week 8

Question 1

what is an emotion?

Answer 1

Triggering event (internal or external)
Bodily responses and communicative cues (facial expressions)
Action tendency or readiness for response
Changes in cognitive processes
Debate on the subjective nature of emotions
Substantial evidence supporting the unconscious operation of emotions

Question 2

Charles Darwin

Answer 2

Darwin extended evolution theory to mental states and emotions post “Origin of Species” (1859).
Assumptions about emotions:
Class of mental states
Caused by emotion-specific appraisals
Result in emotion-specific bodily changes
“The Expression of Emotions in Man and Animals” (1872) presented an evolutionary theory of emotion.
Research methods included intra- and intercultural studies, observations of children and blind-born individuals, and cross-species comparisons.
Darwin’s conclusion: Facial expressions and emotion recognition are evolved traits.

Question 3

Darwins influence on emotion science

Answer 3

theory widely accepted in psychology post-publication of his books.
Influential psychologists, like William James, inspired by Darwin’s notion of evolution applying to both bodily and mental traits.
Contemporary basic emotions theorists draw inspiration from Darwin’s idea that emotion expressions correspond to distinct emotion categories.
Darwin’s research methods continue to influence modern approaches to studying emotional expressions.

Question 4

William James

Answer 4

Widely cited historical figure in the science of emotion.
1884 proposed that subjective emotional experience is caused by bodily changes triggered by the perception of significant events.
Theory known as the James–Lange theory, suggests that fear is experienced because of bodily trembling.

Question 5

James approach to emotion

Answer 5

1884 asserted that bodily changes directly follow the perception of a stimulus, constituting the emotion.
Unique emotions result from distinct physiological response patterns.
James–Lange theory, later called the peripheral theory of emotions, highlights the significance of bodily responses in emotion.
A constructivist approach, it posits no separate, specialized emotion center in the brain.

Question 6

Walter cannon and Phillip bard

Answer 6

Cannon (1927) and Bard (1928) proposed that subjective emotion occurs independently of simultaneous bodily changes.
Emotional events have dual effects on the brain: stimulating the autonomic nervous system (ANS) for physiological arousal and causing the cerebral cortex to perceive emotions.
Their theory, known as the thalamic theory of emotion, emphasizes the importance of the thalamus in triggering emotions.
Physiological arousal, mediated by the ANS, is considered general and non-discriminatory, not causative for emotion.
The brain can elicit emotion without peripheral nervous system input.
In their view, the thalamus governs the experience of emotion, while the cerebral cortex controls its expression.

Question 7

schachter and singer

Answer 7

Emotion is determined by the interaction of two components: physiological arousal and cognition related to the situation.
Physiological arousal is viewed as undifferentiated, diffuse, and non-specific to a particular emotion.

Question 8

evidence of two factor theory

Answer 8

Schachter and Singer (1962) experiment on emotion theory.
Participants received injections with physiological effects.
Given correct, incorrect, or no information about the effects.
In a separate room, a confederate displayed cheerful or angry behavior.
Participants not correctly informed experienced emotions matching the confederate’s behavior.

Question 9

basic emotions theories

Answer 9

Evolutionary perspective in emotion theory since the 1970s stresses adaptive nature.
Matsumoto and Ekman (2009) define emotions as transient, bio-psychological reactions for adaptation.
Proposal of universal “basic emotions” with evolutionary functions (Ekman, 1982).
Complex emotions seen as combinations of basic emotions (Ortony & Turner, 1990).
Basic emotions characteristics (Ekman, 1992):
Present in non-human species.
Rapid, automatic, brief appearance.
Specific trigger conditions, autonomic nervous system activity, neural and expressive patterns.
Universality of emotional facial expressions demonstrated cross-culturally (Ekman & Friesen, 1971).
Facial expressions pivotal in human communication (Ekman, 1982).
Each basic emotion’s facial expression serves distinct adaptive functions.
Expressive behavior fundamental in child development (Izard & King, 2009)

Question 10

problems with basic emotion theories

Answer 10

Lack of consensus among basic emotion theorists on the exact number of basic emotions.
Inconsistent evidence regarding distinct physiological patterns of basic emotions.
Emotional responses of fear and anger found to have non-overlapping patterns, but differences possibly explained by appraisals (Stemmler et al., 2001).
Processing of fear linked to the amygdala, while disgust is associated with the insular cortex.
Amygdala considered a “relevance detector,” and insular cortex activity not specific to disgust.

Question 11

dimensional approach of emotion

Answer 11

alternative to basic emotions.
Barrett (2006) argues that evolution doesn’t guarantee the usefulness of categories like anger, sadness, and fear.
Wundt’s theory (1897) proposed three basic dimensions for emotional feeling: pleasure/displeasure, excitement/inhibition, and tension/relaxation.
Russell’s (1980) circumplex model, widely used today, represents emotion on two continuous dimensions: valence and arousal.

Question 12

positive and negative affect

Answer 12

Watson and Tellegen (1985) propose orthogonal positive and negative affect dimensions through circumplex model rotation.
Evidence suggests positive and negative affects are linked to distinct neurobiological networks (Rohr et al., 2013).
Meyer and Shack suggest positive affect corresponds to extraversion, while negative affect corresponds to neuroticism.

Question 13

critiques of dimensional theory of emotion

Answer 13

Ability of dimensional models to differentiate certain emotions, like fear and anger, questioned.
Bi-dimensional structures based on verbal reports might reflect language structure rather than true emotional distinctions.
Lack of consensus on elementary dimensions; Fontaine et al. (2007) argue for four dimensions based on multinational data.
Dimensional approach focuses on subjective feeling, but underlying elicitation mechanisms may not be bipolar.

Question 14

appraisal theory of emotion

Answer 14

center on two premises: emotion as an information processing system and the role of evaluative cognitive processing, known as appraisal, in emotion elicitation.
Events are evaluated based on standard criteria, often through automatic and unconscious processes.
Various emotions are associated with distinct patterns of appraisal, supported by empirical evidence.

Question 15

Lazarus theory of emotion

Answer 15

1990 propose the appraisal process identifies a “core relational theme,” leading to distinct emotions.
Examples include anxiety for ambiguous danger, sadness for loss, and anger for offense.
Two global appraisal issues identified:
Primary appraisal - relevance of the encounter to well-being.
Secondary appraisal - assessment of personal resources and coping options

Question 16

schemers appraisal theory (2001,2009)

Answer 16

a) Stimulus or situation appraisal for emotion elicitation and differentiation.
b) Physiological component involving bodily changes.
c) Motor expression component, encompassing facial and vocal expressions, posture, and gestures.
d) Motivational component with action tendencies like approaching or avoiding.
e) Subjective feeling component reflecting the felt emotional experience.

Question 17

the component process model

Answer 17

CPM breaks down appraisal into four stages:
Relevance check
Implications check
Coping potential check
Normative significance evaluation
Each stage involves specific appraisal dimensions referred to as stimulus evaluation checks.

Question 18

problems with appraisal theories of emotion

Answer 18

The compatibility of appraisal as both a cause and a part of emotion is questionable.
Testing the claim that appraisal causes emotion is challenging due to the need for independent manipulation.
Not all theorists agree on the idea of automatic and unconscious appraisal, which is hard to measure.
Despite debates, the accepted view acknowledges the significant role of appraisal in the emotion process.

Question 19

recent development of emotion psychology

Answer 19

Cognitive approaches, like appraisal theories, dominated emotion science from the 1980s to the 2000s and remain widely accepted.
Recent years have seen increased emphasis on the neurobiological basis of emotions with advancements in neuroscience.
Over the past two decades, a constructionist approach emerged, proposing that the experience of emotion is a psychological construction, sparking considerable attention and debate.

Question 20

a paradigm shift

Answer 20

Over the past decade, neuroscientists propose that the brain engages in ongoing top-down predictions about sensory inputs, rather than interpreting inputs after receiving them.
The brain constructs an internal model of the world, constantly comparing sensory inputs to predictions.
Detection of prediction errors prompts updates, maintaining an ongoing “best guess.”
Predictive processing theories, like Hohwy (2013), suggest that our perception is, in fact, an internal construction.

Question 21

emotion as a construction

Answer 21

Barrett (2011, 2017) suggests emotions arise from an internal predictive model simulating expected bodily states (interoceptive predictions).
This model serves to regulate internal resources and guide actions in response to impending situations.
Barrett’s conceptual act model (2011) proposes emotions are constructed from basic psychological primitives, not specific to emotion, challenging the notion of emotions as natural kinds.
Diversity across individuals and variability within individuals in emotional experiences are expected according to this perspective.

Question 22

psychology primitives (barret,2011)

Answer 22

Core affects are neurobiological states indicating pleasantness, unpleasantness, and arousal levels, serving as a neurophysiological barometer of bodily states.
Emotion concepts are shaped by prior experiences and used to categorize core affects.
Working memory plays a role in these processes, influencing how core affects are processed and categorized based on emotion concepts.

Question 23

empirical support

Answer 23

Brain activity patterns partially overlap between distinct emotions, supporting basic emotions, but consistently show commonality in functional network activities across emotions, aligning with constructionist theories.
A recent neuroimaging study by Gündem et al. (2022) found:
No emotion-specific activation for any emotion category.
Highly variable activation profiles for multiple events of a single emotion.
Limited between-subject similarities within each emotion category.
Neural patterns across events within an emotion category not significantly more similar than between emotion categories.

Question 24

reading

Answer 24

Emotion is vital in human behavior across various research areas.
Conceptual precision of emotion is a challenge with multiple proposed theories.
Scientific theories emerged in the late 19th century, including James-Lange, Cannon-Bard, and Schachter’s two-factor theory.
Basic emotions theories emphasize universal emotions, while critiques focus on differentiation challenges.
Bi-dimensional theories, like Russell’s circumplex model, offer flexibility in understanding emotions.
Challenges include defining emotional concepts and critiquing excessive cognitivism in appraisal theories.
Historical progress shows the evolution of understanding emotions into contemporary components.
Scherer’s definition restricts “emotion” to short periods of synchronized bodily responses.
Basic emotion and bi-dimensional theories are considered unsuitable for modeling emotional processes.
Progress encourages the development of explicit functional architecture for testing using various methods.