• Library Research Project• This project will entail library research of topics in

psychology provided by the Instructor. A paper will be written presenting reviews of a minimum of ten journal articles from separate journals found in the TCU library of a minimum of 50 words each. In addition to each review, the paper will note the bibliographic reference for each article and a description of the location in the TCU library where each can be found, noting the floor, topical section, library reference number and other location description. If you happen to get a duplicate topic they should not be the same content or citations. A list of possible topics will be available in class for you to pick from. Please use September 10 class period for your work so we will not meet on that day.

• Posted on elearning: 8/30/12

Textbook student resourceshttp://www.psypress.com/books/textbooks/resources/#intropsyc

CHAPTER 4

Psychology of EmotionTheories of Emotion

StressCoping with Stress

WHAT IS EMOTIONDistinct, integrated psychophysiological

response systems containing three differentiable response systems:

1. A prototypic form of expression, typically facial

2. A pattern of consistent autonomic changes

3. A distinct subjective feeling state

FACIAL RECOGNITION• Research: six emotional facial expressions• Happiness, surprise, anger, sadness, fear and

disgust• Ekman et al. (1972) then carried out cross-

cultural research on facial expressions in 10 different countries. – The findings were very similar across all

cultures, suggesting the six emotions identified are universal.–Nearly all the studies reviewed by Ekman et

al. (1972) were carried out in Western societies and are thus limited in scope.

TWO DIMENSIONAL MODEL

• Russell (e.g., Barrett & Russell, 1998) proposed a two-dimensional model of emotion more in line with our intuitions.

• According to this model, there are two independent dimensions: (1) pleasure–misery; and (2) arousal–sleep.

• The first dimension concerns the type of emotional experience (i.e., pleasurable or displeasurable) and the second dimension concerns its intensity.

The two-dimensional framework for emotion showing the two dimensions of pleasure–misery and arousal–sleep (Barrett & Russell, 1998) and the two dimensions of Positive Affect and Negative Affect (Watson & Tellegen, 1985). Based on Barrett and Russell (1998).

USEFULNESS OF EMOTIONS• Anxiety – selective attention to threat & initiate fight

or flight response• Anxiety = lower accidental death rate• Depression – increase focus on accurate analysis &

solution of problems you face• Depression=increase in support group

• The brain serves a special functioning in managing emotions and the resulting behavior

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QXI_BxlY7M&feature=player_embedded

THEORIES OF EMOTION

James-Lange Theory• The first major theory of emotion was put forward

independently by William James in the United States and Carl Lange in Denmark in the mid-1880s.

• According to this theory, three successive stages are involved in producing emotion:– There is an emotional stimulus (e.g., a car comes rapidly towards you as you cross the road).– This produces bodily changes (e.g., arousal in the autonomic nervous system).– Feedback from the bodily changes leads to the experience of emotion (e.g., fear or anxiety).

Studies have found that bodily feedback is not essential for emotion to be experienced

James–Lange Theory

Three successive stages:

Arousal-Interpretation TheorySchachter and Singer (1962)

– Two factors are essential for emotions to be

experienced:

• High physiological arousal

• An emotional interpretation of that arousal

– No emotion will be experienced if either is missing.

Important in the theory’s new emphasis on cognition in the study of emotion

Much of the theory found to be inconsistent, unclear and in some case, wrong

• Appraisal Theory• According to Lazarus (1982, 1991), emotional experience is

crucially dependent on cognitive appraisal (the interpretation of the current situation).

• Cognitive appraisal can be subdivided into three more specific forms of appraisal:– Primary appraisal: The situation is perceived as being positive, stressful,

or irrelevant to wellbeing.– Secondary appraisal: Account is taken of the resources available to the

individual to cope with the situation.– Re-appraisal: The stimulus situation and coping strategies are monitored,

with the primary and secondary appraisal being modified if necessary.

Smith & Kirby – Process appraisal: 2 types of appraisal: Reasoning and Associative Processing

• Smith and Lazarus (1993) theory accounted for our experience of different emotions.

• They argued that there are six appraisal components:– Primary: Motivational relevance—related to personal

commitments?– Primary: Motivational congruence—consistent with the

individual’s goals?– Secondary: Accountability—who deserves the credit or

blame?– Secondary: Problem-focused coping potential—how can the

situation be resolved?– Secondary: Emotion-focused coping potential—can the

situation be handled psychologically?– Secondary: Future expectancy—how likely is it the situation

will change?• Different emotional states can be distinguished on the basis of

which appraisal components are involved.

• The main limitation with earlier versions of appraisal theory is that little was said about the processes involved in appraisal.

• Smith and Kirby (2001) distinguished between two types of appraisal processes:– Reasoning: this involves a controlled and deliberate

thinking process that takes time and requires attentional resources.

– Associative processing: this involves rapid activation of relevant information stored in memory and occurs rapidly and automatically.

• Appraisal detectors monitor appraisal information from the reasoning and associative processes.

• This appraisal information determines the individual’s emotional experience.

• Appraisal theories oversimplify appraisal and the experience of emotion, which are more flexible and variable than assumed by the theories

• Appraisal theories minimize or negate the “social context” in which emotion is typically experienced.

• The complexity of the brain and its processes make clear and distinct theories difficult

• Is emotion physiological or cognitive?• Can emotion occur without arousal or

awareness?

MULTI LEVEL (SPAARS) APPROACH

• Power and Dalgleish (1997):– Schematic Propositional Associative and

Analogical Representational Systems (SPAARS):• Analogical system – Basic sensory info• Propositional system- Emotion free data• Schematic system- Creation of models• Associative system- Association of info &

automatically elicited emotions

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The SPAARS Approach

STRESS“…the psychological & physical strain or

tension generated by physical, emotional, social, economic, or occupational circumstances, events or experiences that are difficult to manage or endure.”

“…the body's reaction to a change that requires a physical, mental or emotional adjustment or response.”

• First to use the term in a biological context, Hans Selye defined stress as "the non-specific response of the body to any demand placed upon it.“

• Stress is a subjective experience – eyes of the beholder

There are four major kinds of effects from stress: 1. physiological2. emotional3. cognitive 4. behavioral

• Stress involves an immediate shock response followed by a countershock response.

• The first (shock) response depends mainly on the sympathetic adrenal medullary system (SAM), whereas the second or countershock response involves the hypothalamic pituitary–adrenocortical axis (HPA).

Stress Shock Response

STRESS AND ILLNESS

• Stress has been linked with numerous physical illnesses, including headaches, infectious disease, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, asthma, and rheumatoid arthritis (Curtis, 2000).

• It has also been linked with various mental disorders including anxiety and depression.

• Occupational stress:– Cartwright and Cooper (1997): occupational stress costs American

businesses more than $110 billion a year.– Karasek (1979): lack of perceived control.– Spector, Dwyer, and Jex (1988): low levels of perceived control were

associated with frustration, anxiety, headaches, stomach upsets, and visits to the doctor.

STRESS AND ILLNESS

• Occupational stress:– Marmot et al. (1997) and Bosma, Stanfeld, and

Marmot (1998) reported workers on the lowest employment grades were FOUR times more likely to die of a heart attack than those on the most senior grade. Lack of perceived control.

– They were also more likely to suffer from cancer, strokes, and gastrointestinal disorders.

LIFE EVENTS AND HASSLES

• Life events are often major negative events or occurrences (e.g., death of a loved one) that cause high levels of stress, although some life events are relatively minor.

• Hassles are the minor challenges and interruptions (e.g., arguing with a friend) of everyday life. – On average, people experience at least one hassle on

about 40% of the days in each week (Almeida, 2005).• Holmes and Rahe (1967) developed the Social Readjustment

Rating Scale to assess life events. -- useful to screen for current level of stress being experienced

VULNERABILITY TO STRESS

• Type A Behavior Pattern:– Friedman and Rosenman (1959): Types A and B.– Type A individuals are hard-driving, competitive, and aggressive

individuals– Type B individuals are more relaxed and laid-back. – Rosenman et al. (1975) found of nearly 3200 men having no

symptoms of coronary heart disease at the outset of the study, Type As were nearly twice as likely as Type Bs to have developed coronary heart disease over the following 8–12 years.

– Findings from studies after have been inconsistent.

• Type D personality:– Consists of a combination of high negative

affectivity plus high social inhibition (inhibited behavior in social situations to avoid disapproval).

– Type D personality was much more common among hypertension patients (54%) and coronary patients (27%) than it was among people from the general population (19%).

– Type D individuals are also at much greater risk than non-Type D ones for post-traumatic stress, reduced longevity, and development of cancer.

• Type A individuals report high levels of stress, as do those high in

negative affectivity or with Type D personality.

• Type A individuals are generally slightly more likely than Type Bs to

develop coronary heart disease.

• Type D individuals are more susceptible than others to various diseases.

The evidence suggests that the Type D personality may be the personality

type most associated with stress-related diseases.

• Negative affectivity is only slightly associated with actual physical illness.

• Some evidence suggests that the hostility component of Type A

personality is most associated with coronary heart disease, but this has

not been clearly established.

• Stress produces various changes in the immune system and

increases the likelihood of developing certain physical diseases.

• We now have a fairly clear picture of the effects of different

kinds of stressor on the immune system.

• Stress typically has fairly modest effects on the functioning of

the immune system.

• However, we still don’t know the extent to which the effects of

stress on susceptibility to disease depends on changes within

the immune system.

• The Multidimensional Coping Inventory (Endler & Parker, 1990) is a fairly representative self-report questionnaire, assessing three major coping strategies:

– Task-oriented strategy: This involves obtaining information about the stressful situation and alternative courses of action and their probable outcome. It also involves deciding on priorities and dealing directly with the stressful situation.

– Emotion-oriented strategy: This can involve efforts to maintain hope and to control one’s emotions. It can also involve venting feelings of anger and frustration, or deciding that nothing can be done to change things.

– Avoidance-oriented strategy: This involves denying or minimizing the seriousness of the situation. It also involves conscious suppression of stressful thoughts and their replacement by self-protective thoughts.

• Coping strategies are important in determining the effects of stressful events on an individual’s mental and physical state.

• There is reasonable agreement on the major coping strategies (e.g., task-oriented; avoidance-oriented).

• The coping strategies used by individuals in their actual behavior may not be the same as the coping strategies they claim to use on self-report questionnaires.

• Questionnaires often focus on individuals’ preferred coping strategies in a very general way. Such a broad assessment may not allow us to predict how individuals will respond to a specific stressor.

FAMILIES OF COPING

• Problem solving: Includes various activities including instrumental action; direct action; decision making; and planning.

• Support seeking: Includes comfort seeking; help seeking, and spiritual support.

• Escape: Includes avoidance; disengagement; and denial

• Distraction: Includes acceptance and engaging in alternative pleasurable activities (e.g., exercise; reading).

• Positive cognitive restructuring: Includes positive thinking and self-encouragement.

• Rumination: Includes intrusive thoughts; negative thinking, self-blame; and worry.

FAMILIES OF COPING

Helplessness: Includes inaction; passivity; giving up; and pessimism.

Social withdrawal: Includes social isolation; avoiding others; and emotional withdrawal.

Emotional regulation: Includes emotional expression; emotional control; and relaxation.