PSYC 222 Motivation and Emotions Session 6 The Concept of Emotion Lecturer: Dr. Annabella Osei-Tutu, Psychology Department Contact Information: aopare-henaku@ug.edu.gh College of Education School of Continuing and Distance Education 2015/2016 2016/2017
Session Overview Human beings are emotional beings. We communicate through verbal and non-verbal expressions of emotions. Whereas some people are very good at detecting other people s emotions, others have a difficulty detecting emotions. This session helps you to define emotion, and know the three components of emotion. You will also learn how to detect various facial expressions. Slide 2
Session Outline The key topics to be covered in the session are: Topic One : Defining Emotion Topic Two : Detecting Emotion Topic Three: The Effects of Facial Expressions Slide 3
Topic One DEFINING EMOTION Slide 4
What is an Emotion? Emotions are a part of our social reality We go through a wide range of emotions throughout the day What is Emotion?
What is an Emotion? Emotions are psychological responses of the whole organism involving an interplay among physiological arousal, expressive behaviors, and conscious experience (Myers, 2010)
What is an Emotion? Emotion elicitors: In order to experience an emotion, certain internal or external stimulus must trigger the process for emotions to occur.
What is an Emotion? Internal elicitors may include changes in your physiological states (e.g., hunger) and cognitive processes (a pleasant thought) External elicitors include noise, death of a loved one, etc.
What is an Emotion? Is emotion the same as feeling or mood? Although the terms are related, they do not mean the same thing
What is an Emotion? A feeling is our subjective experience of an emotional reaction Feelings represent our private emotional experience
What is an Emotion? A mood is the mildest form of an emotion It is a low-intensity, long-lasting emotional state. A moods can last for many hours, or even days
Topic Two COMPONENTS OF EMOTION Slide 12
Components of Emotion (Myers, 2010)
Components of Emotion: Physiological Arousal 1. Physiology The physiological aspects of emotions are innate, or built into the body. Emotions results in neural, hormonal, visceral, and muscular changes.
Components of Emotion: Physiological Arousal During an emotional experience, our autonomic nervous system mobilizes energy in the body that arouses us. This results in change in heartbeat, dilation of the pupil
Components of Emotion: Physiological Arousal (Myers, 2010)
Components of Emotion: Physiological Arousal The physiological changes associated with emotional arousal are consistent across cultures. These reactions are nearly universal because they are controlled by the autonomic nervous system.
Components of Emotion: Cognition 2. Cognition What is the connection between how we think (cognition) and how we feel (emotion)? The cognition component of emotion is related to the evaluations or appraisals we associate with an emotional arousal
Components of Emotion: Cognition The cognitive processes include our interpretations, memories, and expectations. During an emotional arousal, sensory information goes through the amygdala or through the cortex for analysis.
Components of Emotion: Expression 3. Expression The third component of emotion is expression. It includes verbal and non-verbal expressions Emotional expressions are outward signs of what a person is feeling
Components of Emotion: Expression Emotional expressions are typically observable; e.g., changes in face, voice, body, and activity level (Lewis, 2008) Emotional expressions are important because they communicate emotion from one person to another.
Components of Emotion: Expression Can you tell what emotions others are feeling, showing, or expressing?
Components of Emotion: Expression Emotions are expressed on the face, by the body, and by the intonation of voice. Is this nonverbal language of emotion universal? Slide 23
Components of Emotion: Expression The most basic emotional expressions appear to be fairly universal. For example, smile is the most universal and easily recognized facial expression of emotion.
Components of Emotion: Expression Children s facial gestures such as joy, sadness, disgust appear to be natural. However, many adult facial expressions are influenced by learning. Some facial expressions are unique to certain cultures.
Topic Two DETECTING EMOTIONS IN OTHERS Slide 26
Detecting Emotions in Others People read a great deal of emotional content in the eyes and the faces. We are good at quickly detecting negative emotions, and even negative emotion words. Those who have been abused are more sensitive toward seeing fearful faces as angry. 27
Detecting Emotions in Others: Gender Women seem to have greater and more complex emotional expression. Women are also more skilled at detecting emotions in others. Note that the above statements are overgeneralized. People tend to attribute women s emotionality to their dispositions, and attribute men s emotions to their circumstances. 28
Detecting Emotions Others: Gender We also see some emotions as being more male Example anger is often seen as a manly emotion 29
Detecting Emotions Others: Context The context influences our detection of emotion The context includes the physical environment as well as the gestures (Barrett, 2012) E.g., What emotion is this person on the right experiencing?
Detecting Emotions in Others: Context Now with the context, you can fully appreciate what emotion is being expressed. The picture shows Serena Williams feeling ecstatic after she beats her sister, Venus Williams, in the 2008 U.S. Open tennis finals (Barrett, 2012)
Detecting Emotions in Others: Cultures Are there universally recognized emotions? Would you be able to detect emotions of people of other countries, cultures, or groups? (Myers 2010) 32
Detecting Emotions in Others: Cultures Some facial expressions are universally understood o People of various cultures agree on the emotional labels for the expressions Fear, Anger, Disgust, Sadness, Surprise, Happiness People in other studies have more accuracy judging emotions from their own culture.
Topic Three EFFECTS OF FACIAL EXPRESSIONS Slide 34
Effects of Facial Expressions Emotional facial expression allows us to communicate emotional feelings with others; Others can use this information as an indicator of the way to act in uncertain or ambiguous situations.
Effects of Facial Expressions Do our facial expressions influence our feelings? Slide 36
Effects of Facial Expressions Researchers have observed that therapists tend to catch their client s feelings; parents (non-verbally; and unintentionally) communicate their feelings to their children, and vice versa; and friends resonate to each other s moods. This is known as Emotional Contagion! Slide 37
Reading List Lewis, M. (2008). The emergence of emotions. In, Lewis, M., & Harviland-Jones, J. M., & Barrett, L. F. (Eds.) (2008). Hand book of emotions (3rd Ed). New York: The Guilford Press. Slide 38
References Myers, D. (2010). Psychology: Ninth edition in modules. New York: Worth Publishers. Lewis, M. (2008). The emergence of emotions. In, Lewis, M., & Harviland-Jones, J. M., & Barrett, L. F. (Eds.) (2008). Handbook of emotions (3 rd Ed). New York: The Guilford Press. Barrett, L. F. (2012). Emotions are real. Emotion, 12, 413-429. Slide 39