Notes: Emotions, Broaden‑Build Theory, and PPIs

Emotion and Memory: Multi‑Component, Dynamic Processes

• Emotions are a multi‑component, dynamic process, not just a single feeling state. They unfold over time and are shaped by context and history.
• Working definition highlights: brief, context‑driven episodes (seconds to minutes) initiated by meaning assessments about current circumstances, informed by past experiences and individual differences.
• Emotions trigger self‑sustaining processes: once an emotion arises, it tends to color how you perceive the next moment (a lens that can either narrow or broaden perspective).
• Memory and emotions are tightly linked: you can recall past emotions with vivid detail and re‑experience them, whereas pain memories may not bring back the same sensation. This is used as a teaching tool in the class to illustrate how reliving emotion can heighten awareness of its components.
• Reliving an emotion exercise (guided):
  • Recall a recent frustrating experience: what happened, who was with you, and where you were.
  • Rebuild the scene and let the feeling of frustration grow briefly.
  • Probe bodily sensations (how does it feel in your body?), facial feelings (how does your face feel?), and behavioral impulses (what do you want to do?).
  • Create a word cloud of sensations; examples from the session included: Tense, hot, angry, fists, achy, heavy, clenched jaw.
  • Then shift to a pleasant memory and relive it: how did it feel in your body and face, and what did you want to do? Examples included calm, lighter, energized, giddy, loose; actions like smile, hug, laugh, be around people.
• Components of emotion (the scientific lens):
  • Bodily changes: heart rate, sweat gland activity (observable as sweaty or light perceptions).
  • Vocal changes: pitch and voice quality convey arousal and valence.
  • Facial muscular changes: more precise than the term “facial expression”; describes muscle activity and movement in the face.
  • Posture and body movement: e.g., sadness/ashamedness linked with closed posture and narrowed gaze; upbeat emotions linked with open, expansive movement.
• Thought‑action tendency vs. thought action repertoire:
  • Thought action repertoire is the broader term for how thinking during emotions translates into action tendencies.
  • For positive emotions, there is a widening of perspectives and opportunities (broadening), whereas negative emotions tend to narrow options (specific action tendencies).
  • The term “specific action tendency” is a subset of the broader repertoire and is not sufficient to capture positive emotions' broadening effects.
• Subjective feeling states are important but not the sole feature of emotion:
  • Emotions are multi‑component processes; subjective experience is just one facet among bodily, cognitive, and action implications.
  • The distinction between processes (dynamic unfolding) and states (static snapshot) is used to emphasize that emotions develop and shift over time.
• Positive psychology view: emotions as engines
  • Positive emotions function as engines driving life satisfaction, meaning in life, and quality of relationships, and support engagement, flow, and long‑term growth.
  • This perspective emphasizes why understanding what counts as an emotion matters for well‑being.

How Emotions Are Studied: Multidimensional Evidence

• Bodily changes, vocal changes, facial muscular changes, and postural changes are tracked to understand emotion.
• Brain and perceptual findings related to positive emotions:
  • Positive emotions broaden perceptual encoding and information processing, expanding attention and awareness.
  • Brain imaging studies show that after positive stimuli (e.g., puppies, money, cake), there is increased activity in regions tied to faces vs. places processing, suggesting broadened attention to incoming information.
  • The parahippocampal place area (PPA) shows enhanced activity with positive affect, indicating broader environmental encoding.
  • Fusiform face area (FFA) and related face processing can be influenced by mood, reflecting broadened perceptual scope during positive states.
• Consequences of broadened perception:
  • Increased creativity and flexible problem solving.
  • Greater openness to options and social information, supporting more diverse responses.
  • Physical embodiment: positive emotions influence how we move and express ourselves; seated or walking postures shift with the emotion and can feedback to mood.
  • The idea of “fake it till you make it” has caveats: genuine, lasting benefits require a move from surface expressions to authentic emotional experience.
• Broadening vs. Building (Broaden‑Build Theory): two facets with different time scales
  • Broadening (short‑term): expands the momentary scope of attention and cognition; analogy: a water lily opening to sunlight; effects dissipate as the emotion subsides, returning to baseline.
  • Building (long‑term): accumulates enduring resources (friendships, resilience, physical fitness); the benefit accrues over months/years and contributes to better life outcomes.
  • Evidence of build effects includes longitudinal data on personal resources and life outcomes;
  • Daily activities that cultivate positive emotion lead to greater life satisfaction and reduced depressive symptoms, with resources mediating these effects.
• Biological and neural markers of build effects:
  • Heart rate variability (HRV) increases, reflecting greater biological flexibility and resilience.
  • Enduring biomarkers in brain and physiology shift in line with positive emotional experiences and practices (e.g., meditation to generate positive emotions).
• Analogy and framing for long‑term growth:
  • Sunflower (heliotropic) analogy: sunflowers turn toward light to maximize nutrient uptake; similarly, positive emotions feed a chain of growth and resource accumulation.
• Evidence synthesis: broadening is observable across domains (visual, cognitive, social, physical), while building is demonstrated through resource development and health indicators.

Asymmetries Between Negative and Positive Emotions

• Negativity bias: bad events have stronger impact than good ones; negative information captures attention more readily and can derail mood.
• Positivity offset: in mentally healthy individuals, good things occur more often than bad, but their impact is often subtler; thus positive moments can go unnoticed unless attention is directed to them.
• Implications for everyday life and intervention:
  • Positive emotions broaden open-mindedness and creativity, enhancing problem solving and growth trajectories.
  • Negative emotions tend to promote crisis management and survival focus, often narrowing options.
  • The fit of an emotion to the context matters: what’s adaptive depends on whether the emotion aligns with current circumstances.
  • Clinging to past baggage or past emotional states can reduce present functioning; adaptive regulation depends on situational fit.

First Major Theory of the Module: Broaden‑Build Theory (BBT)

• Core claim: positive emotions fundamentally alter how the brain takes in new information, with consequences for growth and resource development.
• Two components, distinct but interrelated:
  • Broaden (short‑term): expands cognitive and perceptual scope; leads to more options and creative thinking.
  • Build (long‑term): builds durable resources (social, physical, intellectual) that promote well‑being and resilience.
• Practical implications:
  • Positive emotions lay the groundwork for ongoing sequences of positive experiences and growth, creating a positive cycle.
  • A daily “diet” of small, lasting positive experiences is analogous to eating fruits and vegetables for long‑term health.
• Key empirical strands:
  • Neuroimaging and perceptual tasks show broadened processing under positive mood states.
  • Behavioral and cognitive data link positive affect to increased creativity and flexible problem solving.
  • Physiological measures (e.g., HRV) and longitudinal studies support build effects.
• Important caveats and mechanisms:
  • The broaden effect is not just a passive widening; it enables more expansive thinking about possible actions and social connections.
  • Build effects depend on sustained engagement with positive emotional experiences or practices (e.g., daily brief uplifts, mindfulness or meditation).

Positive Emotions, Context, and Well‑Being: Context Matters

• Positive vs negative emotions: not inherently good or bad; their adaptiveness depends on fit to the situation.
• Contextual appraisal: how you interpret a situation shapes whether the emotional response is helpful.
• Emotions as lenses that color subsequent perception and action in line with the current context.
• The role of positive emotions in real‑world functioning: creativity, social bonding, resilience, and ongoing growth.

Positive Psychology Interventions (PPIs) and Implementation Intentions

• Intention–behavior gap: people often intend to engage in beneficial behaviors but fail to start or stay on track.
• Scholar and theory reference: Pascal Sheeran; focus on self‑regulation and the gap between intention and action.
• Implementation intentions as a practical tool:
  • Structure: If [situation], then [behavior], with vivid, concrete details and a clear imagery cue.
  • The plan aligns automatic brain processes with explicit action in predictable contexts (e.g., in line, I will recall the PPI and do it).
  • Mechanism: guides the brain’s autopilot by pre‑programming responses to specific situations.
• Concrete UK contraception study (example of implementation intentions):
  • Randomized assignment to receive a prompt asking where, when, and how they would use contraception.
  • Outcome: 43% fewer pregnancies in the intervention condition, compared to controls.
  • Measurement advantage: self‑reported intentions validated by objective outcomes.
• General takeaway: implementation intentions are effective when the “if” clause is vivid and concrete and the imagined behavior is well defined in a scenario.
• Personal anecdote: common example of an implementation intention for driving safety:
  • If I feel my hand reaching for my phone, I will grab my phone and throw it in the back seat.
  • This reduces temptations by removing the cue from immediate reach.

The Savior: Savoring Pleasant Experiences (PPI) – First Practice

• What is savoring? A structured practice to enhance the duration and intensity of positive experiences.
• Three modalities of savoring:
  • Savoring in the moment: prolong the positive experience as you are experiencing it (e.g., chocolate slowly, enjoyed mindfully).
  • Savoring past experiences (reminiscing): relive a happy memory, focusing on what happened, how you felt, how you behaved; share it to amplify the feeling.
  • Savoring future experiences (anticipation): think ahead to a good upcoming event and savor the expectation.
• Nuanced guidance for savoring:
  • Don’t over‑analyze positive experiences; analysis can dampen the positive experience (the occupational hazard of a scientist who studies positive emotion).
  • Use light, mindful attention and a “light mental touch” to savor without killing the mood.
  • Choose a slow, sensory pace (half speed) to align mental pace with bodily pace.
• Practical implementation: savoring requires concrete steps and sometimes a plan; invite peers to share experiences and plans.
• Examples from peers (peer testimonials):
  • Example 1: I focused on savoring during in‑the‑moment laughter with housemates; used an if–then plan to cue savoring when laughter occurs.
  • Example 2: Walking to a 9 AM class, even in a less ideal moment, practiced savoring the moment and experienced calm and peace.
• Class activity: participants propose where, when, and how to enact savoring via a poll (If ____, then _____; include vivid imagery).
• Practical tips from class discussion:
  • Put the phone away or in another room to reduce distraction and allow cognitive capacity to remain cognizant of savoring.
  • Use everyday activities (walking to campus, observing leaves) as opportunities to savor.
• Reflection on reading access: some students encountered paywalls or abstract access; the instructor emphasizes module structure and available readings.

Practical and Course Logistics Notes

• Nine modules are planned in the course; students should consult the module readings under the relevant sections.
• Poll Everywhere and LCC/LLC integrations are used for quick feedback and to collect ideas from students (e.g., the savoring plan submissions).
• The course emphasizes real‑world relevance of positive psychology concepts (e.g., everyday PPIs, long‑term well‑being, and practical strategies).
• If you miss a Thursday session, there are opportunities to catch up with optional materials and instructor contact (
  email guidance encouraged).
• Reading access variations: some students may experience access issues to readings; check the syllabus and module links for alternatives.

Quick Reference: Key Terms and Concepts

• Emotion: brief, context‑driven, multi‑component process lasting seconds to minutes; initiated by meaning assessments and past experiences.
• Broaden‑Build Theory (BBT): positive emotions broaden momentary thought–action repertoires and build enduring personal resources over time.
• Broaden: temporary widening of attention, cognition, and perception under positive emotion.
• Build: accrual of resources (relationships, resilience, health) over time due to positive emotional experiences.
• Thought‑action repertoire: the range of possible actions people consider when experiencing emotions.
• Specific action tendency: a narrower subset of action tendencies that can occur with negative emotions.
• Negative vs. positive asymmetries:
  • Negativity bias: bad things grab attention more than good things.
  • Positivity offset: generally, good things occur more often in daily life; baseline positivity can support well‑being.
• Implementation intentions: concrete, if–then plans that guide automatic behavior in specific situations.
• Savoring: deliberate, mindful prolonging of positive experiences through sensory engagement, reliving, or anticipation.
• HRV: heart rate variability; a biomarker linked to flexibility and resilience.
• PPA: parahippocampal place area (brain region associated with scene/place processing).
• FFA: fusiform face area (brain region associated with face processing).
• Helotropic (sunflower analogy): positive emotions draw attention toward resources and growth, akin to sunflowers turning toward light.

Key Takeaways for Study

• Emotions are multi‑component, contextually meaningful, and dynamic; they shape how you experience upcoming moments.
• Positive emotions broaden thinking and perception in the short term and build durable resources in the long term.
• Negative emotions are stronger in attention capture but may be less predictive of long‑term growth than positive emotions in healthy contexts.
• PPIs like savoring and implementation intentions are practical tools to translate theory into daily behavior and improved well‑being.
• Real‑world evidence (neuroimaging, HRV, longitudinal outcomes) supports the broaden‑build framework and the utility of PPIs in daily life.