Transcript Theories of Emotion: Historical Approaches
Theories of Emotion
Historical Approaches
Common Sense Theory 1. Emotion-arousing stimulus leads to a 2. Conscious feeling (fear, anger) and a 3.
Physiological response.
4. Emotional Behavior • Seeing an angry dog triggers feelings of fear and physical responses such as trembling and behavior like running.
Common-Sense Theory Stimulus (Tiger) Perception (Interpretation of stimulus — danger) Emotion (Fear) Bodily arousal (Pounding heart) & Fearful Behavior
• Common sense might suggest that the perception of a stimulus elicits emotion which then causes bodily arousal
Debates in Emotion Research • Which comes first, physiological arousal or the subjective experience of an emotion?
• Can we react emotionally
before
appraising a situation, or does thinking always precede emotion?
• • • James-Lange Theory An emotion-arousing stimulus in the environment triggers a physiological reaction and behavior.
Our awareness of the physiological reaction leads to our experience of an emotion.
James believed that emotion followed this sequence: 1. We perceive a stimulus.
2. Physiological and behavioral changes occur.
3. We experience a particular emotion.
James’s Peripheral Feedback Theory
James’s Theory Stimulus (Tiger) Perception (Interpretation of stimulus- danger) Bodily arousal (Pounding heart) & Fearful Behavior Emotion (Fear)
• Perception of a stimulus causes bodily arousal which leads to emotion • We do not run from a tiger because we are afraid. We are afraid because we ran from the tiger. • The relationship is
See the tiger
,
Run from tiger
,
Experience fear
James-Lange Theory
Walter B. Cannon challenged the James –Lange theory • Bodily reactions are similar for many emotions (fear, rage), yet our subjective experience of various emotions is very different • Our emotional reaction to a stimulus is often faster than our physiological reaction • Artificially inducing physiological changes via adrenaline did not necessarily produce a related emotional experience • James had proposed that if a person were cut off from feeling bodily changes, he would not experience true emotions. – Studies of people with spinal cord injuries and cats with disabled sympathetic N.S. do not support James’ idea
Cannon-Bard Theory • An emotion-arousing stimulus
simultaneously
triggers both a – physiological response ( sympathetic nervous system ) and – the experience of an emotion ( brain’s cerebral cortex) .
Cannon Bard Theory
Theories of Emotion: Cognition and Emotion
Two-Factor Theory • Emotions involve two factors: – A physiological arousal – A
cognitive label
of the
arousal
• Also called the Schachter-Singer Theory • Study using epinephrine and a humorous or irritating situation showed that those who did NOT know their physiological responses (increased heart beat) was caused by a shot rated their emotions as more intense than those who knew.
Schachter’s Cognition-Plus-Feedback Theory
Stimulus (Tiger) Perception (Interpretation of stimulus- danger) Bodily arousal (Pounding heart) Emotion (Fear) Type Intensity
• Perception and thought about a stimulus influence the
type of emotion
felt • Degree of bodily arousal influences the
intensity of emotion
felt
Two-Factor Theory
Richard Lazarus (1922 ) Cognitive-Mediational Theory • Emotions result from the cognitive appraisal of a
situation’s
effect on personal well-being • All other components of emotion, including physiological arousal,
follow
the initial cognitive appraisal • Intense emotions come from situations whose outcomes are important to us.
• Critics of this theory argue that emotional reactions to a stimulus or event are virtually instantaneous — too rapid to allow for the process of cognitive appraisal. They suggest that we feel first and think later.
Cognitive-Mediational Theory 2. I think he’s a mugger!
3. I’m afraid (heart beating) & will run away.
1.
2.
3.
I see a man by the parked car.
I hear & recognize his voice.
1.
OR 2.
I know him and am not afraid 3.
I see a man by the parked car.
I think he’s a mugger.
I’m afraid and will run away.
Your emotion depends on your cognitive appraisal or
interpretation
of the
situation
Lazarus Cognitive Mediational Theory
Cognitive Label “This is a dangerous situation!” Pounding Heart (arousal) Fear (emotion)
Robert Zajonc (1923 ) • Suggested that not all emotions involve deliberate thinking • Therefore, cognition is not necessary for all emotions • Some emotions skip the thinking part of the brain • We feel first, think later.
Paths to Emotional Responses
Paths to Emotional Responses
Paths to Emotional Responses
And the Winner is…
Modern Research Supports
James –Lange Theory • Antonio Damasio’s findings—that each basic emotion produced a distinct pattern or neural response and that the physiological changes occurred
before
they were interpreted as an emotion —support the theory • Support is also provided by research on the
facial feedback hypothesis
—the view that expressing a specific emotion, especially facially, causes the subjective experience of that emotion – When people mimic the facial expressions characteristic of a given emotion, they tend to report feeling that emotion.
– The basic explanation for this is that the facial muscles send feedback signals to the brain, which uses the information to activate and regulate emotional experience.