SESSION 8

EMOTIONS: RIDING LIFE’S ROLLER COASTER

I. LESSON OBJECTIVES
After completing this chapter, you will be able to
• define the concept of emotions;
• identify the two basic psychological dimensions of emotions;
• describe the three aspects of all emotions;
• explain the three basic theories of emotions;
• specify how chronic stress affects general health;
• state the conditions of the four basic kinds of psychological conflict.

II. INTRODUCTION
• The story of motivation does not begin and end with the motives discussed
last week
• Emotions are also part of the story of motivation. The very word emotion
contains “motion” in it. (Whenever we act, we are, so to speak, in motion.)
• In this session, you will find out how emotions can double as motives and the
way in which emotions add color and dimension to life.
• Question to ponder: “What would life be like without emotions?”

III. EMOTIONS: WHAT ARE THEY?

• The word emotion is a contraction of two words: exit and motion.
• The ancient Greeks believed that the smiles and the frowns associated with
such states as happiness or sadness indicated that the soul was coming out
of the body and revealing itself. It was making an “exit motion.”
• This became “e-motion” or simply “emotion.”
• An emotion is,
o At the physiological level, a disruption in homeostatic base- lines.
There are changes in heart rate, respiration rate, and blood pressure.
These are fluctuations in arousal.
o At the psychological level, these physiological changes are
experienced as either greater excitement or increased calmness.
Human beings also experience these changes as either pleasant or
unpleasant.
• There are two basic psychological dimensions to emotions:
o Excitement-calm and pleasant-unpleasant.
o The pleasant-unpleasant dimension of emotions is identified as
hedonic tone.
▪ The concept of hedonism, as presented by the philosopher
Aristotle, was a motivational concept.
▪ Hedonism is the point of view that we approach stimulus
situations that are pleasant and avoid situations that are
unpleasant.
• The two dimensions of emotions generate four categories of emotions:
1. Excitement-pleasant,
2. Excitement-unpleasant,
3. Calm-pleasant.
4. Calm- unpleasant.
• All the many words that we use to describe emotions can be readily placed in
one of these categories.
• Words such as happy, joy, and ecstasy belong in category 1.
• Words such as anger, fear, and rage belong in category 2.
• Words such as relaxed, blissful, and tranquil belong in category 3.
• Words such as sad, melancholy, and depressed belong in category 4.
• There are three aspects to all emotions:
1. Cognitive
o The cognitive aspect of emotions refers to what one is thinking when
one feels an emotion.
o Thoughts such as “What a wonderful day,” “I hate him,” and “I think
we’re going to crash” are likely to either induce emotional states or be
associated with them.
2. Physiological
o The physiological aspect of emotions refers to the disruption of
homeo- static baselines. As already indicated, emotions are
associated with either increased or decreased arousal.
3. Behavioral.
o Fear is associated with increased arousal. Depression is associated
with decreased arousal.
o The behavioral aspect of emotions refers to what people do when they
feel an emotion, what actions they take.
IV. Theories of Emotion: Explaining the Process
• There are three principal theories of emotion that attempt to explain the
general emotional process:
1. The James-Lange theory
- Was proposed independently by two men, William James in the
United States and Carl Lange in Denmark. The theory states
that an emotion can be induced by an action.
- The following example is based on observations made by
James. Let’s say that you see a bear in a forest.
- Common sense tells you that if you run away, the action of
running is motivated by fear.
- On the other hand, according to James, common sense tells
only half of the story. It is equally true that running makes you
feel fear.
2. The Cannon-Bard theory
- Also known as the thalamic theory, is based on the
collaboration of the two researchers Walter B. Cannon and
Philip Bard.
- The Cannon-Bard theory recognizes that the brain’s thalamus
is a relay station. When information comes in from the senses
and arrives at the thalamus, the information is simultaneously
sent up to the cortex and down to the spinal cord.
- This means that we become conscious of the cause of an
emotion while our body is preparing to deal with it by making
changes in physiological arousal.
3. The cognitive appraisal theory.
- Proposed by the researcher Stanley Schachter, the cognitive
appraisal theory, also known as the labeling-of-arousal
hypothesis, states that a person’s self-labeling of a state of
arousal converts that state into a specific emotion.

V. Stress and Health: Wear and Tear Takes Its Toll

• It is widely recognized that increases in arousal tend to be associated with
stress. A formal distinction is made between a stressor and stress.
• A stressor refers to the source, or cause, of stress.
• The loss of a job, an argument with a spouse, a conflict situation, excessive
cold or heat, and a physical threat are examples of stressors.
 • Stress refers to wear and tear on the body. Chronic stress takes a toll. The
body loses some of its resilience, its ability to bounce back.
• The general adaptation syndrome (GAS), a pattern that describes how an
organism responds under conditions that induce chronic stress. There are
three stages in the general adaptation syndrome:
1. The alarm reaction
2. The stage of resistance
3. The stage of exhaustion.

VI. Conflict: Making Difficult Choices

Conflict is an important source of stress. Psychological conflict exists when we are
forced to make difficult choices in life. According to the social psychologist Kurt
Lewin, there are four basic ways to categorize conflict situations:
1. The approach-approach conflict
o Exists when an individual is presented with two desirable alternatives,
but only one alternative can be obtained.
o Desirable alternatives are termed positive goals.
o An approach-approach conflict might seem to induce relatively low
stress. After all, the individual has at least two good choices.
2. The avoidance-avoidance conflict
o An avoidance-avoidance conflict exists when the individual wants to
either escape from or avoid two undesirable alternatives. Undesirable
alternatives are termed negative goals.
o The central problem with this kind of conflict is that moving away from
one negative goal takes one in the direction of the other negative goal.
3. The approach-avoidance conflict.
o An approach-avoidance conflict exists when an individual perceives
the same goal in both positive and negative terms.
4. The double approach-avoidance conflict.
o A double approach-avoidance conflict exists when an individual
simultaneously perceives two goals in both positive and negative
terms. This conflict is a more complex version of the singular
approach-avoidance conflict.