Emotion

Motivates us to do things with ourselves, and helps us make decisions

The case of Elliot

He had a tumor in the ventromedial pre-frontal cortex

The damage that occurred was:

• he can't keep a job
• shady now
• He lost access to his emotions
• He still has the same IQ
• He no longer can feel his emotions, gets into logical loops

Evolution of emotion

Allows us to meet some challenges in living, drive behaviors, set priorities/goals

Example: When infants smile when they are dreaming and alone in the room and it does something new

Test of Cross-Cultural Consistency

He worked with very remote people and brought them photos of people in the United States smiling

He found that mostly most emotions are universal and consistent

It was concluded that most facial recognition is the same cross-cultural

Basic/Primary Emotions

A small number of primary emotions are universal

Example: Happy/joy, disgust, sadness, surprise, anger, fear

Secondary Emotions

Are a mix of primary emotions

Smiles

Are universal

even in non-human primates

Duchene smile (real smile)

Formula for emotions

Physiological activation/arousal

Expressive behaviors/cultural cues

Conscious experience/cognitive label

James-Lange Theory

Your cognitive/conscious response follows your physiological response

Example:

• Bat come at you
• Then you start shaking
• Then that makes you fearful

Challenges to James-Lange Theory

Physiological reactions to different emotions are too similar

A lot of our reactions are non-specific

Some physiological responses happen too slowly to activate sudden emotions

Were James and Lange all wrong?

There are subtle differences among physiological response

"fake it till you make it"

Facial feedback

Facial Feedback

This is when you make yourself smile until you make yourself happy

Makes you shift your room

Cannon-Bard Theory

Proposed that both responses occur simultaneously and relatively independently

Schacter Theory

Emotional stimuli result in general physiological arousal

We interpret that arousal-make a cognitive appraisal and label the emotions

The idea of putting a label on the emotion

Shaky bridge study (Schacter Theory)

• No random Assignment
• IV: did you call her back?
• Misattribution of arousal
• 50% vs 12% however, they could just be more adventurous

Misattribution of Arousal

That physical state caused by a situation can be attributed to the wrong emotions

Physiological Arousal

Intensifies almost any emotion

Same with music

Yerkes-Dodson Law

For most tasks what oyu want is a medium level of arousal

• Because if it is too low: you are lazy
• Because if it is too high; you can not focus

The completlity it is to a task you want to do want a lower arousal

Happiness

Feel good, do good

When you are in a good mood you are nicer to other people

Measuring Happiness

1. Life satisfaction

2. Ladder measure

3. Positive and negative emotions

Things that don't affect happiness

Young people are usually unhappy compared to older

intelligence would make you feel more positive

having kids makes you less happy

being attractive will make you mid with happiness

Money

The complexity of the money/happiness link

Lottery winners

the U.S hasn't gotten happier

People in wealthy nations are, on average happier than those in poor nations

Scandinavian countries are happier because they have universal healthcare

The Danish Effect

Scandinavian countries are happier because they have the ability to psychologically care for citizens at every income level

2010 study: Daily experiences of happiness

money will bring you more positive emotion up until a point the topped out which is around $75,000, and you level off again

More recent (and bigger data using experiences sampling (done on your phone and a survey) did not find a limit after which money stopped increasing daily happiness

Us Household income and specific

Those in higher social classes report experiencing more self-oriented positive emotions:

• Pride
• contentment
• Amusement

Those in lower social classes report experiencing more other-oriented positive emotion:

• Compassion
• Love
• Awe

Hedonic Adaption

This is when you adapt to pleasure

Example:

• Say your parents give you $20 a week, at first it will feel good, and you will love it
• Then you get used to it, so $20 becomes your new normal, this is when we want more

Which is why we have a hard getting happier

What predicts happiness?

personality

• genetics is a part of it, but not all of it

Work

Gratitude

Social connections/relationships

Religiosity/purpose/meaning

Circumplex model

Emotions are plotted among two continuums:

1. Valence

• how negative or positive they are

2. Arousal

• How activating they are
• phycological response

Limbic System

Means of directly linking brain areas to specific emotional functions

In the Insula and the Amygdala

Prefrontal Cortex

Insula

Receives and integrates somatosensory signals from the entire body

Processes facial expresssion

The amygdala processes the emotional significance of stimuli, and it generates immediate emotional and behavioral reactions

It involves a circuit that has developed throughout evolution to protect animals from dangerous

Most important to emotional learning

Information reaches the amygdala along two separate pathways

polygraph test

Lie detecting test

Determines a person's level of emotions as indicated by automatic arousal, when confronted with central information

Emotions will cause arousal

Suppression

People attempt not to respond at all to the emotional stimulus

This often leads to the rebound effect

Rebounded Effect

Where people think about something because they tried to suppress it

Rumination

Involves thinking about, elaborating on, and becoming stuck in a cycle of undesired thoughts and feelings

5 ways to control your emotions

change the meaning, create mental distance, find humor, refocus your attention, distract yourself

Reappraising

directly alter emotional reaction to event

When you use something to take your mind off of something else

EXAMPLE:

Thinking about unicorns and rainbows after watching a scary movie

Create mental distance

taking a different perspective can help lower strong emotions

Self-distancing: Works by creating mental distance between yourself and the emotional stimulus

Find Humor

Using humor has many benefits for emotional well-being

positive effect

Refocus your attention

If you redirect your focus and focus on breathing a technique of ton taught as part of mindfulness training

Distract yourself

Doing another activity to distract yourself, this can backfire

Display rules

Rules learned through socialization that dictate which emotions are suitable for given situation

Explains cultural stereotypes

Explains why the identification of facial expression is much better within cultures than between cultures

Ideal Affect

Emotional and affective states that people want to feel or that cultures especially value

Guilt strengthens social bonds

Guilt is a negative emotional state associated with, anxiety, tension, and agitation

when someone feels responsible for another person's negative affective state

Drive

A psychological state that by creating arousal, motivates an organism that satisfy a need to reduce arousal

Homeostasis

The tendency for bodily function to maintain equilibrium

Incentives

External object of external goals, rather than internal drives, that motivate behavior

Extrinsic motivation (reward)

Motivation to perform an activity because of the external goals toward which that activity is directed

Example:

Studying to get an A

Intrinsic Motivation (Experience)

Motivation to perform an activity because of the value or pleasure associated with that activity rather than an apparent external goal or purpose

Example:

Learning to learn not for an A

Pleasure Principle

This encourages people to seek pleasure and avoid pain

SMARTS goals

Specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, time-bound, self-efficiency

Delayed Gatification

A key insight that people are especially motivated to achieve personal goals

Self-regulation

The process by which people direct their behavior toward the attainment of goals

Need to belong

A need for interpersonal attachments, a fundamental motive that has evolved for adoptive purposes

makes people care about wanting friends

Balance Theory

The idea is that people are motivated to achieve harmony in their interpersonal relationships.

Balance what you want for you

Core values

Strongly held beliefs, principles