweating, running away
      - Label: “That is one scary bear! I’m afraid of it!”
      - Emotion: Fear.
• Misattribution of Arousal: Occurs when individuals incorrectly identify the source of their emotional arousal.
• Excitation Transfer: A related concept where residual physiological arousal from one stimulus is misattributed to another.

How Are Emotions Adaptive?

Learning Objectives

• Review research on cross-cultural universality of emotional expressions.
• Define display rules.
• Discuss the interpersonal functions of guilt and embarrassment.

Facial Expressions Communicate Emotion

• Charles Darwin posited that emotional expressiveness is adaptive, as it communicates feelings to others.
• Dunlap's Research: Demonstrated that facial mouth expressions are more indicative of positive or negative feelings than eye expressions.
• Emotional expressions can alter in interpretation depending on context.

Facial Expressions Across Cultures

• Darwin argued for the universality of facial expressions.
• Paul Ekman’s hypothesis: the meanings of facial expressions are socially learned, and thus culturally variable.
    - Ekman’s findings: Identical emotions communicated through facial expressions across cultures generally demonstrate agreement.
    - Cultural Studies: Conducted across Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Japan, and the United States identified significant cross-cultural recognition for some emotions, particularly happiness, but less so for fear and disgust.
  

Ekman’s Study of Facial Expressions

1. Participants in New Guinea were photographed displaying specific emotions (e.g., disgust toward a rotting pig).
2. People from different cultures were tasked to identify those emotions.
   

Results

• Strong cross-cultural agreement on meanings of facial expressions.
• Recognition of facial expressions may be biologically based rather than socially learned.

Universality of Emotions

• Evidence suggests that emotions display similarities across cultures, as children recognize signs of pride regardless of environmental exposure.

Display Rules

• Display Rules: Culturally learned norms dictating appropriate emotional expressions in specific situations.
    - Help explain cultural stereotypes and variations in emotional expression recognition within versus between cultures.
    - Display rules can vary based on gender identity, sexuality, and political affiliation.
  

What is Motivation?

Learning Objectives

• Distinguish among needs, drives, and motivation.
• Describe Maslow’s need hierarchy.
• Describe the Yerkes-Dodson law.
• Distinguish between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation.

Definitions of Motivation

• General theories emphasize four essential qualities of motivational states:
    - Energizing: Motivational states activate behaviors.
    - Directive: They guide behaviors toward specific goals or needs.
    - Persistent: Help organisms continue behaviors until goals are achieved.
    - Differing Strength: The intensity of motivation can vary based on internal and external factors.
• Motivation: A complex process that energizes, guides, and maintains behavior towards a goal.

10.8 Drives Motivate the Satisfaction of Needs

Needs and Drive

• Need: A state of biological, social, or psychological deficiency (e.g., necessity for air, food, water).
• Needs can also be social (e.g., need for companionship) and psychological (e.g., need for achievement).

Maslow’s Need Hierarchy

• Maslow’s arrangement of needs emphasizes basic survival needs must be fulfilled before higher-level needs can be satisfied.

Maslow’s Hierarchy Levels:

1. Physiological Needs: Hunger, thirst, warmth, air, sleep.
2. Safety Needs: Security, protection, freedom from threats.
3. Belonging and Love Needs: Acceptance, friendship.
4. Esteem Needs: Good self-opinion, accomplishments, reputation.
5. Self-Actualization Needs: Achieving personal potential and aspirations.

Drive Reduction and Homeostasis

• Drive: A psychological state that creates arousal to motivate an organism to satisfy a need.
• Homeostasis: The body's tendency to maintain equilibrium.

Drive Increase and Behavior

• Hull proposed that deprivation of needs increases drives in proportion to the deprivation level.
• Behaviors satisfying needs are reinforced and more likely to recur over time, leading to habitual behaviors.

Arousal and Drive

• Yerkes-Dodson Law: Performance on challenging tasks improves with arousal up to a moderate level; too much additional arousal can impair performance.
    - Example: Moderate anxiety often optimizes exam performance, while too little or excessive anxiety can detract from thinking ability.

10.9 People Are Motivated by Incentives

Incentives vs Drives

• While drives push individuals to reduce arousal, incentives pull individuals towards external goals or objects.
• Incentives: External factors that motivate behavior, sometimes influenced by subliminal messages or advertising.

Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation

• Extrinsic Motivation: Drives behavior based on external goals (e.g., working for a paycheck).
• Intrinsic Motivation: Drives behavior due to the inherent value or pleasure in the activity itself (e.g., reading for enjoyment).

Rewards Can Undermine Intrinsic Motives

• Evidence shows that extrinsic rewards can diminish intrinsic motivations.
• Self-Determination Theory: People are motivated by needs for competence, relatedness, and autonomy; external rewards can compromise feelings of self-direction and enjoyment.
• Self-Perception Theory: Individuals often infer their own motivations based on the most sensible rationale, indicating rewarding someone for engaging in an activity might supplant their intrinsic motivation with an external interpretation.