What Are Emotions?
Josh Dickson, MSc., ADAP (Acc.), EMDR (Acc.)
Founder of Resurface (surf-therapy programmes) | EMDR Consultant & Positive Psychologist | Supervisor | Transforming Lives with Evidence-Based Therapies
Emotions are complex and fascinating phenomena that have intrigued philosophers, psychologists, and neuroscientists for centuries. There is no single answer to how emotions are created, but there are different theories and perspectives that try to explain the nature and origin of emotions.
One perspective is that emotions are basic and innate mental states that are triggered by specific stimuli and have distinct patterns of brain activity, facial expressions, and bodily responses. This is called the basic emotion theory, and it proposes that there are a few universal emotions, such as happiness, sadness, anger, fear, disgust, and surprise, that are shared by all humans and even some animals 1.
Another perspective is that emotions are constructed by the brain from more general psychological processes, such as attention, perception, memory, and conceptualization. This is called the psychological construction theory, and it suggests that there are no fixed categories of emotions, but rather a variety of emotional experiences that depend on the context, the culture, and the individual’s interpretation of the situation 2.
A third perspective is that emotions are influenced by cognitive processes, such as thoughts, beliefs, expectations, and goals. This is called the cognitive theory of emotion, and it argues that emotions are not just automatic reactions to stimuli, but rather involve appraisal and evaluation of the relevance and meaning of the situation for the self. 3.
These are just some of the major theories of emotion that have been proposed by different researchers over time. There are also other theories that emphasize the role of physiological responses3, neurological mechanisms4, social interactions5, or evolutionary adaptations6 in emotion generation.
领英推荐
Emotions are not just simple feelings that happen to us, but rather dynamic and multifaceted processes that shape our perception, cognition, behaviour, and well-being. Emotions are an essential part of what makes us human.
At Resurface we fall in to the cognitive theory of emotion, believing that emotions are an automatic responses to prior value-judgements and that emotion is the psychosomatic manifestation of how a person perceives the positive or negative impact of a certain aspect of reality on themselves.
Where do you stand in the debate about emotions? Please let us know in the comments below.