Theories of EmotionModule 41

Emotions are a mix of…1. Body Arousal (rapid heart rate)2. Expressive Behaviors (running away, facial

expression)3. Conscious Experience (“I’m scared!”)

• Seeing an angry dog triggers feelings & thoughts of fear and physical responses such as trembling and behavior like running.

Debates in Emotion Research• Which comes first, bodily arousal or the conscious

experience & feelings of an emotion?• OR do they each occur at the SAME time?• Can we react emotionally before appraising a

situation, or does thinking always come before emotion?

OR= =

Common-Sense says…

• A stimulus triggers emotion which then causes bodily arousal

• “I’m sad which makes me cry.”

Perception(Interpretation of stimulus—danger)

Stimulus(Tiger)

Emotion(Fear)

Bodilyarousal(Pounding heart) & Fearful Behavior

James-Lange Theory:Arousal before Emotion

• An emotion-arousing stimulus in the environment triggers a physiological reaction and behavior.

• THEN 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.

• Perception of a stimulus causes bodily arousal which leads to emotion (opposite of common sense)• 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

Perception(Interpretation of stimulus--danger)

Stimulus(Tiger)

Emotion(Fear)

Bodilyarousal(Pounding heart) & Fearful Behavior

James-Lange Theory

James-Lange Theory

Walter B. Cannon challenged the James–Lange theory

• Body reactions similar for most emotions– Heart races whether we’re frightened,

angry or exhilarated• Emotional reaction to a stimulus is often faster

than our physiological reaction . I’m scared then I tremble

• Physiological arousal strengthens emotion but does not cause it.

• Artificially inducing physiological changes via adrenaline did not necessarily produce a related emotional experience • You peel an onion & cry yet you

don’t feel sad

Cannon-Bard TheoryArousal & Emotion All At Once

• 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

Schachter-SingerTwo-Factor Theory

• Emotions involve two factors:– A physiological arousal– A cognitive/conscious label of the arousal

• 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 (pg. 422)

• Spillover Effect - They “caught” the emotion of the other person sitting in the waiting room with them.

Schachter’s Cognition-Plus-Feedback Theory

• Perception and thought about a stimulus influence the type of emotion felt

• Degree of bodily arousal influences the intensity of emotion felt

Type Intensity

Emotion(Fear)

Perception(Interpretation of stimulus--danger)

Stimulus(Tiger)

Bodilyarousal(Pounding heart)

Two-Factor Theory

Emotion results from physiological arousal plus a cognitive label for that arousal

Robert Zajonc (1923-2008)

• We feel first, think later. (Reflexive Response)• Argued emotions developed first then cognition in

the history of human development• Suggested that not all emotions involve deliberate

thinking• Therefore, cognition/conscious awareness of what

is happening is not necessary for all emotions• Some emotions skip the thinking part of the brain

Zajonc/LeDoux Theory:

Richard Lazarus (1922-2002) Cognitive-Mediational Theory

• Emotions arise from our brain’s automatic appraisal of an event as harmless or dangerous

• 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 argue 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

1. I see a man by the parked car.

2. I hear & recognize his voice.

3. I know him and am not afraid

OR

Your emotion depends on your cognitive appraisal or interpretation of the situation & the perceived outcome of it

2. I think he’s a mugger!

3. I’m afraid (heart beating)

& will run away.

1. I see a man by the parked car.

2. I think he’s a mugger.

3. I’m afraid and will run away.

Cognitive Label

“This is a dangerous situation!”

Pounding Heart

(arousal)

Fear

(emotion)

Lazarus Cognitive-Mediational Theory

James-Lange Cannon-Bard

Schachter-Singer Two Factor Cognitive-Mediational

1. I see a man by the parked car.

2. I hear & recognize his voice.

3. I know him and am not afraid

2. I think he’s a mugger!

3. I’m afraid (heart beating) &

will run away.

THEORIES OF EMOTIONREVIEW

Mnemonics to Help You RememberJames-Lange Theory

A comes before E- just like Arousal comes before your Emotion.

J for Jog away from danger and L for Later feel your fear.

Cannon-Bard TheorySay the two Ns in Cannon simultaneously just like you experience arousal and emotion

Cannon=Causes, Bard=Both; so it would be the "Causes Both Theory" because the theory says that the physiological response and experience of emotion happen at the same time, or "the Cause stimulates Both at the same time.

Think Bard = Bird: You kill 2 birds with 1 stoneTheory says 2 things happen at once

If you get hit by a Cannon then you feel arousal, pain and scared all at once!

Schachter-Singer Two Factor Theory

Think “Exactor” meaning you double check your emotion by labeling the arousal just to be sure.

2-Factor = The emotion comes twiceOnce when you actually experience the arousal and then again when you label the emotion of that arousal.

Lazarus Cognitive Mediational Theory

•You meditate on the situation before feeling emotion•Lazy Emotion – Your emotions lazily wait for you to label the situation.•Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead –

– All those who witness this situation have to label it either a miracle and hence be overjoyed or label it a trick and be angry.

Zajonc & LeDoux Theory•Zap! – Some emotions happen in an instant without thought.•Z is lowest letter in the alphabet and fear takes the Low Road of neural circuits.•LeDoux – Some emotions are like a Reflex

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

• People paralyzed from the neck down report less intense emotions than they had before being paralyzed.

• 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.