Emotion Theory and Affective Processes — Comprehensive Notes
Definition and Components of Emotion
Emotion is defined (for this course) as an evaluative response to a situation. The response typically involves physiological arousal, and it also includes a subjective experience (how it feels) and behavioral expressions (such as shock or jumping back).
Biochemical changes in the body both give rise to and result from different emotions. Examples of physiological changes include the heart beating faster, faster breathing, and sweaty palms.
The emotional experience is made up of three components: physiological arousal, subjective experience, and behavioral expressions.
Basic/Universal Emotions
Emotions can be considered as core/basic building blocks; many theories treat them as universal across humans, similar to primary colors in perception where blends create other emotions.
Most classifications posit between and basic emotions.
The core universal emotions typically listed by many theories are: anger, fear, happiness, sadness, and disgust. Some theories also include other putative basics such as surprise, contempt, interest, shame, guilt, joy, and anticipation, but these are not universally accepted as basic.
Ekman’s cross-cultural study: participants from around the world were shown photographs of faces and asked to identify the emotion displayed.
Found six common emotions across cultures: happiness, fear, disgust, anger, sadness, and surprise.
He argued that these six expressions would be correctly identified as the same emotion in any culture, i.e., they are universal.
Conclusion: the six are the core set observed across diverse populations, with the first five often considered core and surprise added as the sixth in his findings.
The Two-Component Model of Emotion
Emotional experience consists of two parts:
Physiological arousal: bodily changes that occur with emotion (e.g., increased heart rate, muscle tension, sweating).
Subjective experience: the actual felt emotion, the conscious sense of what it is like.
Behaviorally observable expressions (e.g., facial expressions, actions) are another component often discussed alongside arousal and experience.
The Sequencing Theories of Emotion (Ordering of Components)
A key question in emotion theory: what comes first, the subjective feeling or the physiological arousal?
Common-sense view (intuitive): see a bear -> feel fear -> arousal (e.g., trembling). The sequence is emotion first, then physiological response, e.g., I tremble because I am afraid.
James-Lange (and related classic view by Lang): the physiological arousal occurs first, and the emotion follows from that arousal. Example: see a bear -> tremble -> I feel afraid; I feel afraid because I tremble.
Cannon-Bard: the physiological arousal and the subjective emotional experience occur simultaneously and independently after the brain processes the stimulus.
Buchanan and Bard: the brain processes the stimulus such that both arousal and emotion emerge concurrently (simultaneous onset).
Schachter & Singer Two-Factor Theory (Cognitive Appraisal)
Core idea: physiological arousal is nonspecific; what makes it an emotion is the cognitive label we attach to that arousal based on the context.
Mechanism: after arousal occurs, we appraise the situation to determine what emotion is appropriate, and we label the arousal accordingly.
Bear scenario (example from lecture): we tremble in response to the bear, then cognitively label the trembling as fear because the bear is scary.
Different context example: if about to meet a famous celebrity, the same trembling could be labeled as excitement rather than fear.
So, in the Schachter-Singer model, cognitive appraisal is essential to map the nonspecific arousal onto a specific emotion.
Cognitive Appraisal in Detail
The cognitive appraisal process uses context, goals, and expectations to determine which emotion fits the situation.
The same physiological state can be interpreted as different emotions depending on the environment and interpretive cues (e.g., trembling could reflect fear or excitement).
Therefore, physiological arousal alone does not determine the exact emotion; interpretation of the situation is necessary.
Subjective Experience and Emotional Intensity
Subjective experience varies in intensity along a continuum (mood-like experiences to intense emotions).
Examples of intensity levels for happiness: mild contentment → joy → euphoria.
Individual differences in emotional intensity can be described by a bell-curve distribution; some people experience emotions very intensely, others much less so.
Extreme intensity can be associated with severe personality or affective disorders; low intensity can correspond to indifference.
Alexithymia: a condition characterized by difficulty recognizing and understanding one's own feelings.
Positive Affect and Negative Affect
Positive affect: pleasant emotions that drive approach and pleasure-seeking; we seek out experiences that enhance positive feelings.
Negative affect: unpleasant emotions that drive avoidance and withdrawal; we seek to escape situations that elicit negative feelings.
Emotions are not perfectly isolated to one side of the affect spectrum; there is often correlation between negative emotions (e.g., sadness with fear or guilt) and similar patterns of comorbidity (e.g., clinical depression with generalized anxiety disorders).
Anger is a special case: it can have both negative and sometimes positive components. For example, anger can be satisfying or motivating in certain contexts (e.g., reacting to provocative stimuli), even though it is often perceived as unpleasant.
Social Disclosure and Health Implications
Disclosing negative emotions to others can have positive health and well-being outcomes.
Penny Baker et al. reported that Holocaust survivors who talked about their experiences for two hours showed better health one year later, with more disclosure linked to improvements in health.
Another study by Kelly and colleagues found that patients with painful arthritis who talked about stressful events (especially unpleasant emotions) reported better emotional and physical health after about three months, and more disclosure correlated with reduced joint pain over three months.
Practical implications: expressing and processing negative emotions through supportive disclosure can be beneficial for both emotional and physical health; potential ethical considerations include privacy and the social environment’s safety for disclosure.
Summary of Key Takeaways
Emotions are evaluative responses to situations that involve physical arousal, subjective experience, and behavioral expressions.
Ekman’s cross-cultural research supports a universal core of facially expressed emotions (six: happiness, fear, disgust, anger, sadness, surprise), with core five commonly cited (anger, fear, happiness, sadness, disgust) and variability on including additional emotions by different theories.
Positive affect drives approach and pleasure-seeking; negative affect drives avoidance and withdrawal; these affects are often correlated across emotions and can co-occur in disorders (comorbidity).
Anger is not purely negative; it can have rewarding or satisfying aspects in certain contexts, complicating simple affect-based categorization.
Self-disclosure of negative emotions can enhance psychological and physical health, as evidenced by research on Holocaust survivors and arthritis patients.
The Schachter-Singer two-factor theory emphasizes the role of cognitive appraisal in labeling arousal; arousal is not uniquely tied to a single emotion, and context matters for labeling.
The order in which components occur (arousal vs. emotion) has been debated: classic reflexive accounts (James-Lange) vs. simultaneous processing (Cannon-Bard) vs. cognitive appraisal-driven labeling (Schachter-Singer).
Subtle individual differences in emotional intensity (and in recognizing one’s own feelings) have practical implications for mental health, relationships, and clinical practice.
These concepts inform everyday understanding of emotion, therapeutic approaches, and considerations for health outcomes and well-being.
Note on terminology and references from the transcript
Core universal emotions highlighted: anger, fear, happiness, sadness, disgust; with possible addition of surprise depending on theory.
Ekman’s cross-cultural findings are cited as identifying six universal facial expressions.
The discussed studies involve: Holocaust survivors (disclosure for two hours) and arthritis patients (disclosure of stressful events; three months follow-up).
The discussion distinguishes positive vs negative affect, their behavioral implications, and the particular complexity of anger.
The content includes cognitive appraisal as a central mechanism in emotion labeling.