Chapter 6

Emotions

 Ali held in his hands the envelope he had been waiting for. It could be the ticket to his future: an offer of admission to Sukkur IBA. But what was it going to say? He knew it could go either way. His grades were pretty good, and he had been involved in some extracurricular activities, but his Entrance Test scores had not been terrific. He felt so nervous that his hands shook as he opened the thin envelope (not a good sign, he thought). Here it comes. Dear Mr. Ali, it read. The Admission committee of Sukkur IBA pleased to admit you. . . . That was all he needed to see. With a whoop of excitement, Ali found himself jumping up and down happily. A rush of emotion he felt.

 At one time or another, all of us have experienced the strong feelings that accompany both very pleasant and very negative experiences. Perhaps we have felt the thrill of

getting a sought-after job, the joy of being in love, the sorrow over someones death,

 Despite the varied nature of these feelings, they all represent emotions. Although everyone has an idea of what an emotion is, formally defining the concept: A response that includes feelings such as happiness, fear, sadness, grief, sorrow etc: it is the amalgamation of: i. Physiological arousal, ii. Expression of and iii. The conscious or the cognitive experience of the situation that influence behavior.

Think, for example, about how it feels to be happy. First, we obviously experience a feeling that we can differentiate from other emotions. It is likely that we also experience some identifiable physical changes in our bodies: Perhaps the heart rate increases, oras in the example of Aliwe find ourselves jumping for joy. Finally, the emotion probably encompasses cognitive elements: Our understanding and evaluation of the meaning of what is happening prompts our feelings of happiness.

Components of emotional experience

Physiological

Behavioral

Cognitive

Physiological/ physical component Behavioral;

It usually accompanies the emotion the body is feeling. If the body did not experience this arousal, the intensity of this emotion would be greatly decreased. E.g: Increased heart rate, pulse rate, increased breathing

Physiological/ physical component Behavioral;

Heart rate Pulse rate Respiration Blood pressure Digestion and appetite Muscular activity Body temperature Perspiration Endocrine and neurotransmitter secretions Blood sugar Salivary gland activity Pupil dilation.

Behavioral component This component

has been called the outward expression of our emotions. Body gestures, posture, facial expressions, and our tone of voice display what emotions we are feeling. Many of our facial expressions are universal. For instance, if somebody has a mad look on their face, it doesn't matter what language they speak or where they are from

Cognitive component: Its how we interpret certain situations or stimulations. This determines which emotion our body will feel. For example; if you are alone, sitting in the dark, watching a scary movie, and you hear a loud noise, you may become scared... fearing that there is an immediate threat or that you are in danger.

The Functions of Emotions

Imagine what it would be like if we didnt experience emotion. We would have no depths of despair, no depression, and no remorse, but at the same time we would also have no happiness, joy, or love. Obviously, life would be considerably less satisfying and even dull if we lacked the capacity to sense and express emotion. But do emotions serve any purpose beyond making life interesting?

Role of Emotions in Every Day Life

Psychologists identified number of functions: 1. Preparing us for action : After seeing a snake or after an un usual incident as natural disaster; the body is prepared to stirred up our bodies to face and deal them. 2. Modifying the future responses and behavior: Learning take place after the emotional state that prepares us to manifest appropriate behaviors in future, i.e., strategies should be adopted to minimize the aftermath of disasters and avoid us to face the snake.

 Helping us interact more effectively with others: We often communicate the emotions we experience through our verbal and nonverbal behaviors, making our emotions obvious to observers. These behaviors can act as a signal to observers, allowing them to understand better what we are experiencing and to help them predict our future behavior.

Common Emotions: Range of Emotions

There are number of basic emotion that have been identified by people in instance. They are: Happy Anger Fear Disgust Surprise Sadness.

Mc Dougall divided Emotions into three types

1. Primary: Simple emotions as fear, happiness, anger, disgust etc. 2. Secondary: Mixture of various instincts as curiosity, escape etc. 3. Derived: Learn through experiences such as sadness, boredom etc.

Role of the Nervous System in Emotions

All the emotional experiences and their expressions are controlled and regulated by the autonomic or visceral nervous system. A.N.S. is an integral part of peripheral nervous system.

Autonomic Nervous System (A.N.S) Considered as the self governing or selfregulatory mechanism because of our involuntary control over it. Control the glands and muscles of our internal organs such as heart (heart beat), stomach (digestion) and glandular activity. A.N.S. has a dual function; i.e. both arousing and calming.

Sympathetic Nervous System (S.N.S) This part of A.N.S. arouses us for defensive action. If something alarms or enrages someone, the sympathetic nervous system will accelerates heart beat, slow digestion, raises the sugar level in blood, dilates the arteries and cool the perspiration, making one alert and ready for action.

Parasympathetic Nervous System When the stressful situation subsides, parasympathetic nervous system started its activity. It produces opposite effect to that of sympathetic nervous system. It conserves energy by decreasing heartbeat. Lowering blood pressure. Lowering blood sugar and so on. In daily life situation, both sympathetic and parasympathetic systems work together to keep us in steady internal state (homeostasis

Physiological Changes during Emotions

Respiratory Changes The most apparent and obvious change during emotions. During emotions, respiration increases; occurs also when the person is happy or excited. But the production and secretion of saliva decreases as the process of respiration increases.

2. Pupillometrics Darwin was the first person who identifies this phenomenon. Pupil of the eye is very responsive during emotions. Dilates at favorable stimulus and contracts at unfavorable stimulus. Our pupil is also very responsive to favorable and unfavorable sounds and taste.

3.Changes in Blood Pressure and heart rate

Variations in blood pressure occur during emotions; usually increases during an emotional state. Heartbeat also increases during emotions. Increased blood pressure and heightened heart rate for prolonged periods may lead to coronary heart disease.

Gastrointestinal Function
Stomach and intestines are also very responsive to emotional states. They either start working at a very high rate or stop entirely. During strong emotional arousal, its working speed decreases and flow of blood is more towards the brain and the skeletal muscles rather than these organs.

Other Common Bodily Changes during Emotions Dryness of throat and mouth, Muscle tension, Weakness or fainting, Trembling, and Sinking feeling in heart or stomach

Theories of Emotions Psychologists have attempted to define and explain the emotional arousal and physiological conditions that accompany them. A number of theories have been developed in this regard, but the most famous ones are; James- Lange theory of emotions Cannon- Bard theory of emotions Schachter- Singer theory of emotions; (Cognitive Labeling Theory/ Two Factor Theory)

1. James- Lange Theory of Emotions Earliest theory of emotion; now considered as the classical approach to emotions. Given by American psychologist, William James and Danish psychologist, Carl Lange in the 19th century.

 Emotional experience occurs in reaction to instinctive bodily events that take place as a result of an external situation: we feel sorry because we cry, angry because we strike, afraid because we tremble (James, 1890). Physiological changes create specific sensations, and our brain interprets these sensations as different emotions.

1. James- Lange Theory of Emotions

Theory asserts that awareness of the physiological responses determines our emotional arousal.

Sequence of Events in James-Lange Model Experience of an emotion-involving situation i.e., find oneself in a waiting room before first job interview. Physiological responses take place; visceral bodily changes are activated e.g. pounding heart, sweaty palms, respiration increases and other physiological states. Brain interprets these physiological changes as emotional experience. In the case of the interview situation, fear.

Criticism against James-Lange model

On most emotional occasions we experience the emotion quite immediately after a triggering stimulus e.g. hearing loud bang and being startled. Are our visceral responses that fast?? Many a time we dont even have enough time for this intermediate part. We feel the emotion immediately after the stimulus is registered e.g. feeling disgust at the very sight of someone we hate.

 The most basic criticism of this theory is emotional experience (fear) results from the physiological responses after evaluating the situation. On many occasions we experience physiological changes but no emotion e.g. patients of hypertension experience raised blood pressure but do not experience associated emotion. It is the case with joggers whose heart does pound but there is no emotional experience. How do same physiological changes create different emotional experiences???

2. Cannon- Bard Theory of Emotions Given by Walter Canon and Philip Bard in 1920s The theory assumes that emotional states and the physiological reactions work independently, but are triggered by the same nerve impulse simultaneously.

SEQUENCE OF EVENTS IN CANNON-BARD THEORY 1. Perception of the emotion-inducing stimulus 2. Thalamus is activated. 3. Thalamus sends messages to two sites i.e., a) The Autonomic nervous system, thereby producing a visceral response. b) The cerebral cortex receives a message regarding the nature of emotion being experienced.

Major drawback
Research has shown that it is the hypothalamus and the limbic system that are responsible for emotional experience, and not the thalamus!!!!!