Emotion very complex, term has no single,

universally accepted definition

Affect - synonym for emotion

The Emotions

Feeling – in psychology usually refers to conscious subjective

experience of emotion

The limbic system is often thought of as the primitive part of the brain as it is present in

lower mammals and parts are even found in reptiles. Animals need emotions to survive -

they need fear as a trigger to escape predators and aggression to defend their territory, young and food. Charles Darwin

thought emotions were merely left over from our animal past. However, you rely on your

emotions to make quick, often complex, decisions.

amygdala

•center for identification of danger•fundamental for self preservation

hippocampus •long term memory center•we compare conditions of present threat with similar past experiences

•routes messages•governs changes in emotional reactivity

thalamus

hypothalamus

•pleasure and rage•aversion•displeasure •uncontrollable loud laughing

cingulate gyrus •coordinates smells and sights

with pleasant memories of previous emotions

•emotional reaction to pain •regulation of aggression

brainstem •emotional

physical reactions

prefrontal area

•sense of social responsibility•capacity for concentration•abstract thought•reason & decision making

fornix

•connects pathways of limbic system

Arousal-performance phenomenon =Yerkes-Dodson law.a certain amount of anxiety can enhance performance

too much can impair it (ie; severe stage fright).

Yerkes-Dodson law1908

emotions do not immediately follow perception of event but rather occur after body has responded to event.

James-Lange Theory 1885

Cannon-Bard theory (also called emergency theory)

Comparison of James-Lange and Cannon-Bard theories

(red arrows) (blue arrows)

1937, Neuroanatomist James Papez demonstrated emotion is not function of specific brain center but of circuit that involves four structures:-hypothalamus-anterior thalamic nucleus-cingulate gyrus -hippocampus.

This circuit (Papez circuit), acting in harmony, is responsible for emotions (affect), as well as for peripheral expressions (face,body,voice,etc)

Papez believed emotion was determined by cingulate cortex Emotional expression was governed by hypothalamus. Cingulate gyrus projects to hippocampus, hippocampus projects to hypothalamus by way

of bundle of axons called fornix. Hypothalamic impulses reach cortex via relay in anterior thalamic nuclei.

amygdala, center for identification of danger, fundamental for self preservation.

Schachter-Singer Theory

experiencing an emotion requires both emotional arousal and cognitive activity

Two-Factor Theory of Emotions1962

R. Plutchik’s (1980) Classification of Emotions.

Eight primary emotions - joy, acceptance, surprise, fear, sorrow, disgust, expectancy and anger; other emotions are mixture

Joy Accepted Aware Anger

Sad Rejected Surprise Fear

“These states – called core affect – influence reflexes, perception, cognition, and behavior and are influenced by many causes

internal and external”

(James A. Russell)

Affective states (emotions and moods)

Paul Ekman's finding is now widely accepted. Expressions he found to be universal included anger, disgust, fear, joy, sadness, and surprise

Developed Facial Action Coding System (FACS) to taxonomize every conceivable human facial expression.

2004

Richard Lazarus Theory 

Lazarus Theory states thought must come before emotion or physiological arousal. Must think about your situation before you can experience emotion.

 EXAMPLE:  You are walking down a dark alley late at night.  You hear footsteps behind you and you think it may be a mugger so you begin to

tremble, your heart beats faster, and your breathing deepens and at the same time experience fear.

 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

1994

Cognitive AppraisalLazarus’s research has shown that people’s experience of emotion depends on way they

appraise or evaluate events around them Example:

Person walking with Crocodile Dundee sees a crocodile lunge, & screams.Crocodile Dundee laughs & jumps in to grab the croc!