Emotion

How do emotions help with coordinated action?

- Emotions can provide timely social rewards for other people's actions - We get feedback from others through emotional expression which can inform us how to act - Ex) babies who cannot speak communicate with parents on likes and dislikes through smiling, cooing, and crying.

Emotions and commitment

- Emotions can signal commitment to the welfare of others- we show concern when others are distressed showing that we will make sacrifices on their behalf - Emotions can help us put our own self-interest aside to help others- feelings like guilt can motivate us to put others needs before our own- we may be more inclined to apologize, make amends, and sacrifices for others

emotions and status

- Emotions help us figure out our place in social groups - embarrassment endears us to others - Expressing anger can cause us to attribute higher status to the individual

Stephanie and Michael both ate underwhelming meals at the dining hall. After the meal, a researcher approached Stephanie and asked her about her life-satisfaction. A different researcher asked Michael the same question, but first asked him how his meal was. According to the feelings- as-information hypothesis, who should feel happier and why?

- Michael because he could attribute his negative feelings to the bad meal

On a rainy day, people reported higher life satisfaction when asked about the weather first. Why? What topic does this demonstrate?

- Reminding them of the weather allowed them to realize that their mood was not global, and that if they were feeling slightly down they could attribute a low mood to the weathers, not their overall life satisfaction. - This relates to feelings-as-information

ways to cultivate happiness

- Simply being around others - Money (up to a certain point) - Practicing daily gratitude- being thankful for the things we have - Giving to others- donating

How is being able to recognize emotions of others adaptive?

- We can determine if something is safe or dangerous o Ex) disgust protects us from potentially unsafe things- could help avoid ingesting something poisonous - Can help us reach social goals o Informs us on how to act in accordance to social norms o Embarrassment endears us o Anger helps us restore justice (right vs wrong) - Broaden and build hypothesis: o Positive emotions signal safety and allow us to expand our resources o People who are more positive have a better working memory, improved attention, verbal fluency, and openness to new ideas. o Not necessarily immediate survival benefits but can enhance one's survival in the long-term by building more social relationships

what did the Iowa gambling task show us about how emotions help guide our decisions?

- goal of the task is to choose from a good deck- good decks had a higher probability fo winning - brain patients with lesions in emotional centers of the brain were unable to learn which were good vs bad decks, while normal patients developed an uncocinsous rule for choosing good decks over time due to a gut feelings - brain patients did not register the negative outcomes from picking from bad decks and didn't learn- they continued to pick across all the decks - skin conductance test showed that brain patients didn't form an anticipatory negative response towards bad decks

what can we look to to determine if someone is lying

- words - body (fidgeting body) - facial expressions - voice (slow in speech, increase in hesitations, and changes in pitch)

what are the 6 universal emotions

1- Anger 2- Fear 3- surprise 4- happiness 5- sadness 6- disgust

3 theories of emotion

1- James-Lange 2- Canon Bard 3- Schacter-Singer (appraisal theory)

these three things lead to cultural differences in emotions

1- focal emotions 2- affect valuation theory 3- display rules

the 5 domains for the moral foundations theory include:

1- impurity/degradation 2- authority/subversion 3- betrayal/loyalty 4- care/harm 5- fairness/cheating

what can influence our integration of events

1- schemas 2- prior experiences 3- personality (some people are more prone to fear responses vs others)

properties of emotion

1- short in duration 2- valenced 3- capable of altering our though process 4- trigger action

in the weather study experimenters tested the feelings-as-information theory. In one condition they asked people how the weather was before rating their life satisfaction. In another they asked about life-satisfaction first. What was the result? why?

1. asked about the weather first: - on a sunny vs on a cloudy day asked about weather first: people we able to attribute their positive or negative mood to the weather- self-corrected so life-satisfaction was more stable - life satisfaction was pretty much the same in both groups 2. asked about weather second - life satisfaction was lower on a cloudy day- people didn't have something to blame for their negative mood on a cloudy day, or good mood on a sunny day, so they attributed emotions to overall life-satisfaction - life satisfaction was much higher on a sunny day compared to the cloudy day

one cultural difference between Americans and easterners, is that...

Americans are quicker to excitement and eastern cultures are on average more calm

purity/degradation

Centers on avoiding dangerous diseases and contaminants, and more metaphorically, socially impure ideas or actions. Disgust is the emotion at the core of such intuitions.

appraisal theory (schachter-Singer)

Interpretation of the event by the individual determines what emotion is experienced - explains why people can have different emotional responses to the same stimuli

"my feet are cold, I must be nervous"

James Lange theory

a perceived event leads to an physiological response which then leads to emotional experience

James Lange theory

Lisa and Lori are studying when a very attractive person stops by to visit. Lisa's palms start to sweat, her heart rate increases, and her stomach seems to do flip-flops. In contrast, Lori's face flushes, her muscles tense up and her hands feel cold. Each woman experiences a different emotion based solely on the differences in their physiological responses to the situation. This interpretation best demonstrates the _____ theory of emotion.

James lange theory

different patterns of physiological responses causes emotions

James-Lange Theory

what is immune neglect

Tendency to neglect the speed and strength of the "psychological immune system" which enables emotional recovery and resilience after bad things happen

pursuit of happiness. how?

Trying to find joy and contentment 1- practice gratitude- show app reaction for the things you do have 2- give to others- people felt better when they purchased something for someone else rather than themself 3- focus on spending money on experiences rather than things 4- money (only increased happiness up until 75,000) 5- older people actually are happier

What is focalism?

a tendency to focus too much on a central aspect of an event while neglecting the possible impact of associated factors or other events

moral foundations theory

a theory proposing that there are five evolved, universal moral domains in which specific emotions guide moral judgments this domains include: - care/harm - loyalty/betrayal - fairness/cheating - authority/subversion - purity/degradation

emotions that are valued play a more important role in the social lives of individuals in a specific culture- this explains why we get focal emotions

affect valuation theory

in a study, people overestimated how sad they would be after a 2 month break up. what is this an example of?

affective forecasting - predicting future emotions such as whether an event will result in happiness, anger, or sadness and for how long

Someone asks you how happy you would be and for how long if you won 1,000 bucks. You say probably a year. You end up winning 1,000 dollars and when asked only 2 months after how happy you are you don't report feeling too great. what does this show

affective forecasting- when we try to predict or emotions to future events sometimes we can "forecast" incorrectly, overestimating or underestimating our emotional response and the duration

focal emotion

an emotion that is especially common within a culture they are expressed with greater frequency and intensity in everyday life ex) Mexico is a proud culture, Tibetans are compassionate, Brazilians are flirtatious, etc.

this theory helps explain why different people can have different response to the same stimuli- it all depends on how the individual interprets the stimuli- this interpretation leads to the emotion they will feel

appraisal theory (schacter-Singer)

physiological arousal and cognitive interoperation work together to influence our emotions

appraisal theory- schachter singer

you love roller coasters- when your heart races you interpret it as using of excitement and get super pumped. Your friend on the other hand hates roller coasters- when their heart begins racing they interpret this as fear.

appraisal theory- sxhacater singer

give an example of how emotions can be valences?

bittersweetness- nostalgic so happy but also sad that that part of your life is over surprise party- startled and slightly angry for the surprise but also happy that you are having a party

positive emotions broaden our thoughts and actions helping us to build social resources

broaden and build hypothesis

people with positive outlooks are able to be more flexible in their reasoning by considering aspects of the other side. For example, people who feel good about themself see more overlapping qualities with themself and their friends or romantic partner.

broaden and build hypothesis- feeling positively can widen our thoughts and actions so that we are more open to outgroups

my heart starts to race as I climb higher and higher in the tree.

canon-bard theory

theory that states that both emotion and physiological responses occur simultaneously due to the thalamus sending information to the cerebral cortex and PNS simultaneously

canon-bard theory

Fairness/Cheating

concerns that others will act justly and avoid deceiving or unfair acts. failure to reciprocate generous acts leads to violations fairness and emotions like anger

display rules

culturally determined rules that determine how, when, and to whom we display emotion to you can mask or neutralize an emotion in order to act in a way that is culturally expected

Many people in Asian cultures report suppressing positive emotions about themselves because it is culturally inappropriate to brag abut one's accomplishments

display rules

Janis smiles after eating the meal her mother worked tirelessly over but is actually disgusted by the meal. In her culture, it would be extremely rude to insult her mother's cooking. this is an example of

display rules- she can mask her real emotion to act in a way that is culturally expected these rules determine how, when, and to whom emotion can be displayed to

The duration of a colonoscopy had no impact on how people perceived the event. It was rated as particularly more uncomfortable if the end of the procedure was more painful. Those who had discomfort throughout the procedure which lasted longer, but no peak pain were more willing to have the 5 year follow up

duration neglect

the length of a pleasurable experience is minimally related to the overall recollection

duration neglect

affective forecasting

efforts to predict one's emotional reactions to future events and for how long

emotions vs mood

emotions are temporary- they have a clear start and a clear end and they decay overtime - they are valenced (can be positive, negative, or a mix of both) mood is longer lasting

What does it mean when we say emotions trigger action tendencies?

emotions tell us how to react- do we approach or avoid a situation based on if an emotion is good or bad we will react to a stimulus differently--- avoid (fight or flight response) vs approach

affect valuation theory

emotions that promote important cultural ideals are valued and will tend to play a more prominent role in the social lives of individuals

When people are asked about the weather, then life satisfaction, they report _____ life satisfaction despite the weather (Mood attributed to weather not life satisfaction)

equal

macro emotions

expressions you are aware of and they are easy to conceal

what are moral judgements?

fast and automatic intuitions we first arrive at a decision based on a gut feeling or emotional response and then reason through that decision later these decisions are not often changeable through reasoning

the way we feel about an experience guides our decision making

feelings-as-information

authority/subversion

finding one's place in a social hierarchy - respecting authority emotions like embarrassment, shame, pride, fear, and awe

emotions that are relatively common in every day life of members of a culture and are expressed with greater frequency and intensity

focal emotions

You are so focused on taking the GRE and expect to be so happy when it is done because it will help you land your dream job. You fail to consider that even after the exam scores arrive, other events like health problems, conflicts with family, etc. also will impact your future happiness.

focalism when we focus too much one the central features of an event and neglect the impact of other events/factors

after a significant other breaks up with us we are focused on the initial heartbreak, but fail to consider the other aspects of our life that bring us happiness

focalism- focus on the central features of an event and ignore other factors and their impact

care/harm

focus on the suffering of other- if we see others are weak or in pain it elicits sympathy in us

Our tendency to think others actions are driven by their disposition rather than considering environmental factors

fundamental attribution error

Willow and Tara are on their way to class, and Tara accidentally misses a turn while driving. Willow gets frustrated and says, "You have such a bad sense of direction!" while not noticing the street sign for the turn had been obscured by a tree branch. Which concept below helps explain Willow's attribution?

fundamental attribution error

duration neglect

giving relative unimportance to the length of an emotional experience, whether pleasurable or unpleasant, in judging and remembering the overall experience

the tendency for people to underestimate their ability to be resilient and bounce back from trauma. They often overestimate the extent to which life's problems will reduce their well-being

immune neglect

Bob just lost his job and thinks to himself, I'm never going to find another job- heck I'll probably be unemployed for 5 years and turn into a bum. A week later Bob already has a job offer and is feeling much better. what does this demonstrate?

immune neglect- he underestimated his ability to be resilient and overcome hardship

in what type of cultures are words to describe feelings of shame and embarrassment more common

interdependent cultures - this suggest self conscious emotions are highly focal in interdependent cultures - better to blend into the crowd and people experience shame when they deviate from the norm (unlike independent cultures)

micro expressions

involuntary expressions of emotions that are hard to detect to the untrained eye (occur in 1/25 of a second)

what does this example demonstrate? Frank's beloved dog was killed by a car in front of his house. Frank has heard that some people occasionally eat dog meat, and he was curious about what it tasted like. So he cut up the body and cooked it and ate it for dinner. How wrong is it for Frank to eat his dead dog for dinner?

moral judgements allow us to automatically perceive this behavior as wrong- we know it is wrong right away and then later reason through why

When only asked about life satisfaction, people were _____ satisfied with their lives on sunny days

more

when faced with a threat, our emotions cause our attention to _____. we are more focused on the threat at hand

narrow attention

How can emotions alter our thought processes- especially for positive vs negative emotions?

negative emotions narrow our attention- you fixate on the bad and the threat in your environment positive emotions widen your attention (broaden and build)

Actor-observer bias has to do with how we view ____ and ____

others and ourselves

loyalty/betrayal

pertains to the commitments we make to groups

define emotions

psychological and physiological reactions to changes in our relationship to the world; usually short in duration - they are temporary - short in duration - they are valences- they can be positive, negative, or a mix of both

what did skin conductance testing reveal in brain patients vs normal patients in the Iowa gambling task?

skin conductance test showed that brain patients didn't form an anticipatory negative response towards bad decks while normal patients did

the idea that people first have fast, emotional reactions to morally relevant events, and then rely on reason to arrive at a judgment of right or wrong

social intuitionist model of moral judgment

social intuitionist model of moral judgment

the idea that people first have fast, emotional reactions to morally relevant events, and then rely on reason to arrive at a judgment of right or wrong have a feeling first, and then reason through to make a judgement reasoning justifies or moral intuition after the fact

broaden-and-build hypothesis

the idea that positive emotions broaden thoughts and actions, helping people build social resources helps us build friendships and social networks

what key parts of an event do we remember ?

the peak moment of pleasure - like when you first taste chocolate and the end strongly predicts how you will feel about the overall experience NOT the duration (duration neglect)

James-Lange Theory

the theory that our experience of emotion is our awareness of our physiological responses to emotion-arousing stimuli a physiological response causes us to be aware of an emotion each emotion has a different pattern of physiological changes and we interpret those changes and prescribe the emotion bottom up process because we feel the emotions from external stimulus and then interpret bodily responses

Canon-Bard Theory

theory of emotion that asserts that the physiological and cognitive aspects of emotion occur simultaneously and collectively lead to the behavioral reaction emotion and physiological repose occur at the same time - thalamus sends into to the cerebral cortex (where emotion becomes conscious) and the PNS (where physiological messages are sent from)

feelings-as-information

we use our emotions as guides for our decision-making