The Universal Emotions

Objectives

• Understanding the differentiation and intensity of emotions assists in communicating emotional expressions
• Emotional awareness is important
• Plan how to positively communicate emotional expressions

Activity 1

• Identify emotions being shown in pictures

The Universal Emotions

• Charles Darwin suggested seven universal emotions associated with facial expressions
• Darwin's findings were published in "The Expression of Emotions in Man and Animals" in 1872
• The seven universal emotions are surprise, sadness, disgust, happiness, fright, anger, and contempt
• Emotions are connected to the brain, communicating through facial expressions
• Universal emotions are common, regardless of culture, age, race, language, & religion

Basic Emotions

• Joy is the emotion evoked by well-being, success, good fortune, or possessing one desires.
• Sadness is an emotion of grief or unhappiness characterized by disappointment, hopelessness, disinterest, and dampened mood.
• Anger is a strong feeling of displeasure and antagonism.
• Fear is an unpleasant, often strong emotion caused by anticipating or being aware of danger.
• Trust is a feeling reflecting a firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something
• Disgust is a feeling of revulsion or disapproval aroused by something unpleasant or offensive.
• Surprise is the feeling caused by something unexpected or unusual
• Anticipation is the act of looking forward, be it expectation or hope

Psychologist Robert Plutchik

• According to Robert Plutchik, there are 8 basic types of emotions
  • Joy-sadness
  • Anger-fear
  • Trust-disgust
  • Surprise-anticipation

Intensity of Emotions

• Emotional intensity refers to variations in the magnitude of emotional responses, which is an extreme degree of feeling
• Emotional intensity identifies the individual's action, ranging from mild, moderate, to strong
• Too strong emotions may compel a person to do something beyond the normal
• Strong emotions should be cautiously dealt with so to avoid actions that one might regret
• If one feels ecstasy after winning the lottery, an overjoyed person might suffer a heart attack
• Experiencing feelings of terror, for example, when someone is trying to abuse you, may result in silence and failure to seek help
• Suicide is often caused by too much grief after losing a partner, girlfriend or boyfriend
• The inner circle are emotions with the strongest intensity
• The next circle are the basic emotions with moderate intensity
• The outermost circle are the emotions with the mildest intensity
• When two basic emotions on the second circle are combined, it results in another emotion

Limbic System

• The limbic system controls emotion, memories, and arousal.
• The amygdala, which is almond-shaped, is located deep in the brain's temporal lobe and is part of the limbic system
• The almond-shaped section of nervous tissue, the amygdala, is the center of emotional processing
• The amygdala is responsible for anger, fear, and sadness, as well as controlling aggression
• The amygdala stores value judgements and memories of behaviors to determine positive and negative experiences

Emotional Intelligence

• Emotional intelligence determines how learning can help someone be successful
• Defined as the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one's emotions
• Emotional intelligence is needed to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically, and is key to both personal and professional success

Five essential elements of emotional intelligence

• Self-awareness is knowing your feelings at any given time and understanding the impact those moods have on others
• Self-regulation involves controlling or redirecting one's emotions
• Motivation involves utilizing emotional factors to achieve goals, enjoy the learning process, and persevere in the face of obstacles
• Empathy means sensing the emotions of others
• Social skills refer to managing relationships, inspiring others, and inducing desired responses from them

Goleman's Study

• How a person reacts in a situation may influence and affect efficiency
• Avoid making decisions when under pressure, feeling down, or experiencing strong positive and negative emotions
• Deciding inappropriately may lead to wrong actions