Theories of Emotional Reactions - Essay Example

? Essay s School Topic Question: Describe a personal experience that was emotionally significant and critically analyze it with reference to one or more of the theories of emotion discussed on Exploring Emotion Psychosocially. Robert Feldman (1993) has categorized emotions as, “feelings that generally have both physiological and cognitive elements and that influence behavior”. Thus, by this definition it becomes clears that the concept of emotion has both physiological and cognitive explanations which are further justified by virtue of various theoretical frameworks put forth by various theorists. The literature on emotional psychology talks about biological, sociological and even psychosocial perspectives of these emotional responses. To shed light on the most dominant theories justifying each perspective, a few analogies and distinguishing patterns can be drawn. Zillmann (2010) for instance relates emotion to symbols and icons for having strong emphatic significance for an individual. He further develops an appraisal paradigm to explain emotion by virtue of moral assessment of individual as a part of the society. In contrast to Zillmann, William James (1890) focuses on the physiological aspects of emotion where he derives that emotion is a result of the realization of physiological responses for instance trembling. Darwin has also attempted to explain emotion via physiological responses in context to facial expressions, where cross cultural similarities can be observed (Oatley et al, 2006), for instance we can associate blushing with shame or modesty, which is a result of the gushing in blood vessels as a response to a situation. However, the work of Freud can also not be ignored in this regard as he has derived several explanations about affect (emotions) by seeking evidence from physiological study of human brain via his psychoanalytical theory (Hillman 1992). Later various other theories were derived supporting his theory for instance the object relations theory; however, it was rather inclined towards subjective understanding of experiences. Moreover, biological and neurological explanations have also been important sources for theorization of theories that have immense significance in even the contemporary research practices. The work of Schachter (1962) is significant in this regard as he adds to the William James theory by conducting an experiment which led him to the conclusion that both physiological as well as cognitive responses give rise to an emotional behavior. However, the literature doesn’t end here, and further explanations are still being derived regarding emotions. Though these contrasting theories compete with each other in terms of explaining behavioral patterns, but it can be derived that different theories offer explanations for reactions occurring in varied situations. Psychoanalytical theory may be appropriate for explaining or treating a case with anxiety due to problems with personal relations, married life or the like. But in case explanations are to be drawn for an emotional reflex response to a sudden situation like a burglar in the home, or a physical attack by an adversary. In such a situation, emotional responses can be understood in the light of neurological explanations regarding emotions. Also, cultural contexts are also important as individuals develop strong emotional attachments with physical objects of socio-cultural importance, thus social context is significant to study the essence of emotion in such a scenario. To further develop a deeper understanding of the concepts and theories, a personal experience can be narrated followed by an analysis explaining the emotional patterns. Not a very long time back, I happened to attend a concert with a few friends in the town next to mine. It was a late night event which started at about 11 in the night and was expected to end sometime the next morning. We went to attend the concert in a friend`s car, at the beginning the night was very eventful. We were all having fun, drinking and chanting to the tunes, whooping and howling along with the crowd, but things started getting rough when I got into an argument with one of the friends which eventually got escalated into a physical fight. Since I got too furious and repelled, I decided to leave the event and go back home early. Though, I had no ride for my way back home, the last subway had left so I decided to take a cab. The venue of the concert was located in a very dull night life, as I couldn’t spot many people surrounding the area. I had to walk a lot to find the main road, where there were chances of getting a conveyance. I was disturbed about what happened at that night, also daunted and uncertain about how I would reach back to my town. My ego didn’t allow me to seek help from any of my friends, and somewhere deep inside I had to prove my worth by “doing it myself”. After waiting for 10 minutes, I tracked a cab which was a symbol for relief for me. Without thinking much, I took the cab and asked the driver to drop me off at the desired destination to which he agreed readily. Once I sat in the cab I felt calmed and comforted which took me back to the thought of the incident which happened that night. After a few minutes, I realized that I was so lost in the thoughts that I had lost track of way which made me a little uncomfortable at that time. I asked the driver where we were, and he gave a very vague answer in an awkward tone. This drove my attention towards his expressions and apparel, which gave me a very inappropriate expression of the person. I tried switching to my phone to get a track on the way, but I realized my battery was dead. Soon, I realized that it was getting darker and the driver was taking me to a wrong direction, places that had no signs of life and no traffic on the way. I figured something was wrong; soon I started trembling which inflicted a feeling of fear and anxiety inside me. All kinds of unpleasant thoughts started surrounding me and soon, I found myself look for weapons as a means to defend myself. I could not find anything, so as a response I soon started opening the windows of the cab but the driver resisted stating it was chilly outside. This made me even more suspicious of the person, but I resisted back. Finally I gathered the guts to get aggressive and ask him assertively how far we were from the destination area. I insisted that I`m getting calls from my family and they want me to get home early. I even pretended to take some calls, reading boards in the way to the imaginary family members to put some pressure on the driver. Soon enough, even the driver became proactive and started getting a few calls, which I perceived as encoded messages from his other clan members. I even threatened him indirectly, but he seemed unaffected which was even more disturbing for me. The intensity of fear and anxiety was increasing and I was loosing the power to think. Shortly after, I saw an ambulance which had stopped on the way for some reason and I realized the driver had speeded the cab. I asked him to stop and when he resisted, I started banging the windows of the cab forcing him to stop drawing attention of the people near the ambulance. The cab stopped and I quickly jumped off and ran to the personnel near the cab for help. They realized the level of my anxiety and trauma by my face and my voice, and without asking further questions agreed to drop me back off, as my town was at a 10 minutes drive from there. I reached home safe and sound, without clearly realizing the intentions of the driver until now. In an attempt to understand all my emotional responses that night, I was able to connect the dots by applying different theories for various situations that occurred that night. That night was one of the longest and the most difficult nights of my life, and I experienced a gush of emotions all negative in nature that night. Sometimes, when I think back I realize that I even associated connections between things that didn’t even exist in real. In this context the theorization of concepts by Darwin, James William and even Singer & Schatcher makes sense as I was able to draw neurological even physiological connections to explain my emotional responses that night. Starting off with the theory of Darwin, it`s fascinating how he has drawn relations between the facial expressions of humans with other ancestral animals. If I analyze my emotions from that night, I can still recall my expressions indicating fear and anxiety. I can literally associate my expressions with what I was feeling inside, and if any situation occurs even now which triggers the feelings of emotions, my facial expressions remind me of that night. Thus, Darwin`s (2002) contribution in the field of experimental psychology is remarkable as he has figured patterns of data collection for other psychologists. For instance, my hair standing that night and my trembling occurred due to reactions by dermal apparatus in my body and the somatic nerves, which was symbolic for fear and anxiety. Further explaining the physiology behind the emotions, the James-Lange theory gives a classic explanation for all my emotional responses that might. This theory proposed by William James (1984) and Carl Lange suggests that the physiological reactions in the body give signals about how to react. For instance, if I analyze myself from that night, I`m still not sure if my reaction was justified or not as the driver may be taking me to the right way. However, the internal physiology of my body caused trembling and my hairs stood up, which was indicative of the fact that I was fearful and scared, also anxious. I already had a fight with a friend which has disturbed my internal physiology, which may have triggered the nerves sending anxiety messages to my body. It may have been the case that I was reacting to those previously triggered messages indicative of anxiety and this situation may just have intensified the emotions. I might assume that if I would have been relaxed early on, I might have perceived the reactions of the driver differently reacting in a different manner. In this context, I feel that Scachter and Singer theory (1962) also adds to the explanation for my emotional reactions. According to this theory, along with the physiological reactions in the body, the reasons behind the responses must also be known to further trigger the emotional response. Analyzing my responses and reactions exhibited that night, I feel that as the time passed by my emotions were intensified which further reached their threshold when I finally jumped off the cab. Initially, when I started to tremble, I couldn’t figure out the reason as I was still uncertain though a little scared. But as the situation unfolded, and I realized that we`re going on the wrong way and the driver is communicating with someone, also being awkward these were all signals explaining what could happen next. Thus, once I realized the reason behind my other emotional responses, the emotions intensified and I was able to take defensive measures. Thus, in my view the physiological and cognitive explanations best reflect the emotional behavior exhibited during the experience that I had witnessed. Damasio (2000) suggests that, “emotion is the cognitive awareness of the body”, which stands true with regard to the explanation stated above. Similarly, Richard (2004) is of the view that affect (emotion) relates to the neurobiological responses of the body. Both explanations contribute in explaining the gush of mixed emotions that I had experienced, in the light of all the theories justifying the responses. This brings me to the conclusion that in situations like the one that I had witnesses rather been through, the best explanation for all the sudden responses lies in the physiological as well as neurological study of human body in response to extreme situations. Though different theories diverge at a point, but every theory in its own sphere has only added to the research practices as well as in the field of clinical psychology. References Zillmann, D. (2010). 6 Mechanisms of emotional reactivity to media entertainments. The Routledge Handbook of Emotions and Mass Media, 101 Freud, S. (1942). Psychopathische Personen auf der Buhne. GW, Nachtragsband, 655-661. Freud, S. (1900). The interpretation of dreams. Standard Edition. London: Hogarth Press, 4, 1-338 DARWIN, C., EKMAN, P. & PRODGER, P. 2002. The expression of the emotions in man and animals, Oxford University Press, USA. OATLEY, K., KELTNER, D. & JENKINS, J. M. 2006. Understanding emotions, Wiley-Blackwell. Hillman, J. (1992). Emotion: a comprehensive phenomenology of theories and their meaning for therapy: Northwestern Univ Pr Schore, A. N. (1994). Affect Regulation and the Origin of the Self:: The Neurobiology of Emotional Development. Greenberg, J. R., & Mitchell, S. A. (1983). Object relations in psychoanalytic theory: Harvard Univ Pr James, W. (1884). What is an Emotion? Mind, 9(34), 188-205. James, W. (1890). The Principles of Psychology. 1950: Dover, New York. Schachter, S. Singer. JE (1962). Cognitive, social and physiological determinants of emotional state. Psychological Review, 69, 379-399. Schachter, S. S. (1962). JE (1962) Cognitive, social and physiological determinants of emotional state. Psychological review, 69, 379-399. FELDMAN, R. S. (1993). Understanding psychology. New York, McGraw-Hill Damasio, A. R. (2000). The feeling of what happens: Body and emotion in the making of consciousness: Mariner Books. Richards, B. (2004). The emotional deficit in political communication. Political Communication, 21(3), 339-352 Read More