Introductory Psychology CJLong

EMOTION

General Overview Questions

Why is the control of emotions important in adjustment?

How Emotions Affect our Behavior

The purpose of this module is to provide you with information as to what emotion is and what it does for us. Listed below are questions that can be answered by this review.

When most people think of emotion they think of negative effects on behavior such as sadness, fear, rage, etc. In thinking of emotion in the way, it appears to be something we could do better without. However, as you will see in the answer to the next question emotion is not only important, it is essential to our survival.

What is emotion and what advantages does it provide?

What are the laws of emotion ?

  1. Elicited by specific events.
  2. Are specific responses that are subjective in nature.
  3. Arise in response to goals or motives of the individual.
  4. Responses to perceived situation.
  5. Elicited by expectations for change in conditions.
  6. Pleasure disappears with continuous satisfaction; pain persists longer
  7. Emotional events retain their power to evoke emotion indefinitely.
  8. One emotion leads to another
  9. When possible, people view a situation in the lightest emotional way
Flash Cards

What are the 3 elements of emotion ?

It is interesting to think of these three with regard to their contribution to the end product of emotion. Remember that feelings relate to what we perceive not what might actually be present in our environment. Things that distort our perceptions may cause perceptions which lead to emotions, whereas, different perceptions would not. Think how this might relate to abnormal behavior. The fact that these feelings give rise to physiological responses suggests that this perception is preparing us to deal with something in our environment. Finally, all of this may lead to overt behavior or it may not. Think of the difference that this might have on the body. How do you deal with an emotional state when overt behavior is not appropriate (your boss)?

What basic emotions are present at birth ?

How do emotions develop in infants ?

Both of these above questions indicate that emotions are learned. This raises some serious questions for the parent as to how do you maximize the proper learning?

What part of the brain is important in the expression of emotions ?

You really have to think about this one. It is a major point. We now know that the limbic system monitors the internal state and is important for survival. Thus, it is emotion that is important for survival. It prepares and motivates us to approach desired things and move away from undesired things (things that effect our internal state). However, notice that it is this same system that tells the brain what to remember. Makes sense doesn't it? We need to remember those things that are important for survival and for our well being and not all of those other things.

How does the brain cause arousal and what relation does it have to emotion ?

Flash Cards

How does the arousal associated with emotion related to performance ?

Arousal is associated with emotions. This is a reflection of the SNS activity preparing us to deal vigorously with a situation.

What physiological changes occur with emotion and how are they used as lie detectors ?

What are the physiological theories of emotion ?

The main point of physiological theories is that they show how the SNS follows feelings. Again, it is that state of preparation.
About the only difference is that one thought it was a sequential process and the other thought it was concurrent.

How does Schacter and Singers theory differ from that of James-Lange & Cannon-Bard?

The cognitive theory accepts the physiological contribution but sees emotions as a combination of physiological changes and environmental factors. Thus, there can be as many emotions as there are different contexts.

How do other cognitive theories aid in our understanding of emotion ?

How are emotions expressed ?

Note which aspects of the face are most important in expressing emotions.
The expression of emotions are an important method of communication. Most behavior begins with posturing and behavioral changes which can be perceived and responded to before full-blown emotional behavior is exhibited. Thus, the communication aspect is important in dealing with others.

How many basic emotions are there ?

Flash Cards

If emotions are important in adapting to the environment how do we control them and what happens if we can not?

So, we now know that emotions result from the limbic system monitoring the internal state of the organism. Things in our environment that influence our internal state (either positive or negative) will give rise to emotion. The emotion is a state of preparation and also motivates us to deal with the situation. The question is, how and in what ways do we deal with it? It is easy to see how it will effect our mental health.
We will have more to say about these major points later but it is safe to say that preparation and motivation are two important aspects that we will have to understand.

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