Emotionality

Last updated
Smile, depicting joy (Ximena Navarrete, Miss Universe 2010) Ximena Navarrete - Miss Universe 2010.jpg
Smile, depicting joy (Ximena Navarrete, Miss Universe 2010)
Wide eyes and raised eyebrows are common indicators of surprise (Figure 20 from Charles Darwin's The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals) Expression of the Emotions Figure 20.png
Wide eyes and raised eyebrows are common indicators of surprise (Figure 20 from Charles Darwin's The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals )

Emotionality is the observable behavioral and physiological component of emotion. It is a measure of a person's emotional reactivity to a stimulus. [2] Most of these responses can be observed by other people, while some emotional responses can only be observed by the person experiencing them. [3] Observable responses to emotion (i.e., smiling) do not have a single meaning. A smile can be used to express happiness or anxiety, while a frown can communicate sadness or anger. [4] Emotionality is often used by experimental psychology researchers to operationalize emotion in research studies. [2]

Contents

Early theories

By the late 1800s, many high-quality contributions became interested in analyzing emotion because of the works of psychologists and scientists such as Wilhelm Wundt, George Stout, William McDougall, William James, and George Herbert Mead. William James preferred to focus on the physiological aspects of emotional response, although he did not disregard the perceptual or cognitive components. William McDougall thought of emotion as the articulation of a natural response built on instinct. Other psychologists reasoned that although gestures express emotion, this is not the entirety of their function. Wundt analyzed that emotion portrays both expression and communication. [3]

As irrational

One of the oldest views of emotion is that emotion indicates inferiority. In early psychology, it was believed that passion (emotion) was a part of the soul inherited from the animals and that it must be controlled. Solomon[ clarification needed ] identified that in the Romantic movement of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, reason and emotion were discovered to be opposites. [3]

As physiological

Physiological responses to emotion originate in the central nervous system, the autonomic nervous system, and the endocrine system. Some of the responses include: heart rate, sweating, rate and depth of respiration, and electrical activity in the brain. Many researchers have attempted to find a connection between specific emotions and a corresponding pattern of physiological responses, but the results have been inconclusive. [3]

Later theories

The significant theories of emotion can be divided into three primary categories: physiological, [5] neurological, [6] and cognitive. [7] Physiological theories imply that activity within the body can be accountable for emotions. [8] Neurological theories suggest that activity within the brain leads to emotional responses. [6] Lastly, cognitive theories reason that thoughts and other mental activity have a vital role in the stimulation of emotions. [7] Common sense suggests that people first become consciously aware of their emotions and that the physiological responses follow shortly after. [9] Theories by James-Lange, Cannon-Bard, and Schachter-Singer contradict the common-sense theory.

James-Lange

The James-Lange theory of emotion was proposed by psychologist William James and physiologist Carl Lange. This theory suggests that emotions occur as a result of physiological responses to outside stimuli or events. For example, this theory suggests that if someone is driving down the road and sees the headlights of another car heading toward them in their lane, their heart begins to race (a physiological response) and then they become afraid (fear being the emotion). [8]

Cannon-Bard

The Cannon-Bard theory, which was conceptualized by Walter Cannon and Phillip Bard, suggests that emotions and their corresponding physiological responses are experienced simultaneously. Using the previous example, when someone sees the car coming toward them in their lane, their heart starts to race and they feel afraid at the same time. [6]

Schachter-Singer

Stanley Schachter and Jerome Singer proposed a theory also known as the two-factor theory of emotion, which implies emotion have two factors: physical arousal and cognitive label. This suggests that if the physiological activity occurs first, then it must cognitively be distinguished as the cause of the arousal and labeled as an emotion. Using the example of someone seeing a car coming towards them in their lane, their heart would start to race and they would identify that they must be afraid if their heart is racing, and from there they would begin to feel fear. [7]

Gender differences

The opposition of rational thought and emotion is believed to be paralleled by the similar opposition between male and female. A traditional view is that "men are seen as rational and women as emotional, lacking rationality." [3] However, in spite of these ideas, and in spite of gender differences in the prevalence of mood disorders, the empirical evidence on gender differences in emotional responding is mixed. [10]

When engaging in social interaction, studies show that women smile significantly more than men do. It is difficult to determine the exact difference between males and females to explain this disparity. It is possible that this difference in expression of emotions is due to societal influences and conformity to gender roles. However, this may not fully explain why men smile less than women do.

The male gender role involves characteristics such as strength, expert knowledge, and a competitive nature. Smiling may be stereotypically associated with weakness. Men may feel that if they engage in this perceived weakness, it may contradict their attempts to show strength and other traits of the male gender role. Another broad explanation for the contrast in male and female gender expression is that women have reported to experience greater levels of emotional intensity than men, in both positive and negative aspects, which could naturally lead to greater emotional response. [4] It has also been reported that men are more likely to confide in female companions, revealing their emotions and intimacy, while females are typically comfortable confiding in both genders. This suggests that men are more particular about how they express the emotions they feel, potentially relating back to gender roles. [11]

Across cultures

There are six universal emotions which expand across all cultures. These emotions are happiness, sadness, anger, fear, surprise, and disgust. Debate exists about whether contempt should be combined with disgust. [12] According to Ekman (1992), each of these emotions have universally corresponding facial expressions as well. [13]

In addition to the facial expressions that are said to accompany each emotion, there is also evidence to suggest that certain autonomic nervous system (ANS) activity is associated with the three emotions of fear, anger, and disgust. Ekman theorizes that these specific emotions are associated with the universal physiological responses due to evolution. It would not be expected to observe the same physiological responses for emotions not specifically linked to survival, such as happiness or sadness. [12]

Ekman's theories were early challenged by James A. Russell, and have since been tested by a variety of researchers, with ambiguous results. This seems to reflect methodological problems relating to both display rules and to the components of emotion. [14] Current thinking favors a mix of underlying universality combined with significant cultural differences in the articulation and expression of emotion. [15] Emotions serve different functions in different cultures. [16]

Positive

Positive emotionality is the ability to control positive mood and emotions, people with positive emotions seek for social reward. Positive emotionality can be a preventive factor in blocking out certain types of mental illness. In a study of a sample of 1,655 youth (54% girls; 7– 16 years), it found that the higher their positive emotionality was, the lower their depression would be. Depression was considered by its definition of the inability to receive positive emotions or pleasure. The youth's temperament, adaptive emotion regulation (ER) strategies, and depressive symptoms were determined through a questionnaire. The study also reported that depressive symptoms could be reduced through emotion regulation of positive mood. [17] A study by Charles T. Taylor et al. linked being exposed to positive emotions before a surgery to less anxiety and a decrease in having symptoms after treatment. [18]

Negative

Negative emotionality is the opposite of positive emotionality. People are unable to control their positive mood and emotions. Everyone experiences negative emotionality in different levels, there are different factors that effect each individual in a different way. Negative emotionality effects many aspects of our lives in terms of coping and the relationship that people share with one another. Neuroticism (Big Five/HEXACO) is one of the biggest factors found in negative emotionality. Someone on the higher spectrum of neuroticism is often more anxious and enjoy the feelings of their negative emotion. [19] Some research suggests that obese children compared to children who are not obese have higher levels of negative emotionality and the ability to control emotions. [18]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emotion</span> Conscious subjective experience of humans

Emotions are physical and mental states brought on by neurophysiological changes, variously associated with thoughts, feelings, behavioral responses, and a degree of pleasure or displeasure. There is no scientific consensus on a definition. Emotions are often intertwined with mood, temperament, personality, disposition, or creativity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arousal</span> State of being awoken

Arousal is the physiological and psychological state of being awoken or of sense organs stimulated to a point of perception. It involves activation of the ascending reticular activating system (ARAS) in the brain, which mediates wakefulness, the autonomic nervous system, and the endocrine system, leading to increased heart rate and blood pressure and a condition of sensory alertness, desire, mobility, and reactivity.

Amusement is the state of experiencing humorous and entertaining events or situations while the person or animal actively maintains the experience, and is associated with enjoyment, happiness, laughter and pleasure. It is an emotion with positive valence and high physiological arousal.

The two-factor theory of emotion states that emotion is based on two factors: physiological arousal and cognitive label. The theory was created by researchers Stanley Schachter and Jerome E. Singer. According to the theory, when an emotion is felt, a physiological arousal occurs and the person uses the immediate environment to search for emotional cues to label the physiological arousal. This can sometimes cause misinterpretations of emotions based on the body's physiological state. When the brain does not know why it feels an emotion it relies on external stimulation for cues on how to label the emotion.

An emotional expression is a behavior that communicates an emotional state or attitude. It can be verbal or nonverbal, and can occur with or without self-awareness. Emotional expressions include facial movements like smiling or scowling, simple behaviors like crying, laughing, or saying "thank you," and more complex behaviors like writing a letter or giving a gift. Individuals have some conscious control of their emotional expressions; however, they need not have conscious awareness of their emotional or affective state in order to express emotion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Affect (psychology)</span> Experience of feeling or emotion

Affect, in psychology, refers to the underlying experience of feeling, emotion, attachment, or mood. In psychology, "affect" refers to the experience of feeling or emotion. It encompasses a wide range of emotional states and can be positive or negative. Affect is a fundamental aspect of human experience and plays a central role in many psychological theories and studies. It can be understood as a combination of three components: emotion, mood, and affectivity. In psychology, the term "affect" is often used interchangeably with several related terms and concepts, though each term may have slightly different nuances. These terms encompass: emotion, feeling, mood, emotional state, sentiment, affective state, emotional response, affective reactivity, disposition. Researchers and psychologists may employ specific terms based on their focus and the context of their work.

Neuroticism is a personality trait associated with negative emotions. It is one of the Big Five traits. Individuals with high scores on neuroticism are more likely than average to experience such feelings as anxiety, worry, fear, anger, frustration, envy, jealousy, pessimism, guilt, depressed mood, and loneliness. Such people are thought to respond worse to stressors and are more likely to interpret ordinary situations, such as minor frustrations, as appearing hopelessly difficult. Their behavioral responses may include procrastination, substance use, and other maladaptive behaviors, which may aid in relieving negative emotions and generating positive ones.

The facial feedback hypothesis, rooted in the conjectures of Charles Darwin and William James, is that one's facial expression directly affects their emotional experience. Specifically, physiological activation of the facial regions associated with certain emotions holds a direct effect on the elicitation of such emotional states, and the lack of or inhibition of facial activation will result in the suppression of corresponding emotional states.

According to some theories, emotions are universal phenomena, albeit affected by culture. Emotions are "internal phenomena that can, but do not always, make themselves observable through expression and behavior". While some emotions are universal and are experienced in similar ways as a reaction to similar events across all cultures, other emotions show considerable cultural differences in their antecedent events, the way they are experienced, the reactions they provoke and the way they are perceived by the surrounding society. According to other theories, termed social constructionist, emotions are more deeply culturally influenced. The components of emotions are universal, but the patterns are social constructions. Some also theorize that culture is affected by the emotions of the people.

Discrete emotion theory is the claim that there is a small number of core emotions. For example, Silvan Tomkins concluded that there are nine basic affects which correspond with what we come to know as emotions: interest, enjoyment, surprise, distress, fear, anger, shame, dissmell and disgust. More recently, Carroll Izard at the University of Delaware factor analytically delineated 12 discrete emotions labeled: Interest, Joy, Surprise, Sadness, Anger, Disgust, Contempt, Self-Hostility, Fear, Shame, Shyness, and Guilt.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emotion classification</span> Contrast of one emotion from another

Emotion classification, the means by which one may distinguish or contrast one emotion from another, is a contested issue in emotion research and in affective science. Researchers have approached the classification of emotions from one of two fundamental viewpoints:

  1. that emotions are discrete and fundamentally different constructs
  2. that emotions can be characterized on a dimensional basis in groupings

Emotional self-regulation or emotion regulation is the ability to respond to the ongoing demands of experience with the range of emotions in a manner that is socially tolerable and sufficiently flexible to permit spontaneous reactions as well as the ability to delay spontaneous reactions as needed. It can also be defined as extrinsic and intrinsic processes responsible for monitoring, evaluating, and modifying emotional reactions. Emotional self-regulation belongs to the broader set of emotion regulation processes, which includes both the regulation of one's own feelings and the regulation of other people's feelings.

The James–Lange theory is a hypothesis on the origin and nature of emotions and is one of the earliest theories of emotion within modern psychology. It was developed by philosopher John Dewey and named for two 19th-century scholars, William James and Carl Lange. The basic premise of the theory is that physiological arousal instigates the experience of emotion. Previously people considered emotions as reactions to some significant events or their features, i.e. events come first, and then there is an emotional response. James-Lange theory proposed that the state of the body can induce emotions or emotional dispositions. In other words, this theory suggests that when we feel teary, it generates a disposition for sad emotions; when our heartbeat is out of normality, it makes us feel anxiety. Instead of feeling an emotion and subsequent physiological (bodily) response, the theory proposes that the physiological change is primary, and emotion is then experienced when the brain reacts to the information received via the body's nervous system. It proposes that each specific category of emotion is attached to a unique and different pattern of physiological arousal and emotional behaviour in reaction due to an exciting stimulus.

Emotion perception refers to the capacities and abilities of recognizing and identifying emotions in others, in addition to biological and physiological processes involved. Emotions are typically viewed as having three components: subjective experience, physical changes, and cognitive appraisal; emotion perception is the ability to make accurate decisions about another's subjective experience by interpreting their physical changes through sensory systems responsible for converting these observed changes into mental representations. The ability to perceive emotion is believed to be both innate and subject to environmental influence and is also a critical component in social interactions. How emotion is experienced and interpreted depends on how it is perceived. Likewise, how emotion is perceived is dependent on past experiences and interpretations. Emotion can be accurately perceived in humans. Emotions can be perceived visually, audibly, through smell and also through bodily sensations and this process is believed to be different from the perception of non-emotional material.

Expressive suppression is defined as the intentional reduction of the facial expression of an emotion. It is a component of emotion regulation.

Facial expressions are used to communicate emotions. They can also occur solitarily, without other people being present. People often imagine themselves in social situations when alone, resulting in solitary facial expressions. Toddlers and children in early childhood use social cues and contexts to discriminate and recognize facial expressions. They develop at this early stage facial expressions in order to provoke reactions from their caregivers and receive nurturance and support. Children reflect their peers' emotions in their own expressions for social interaction.

The study of the relationship between gender and emotional expression is the study of the differences between men and women in behavior that expresses emotions. These differences in emotional expression may be primarily due to cultural expectations of femininity and masculinity.

Emotional approach coping is a psychological construct that involves the use of emotional processing and emotional expression in response to a stressful situation. As opposed to emotional avoidance, in which emotions are experienced as a negative, undesired reaction to a stressful situation, emotional approach coping involves the conscious use of emotional expression and processing to better deal with a stressful situation. The construct was developed to explain an inconsistency in the stress and coping literature: emotion-focused coping was associated with largely maladaptive outcomes while emotional processing and expression was demonstrated to be beneficial.

A functional account of emotions posits that emotions facilitate adaptive responses to environmental challenges. In other words, emotions are systems that respond to environmental input, such as a social or physical challenge, and produce adaptive output, such as a particular behavior. Under such accounts, emotions can manifest in maladaptive feelings and behaviors, but they are largely beneficial insofar as they inform and prepare individuals to respond to environmental challenges, and play a crucial role in structuring social interactions and relationships.

Iris Mauss is a social psychologist known for her research on emotions and emotion regulation. She holds the position of Professor of Psychology at University of California, Berkeley and Director of the Emotion & Emotion Regulation Lab. Her research has been cited in various publications including The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Psychology Today.

References

  1. ↑ Darwin, Charles (1872). The expression of the emotions in man and animals. London, England. pp.  278–309.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  2. 1 2 Reber, A.S.; Reber, E. (2001). The Penguin Dictionary of Psychology . Penguin Books. ISBN   978-0-14-051451-3.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Crawford, J.; Kippax, S.; Onyx, J.; Gault, U. & Benton, P. (1992). Emotion and gender: Constructing meaning from memory. London, England: Sage Publications. pp. 16–18.
  4. 1 2 Hall, J. A.; Carter, J. D.; Horgan, T. G. (2000). Gender differences in nonverbal communication of emotion. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press. pp. 97–117.
  5. ↑ Porges, S. W.; Doussard-Roosevelt, J. A. & Maiti, A. K. (1994). "Vagal tone and the physiological regulation of emotion". Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development. 59 (2–3): 167–186. doi:10.1111/j.1540-5834.1994.tb01283.x. PMID   7984159.
  6. 1 2 3 Cannon, W.B. (July 1931). "Again the James-Lange and the thalamic theories of emotion". Psychological Review. 38 (4): 281–295. doi:10.1037/h0072957.
  7. 1 2 3 Schachter, S. & Singer, J. (1962). "Cognitive, Social, and Physiological Determinants of Emotional State". Psychological Review. 69 (5): 379–399. doi:10.1037/h0046234. PMID   14497895.
  8. 1 2 James, W. (April 1884). "What is an emotion?". Mind. 9 (34): 188–205.
  9. ↑ Ellsworth, P. C. (1994). "William James and Emotion: Is a Century of Fame Worth a Century of Misunderstanding?". Psychological Review. 101 (2): 222–229. doi:10.1037/0033-295x.101.2.222. PMID   8022957. S2CID   18140052.
  10. ↑ McRae, K.; Ochsner, K. N.; Mauss, I. B.; Gabrieli, J. J. D. & Gross, J. J. (2008). "Gender differences in emotion regulation: An fmri study of cognitive reappraisal". Group Processes & Intergroup Relations. 11 (2): 143–162. doi:10.1177/1368430207088035. PMC   5937254 . PMID   29743808.
  11. ↑ Ryff, C. D.; Singer, B. H. (2001). Integrating emotion into the study of social relationships and health. New York, NY: Oxford University Press. pp. 3–22.
  12. 1 2 Ekman, Paul (1992). "Are there basic emotions?". Psychological Review. 99 (3): 550–553. doi:10.1037/0033-295x.99.3.550. PMID   1344638. S2CID   34722267.
  13. ↑ Ekman, Paul (1992). "An argument for basic emotions". Cognition and Emotion. 6 (3): 169–200. CiteSeerX   10.1.1.454.1984 . doi:10.1080/02699939208411068.
  14. ↑ J. W. Berry et al eds., Cross-Cultural Psychology (2011) p. 169-73
  15. ↑ J. W. Berry et al eds., Cross-Cultural Psychology (2011) p. 173-7
  16. ↑ P. Philipott et al eds., The Social Context of Nonverbal Behaviour (1999) p. 39
  17. ↑ Van Beveren, Marie-Lotte; Harding, Kaitlin; Beyers, Wim; Braet, Caroline (March 2018). "Don't worry, be happy: The role of positive emotionality and adaptive emotion regulation strategies for youth depressive symptoms". British Journal of Clinical Psychology. 57 (1): 18–41. doi: 10.1111/bjc.12151 . PMID   28833279.
  18. 1 2 Taylor, Charles T.; Knapp, Sarah E.; Bomyea, Jessica A.; Ramsawh, Holly J.; Paulus, Martin P.; Stein, Murray B. (2017). "What good are positive emotions for treatment? Trait positive emotionality predicts response to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for anxiety". Behaviour Research and Therapy. 93: 6–12. doi:10.1016/j.brat.2017.03.006. PMC   5627362 . PMID   28342947.
  19. ↑ "Excerpt: Negative Emotionality and Neuroticism From Childhood Through Adulthood". Colgate Research. 2019-12-20. Retrieved 2020-12-12.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.