User:S.emp/Week 10, lecture 8

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=Week 10, Lecture 8=

Aspects of Emotion
There is still debate whether biological or cognitive aspects create emotions, as the text book chapter puts it, whether it is the chicken or the egg. In other words, does an emotion lead our bodies to react in particular ways or does our body’s reaction lead us to identify our emotion. I have decided to pick two theories from each argument that interests me the most.

Biological Aspects of emotion
The James-Lang Theory is one biological aspect of emotion. The theory states that first there is a stimulus then the body reacts to this stimulus and from this change in a person’s body their emotions are expressed. Therefore, the theory goes against the traditional view that first a person experiences a stimulus then the emotion and then the body reacts to a particular emotional expression. There theory is based on two assumptions that the body reacts uniquely to different emotion producing circumstances and that the body reacts to non-emotion producing events. However, while the theory is extremely well-known in the academic world it has encountered a few criticisms. These criticisms are that a person’s bodily reactions are actually just part of the body’s general mobilizing fight/flight response and it does not vary from one emotion to another and that an emotional experience is seen to be quicker than bodily reactions in some situations.



The Facial Feedback Hypothesis is another biological theory that suggests that emotions come from three things, movements in the facial musculature, changes in facial temperature and changes in glandular activity in the facial skin. This theory therefore suggests that emotions are sets of muscle and glandular responses located in the face. The facial feedback system activates a person’s emotion/s and once it is activated it produces the emotional program and it is this program that then brings in the cognitive and bodily responses. There is mixed research about whether this theory is accurate, however, one thing that is agreed upon is that the change in facial feedback changes the intensity of the experiences emotions. I tried this theory and I found to some extent it works and I find that fascinating that if a person spends an amount of time smiling, their mood begins to match their outside appearance.

Cognitive Aspects of Emotion
A main theory in regards to the cognitive aspects of emotion is Appraisal. The theory suggests that how a person appraises a situation (primary appraisal) and how a person thinks they will cope with the even (secondary appraisal) will determine the emotion that they will feel. The Attribution theory states that people want to explain why they experienced a particular life event. According to Reeve (2009) attributions are important because they explain how a person’s outcome results in an emotional experience. A person’s outcome dependent emotional reactions are the primary appraisal of the outcome. Specific secondary emotion develops after this as a response to the event that has occurred. This is called the secondary appraisal of the outcome. The Attribution theory is centred on seven different emotions. These emotions are pride, hope, guilt, gratitude, anger, pity, shame and guilt.

At this stage I am not sure whether I believe that people have cognitive or biological aspects of emotions. Both theories have valid points, therefore, at this stage I feel that both biological and cognitive aspects are important in regards to a person’s emotions. I also think that social interactions play an important part in the development of a person’s emotional response.

Social Interactions
Social interactions are also an important contribution to social understanding of emotion. It is theorised that our emotions change depending on the cultural context. People from different cultures are thought to place different meanings on different emotions and from a social perspective it is thought that if a person changes the situation they are in then a person’s emotions will also change. Managing emotions is an important aspect of social interactions. Managing emotions is important for people who interact frequently, closely and intimately with the community. People need to be able to cope with aversive feelings in a way that is both socially acceptable and personally adaptive. I believe that if a person wants to be able to effectively function in society they need to learn to manage their emotions. I work in retail and while I can become frustrated and angry with a person on the inside, I have to appear calm, understanding and happy on the outside, due to the fact that if I let out my true emotions then it would only escalate the situation and I would probably get in trouble, as it is not socially acceptable to get upset at a customer when they are yelling at you, due to the fact that you are in a work environment and must at all times act professionally. Another example of managing emotions is a friend of mine, when she is upset or hurt she laughs and she has found that this is not socially acceptable, due to the fact that when people generally feel these emotions they become upset on the outside, some people even cry. She has found that if she laughs people stare at her and she has had to adapt to societies acceptable emotions, rather than displaying her natural response when something terrible occurs.