clip. do you think love is an emotion? when you are experiencing love, how does… your behavior...
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Is Love an Emotion? Yes! William James, Phil Shaver, Barbara Fredrickson, Lazarus No! It’s a mixed emotion (Izard, Ekman) It’s an attitude (Ekman; Hendricks) It’s a stage (Sternberg) Dimensional Theorists – Russell & Barrett, Watson & Russell Initial Research applied the prototype approach to answer this question.TRANSCRIPT
Do you think love is an emotion? When you are experiencing love, how does…
Your behavior change? Facial expressions, approach/avoidance, vocal tone
Your physiology change? SNS Activation, PNS Activation, Brain Activity
Your cognitive appraisals change? What are your thoughts?
Your subjective feelings change? Valence versus Arousal
Is Love an Emotion? Yes!
William James, Phil Shaver, Barbara Fredrickson, Lazarus
No! It’s a mixed emotion (Izard, Ekman) It’s an attitude (Ekman; Hendricks) It’s a stage (Sternberg) Dimensional Theorists – Russell & Barrett, Watson & Russell
Initial Research applied the prototype approach to answer this question.
Prototype Approach:List as many examples as you can for the category EMOTION…
(Fehr & Russell, 1984)
Happin
essAn
ger
Sadn
ess Love
Fear
Hate
Disgust
Surpr
iseSh
ame
Contem
pt0
40
80
120
160
200
152 149136
12496 89
27 174 2
Num
ber o
f Par
ticip
ants
What is the best example of an emotion?
(Fehr & Russell, 1984)
Worst1
Best6
Happiness
(5.00)
Love (5.46)
Anger(5.15)
Hate(5.26)
Sadness (5.04)
Joy(4.89)Fear
(4.78)
List 5 Characteristics: How do you know when you are in love?
Not Very Common Very
Common
1 7
Passionate Love
Companionate Love
Trust Positive MoodSexual Desire: physiological arousal
Sexual Intimacy:open communication with partner about sexuality
Exclusivity, Satisfaction Trust, Tolerance, Commitment, Intimacy
Idealization Relaxedness/calmnessPositive Emotions : joy/rapture, happiness, contentment
Positive Emotions: joy, contentment
Negative Emotion: Jealousy Not associated with negative emotions: anger, hatred, anxiety, loneliness
Intense; Fleeting / short-lived
Slow onset
(Regan et al., 1998; Lamm & Weismann, 1997)
Prototype Approach People consider love to be the best representation of an
emotion
When probed further, people identify the following components of love: Appraisals (commitment, trust, idealization etc.) Positive and Negative Emotions Physiological arousal (sexual desire) Behavior (sexual intimacy)
What are some problems with using the prototype approach to determine whether love is an emotion?
If love is an emotion, it seems like we may have 2-3 types of love emotions.
Love as a Basic Emotion: Eliciting Stimulus Eliciting Stimulus: Momentary
surges of love, in reaction to an eliciting stimulus
Love as a Basic Emotion: Eliciting Stimulus
Surges of Love: eliciting stimulus is the other person toward whom we feel love Momentary surges of love, in reaction to an eliciting stimulus Sometimes we love our partners, sometimes we don’t! Barbara Fredrickson
Not an eliciting stimulus, but a plot (Ekman) Love includes at least 2 people and a context Characteristic story or script If context is required to experience emotion, then not a basic
emotion
Individual Difference Variable, not a momentary emotion I can be mad at my partner, but still love them!
Love as a Basic Emotion: Eliciting Stimulus and Cog Apps
Manipulation #1: Self Condition: Write about moments when
felt particularly in love or loving Typical Condition: describe what typically
happens when a person feels in love or loving
DV: Experimenter Coding Causes of love Responses to love
Love as a Basic Emotion: Eliciting Stimulus and Cog Apps
Causes (Eliciting Stimuli): Finding the other attractive Felling loved by the other Communicating easily / openly with the other
Responses (Cognitive Appraisals): Being obsessed with the other Being forgetful or distracted, daydreaming about the
other Wanting to spend time with the other Feeling self-confident and energetic because of the
other
Love as a Basic Emotion: Cognitive Appraisals
Early Stage / Passionate Love Exhilaration, intrusive thinking, craving for emotional union
Late Stage/ Companionate Love Calm, security, social comfort, emotional union
What are Tom’s appraisals? (start at 6:30)
Could be that as our appraisals change, our emotions change
Love as a Basic Emotion: Behavior Changes
Cat Tenderness, proximity seeking
Think attachment!
Mimicry - Behavioral synchrony
Mutual gaze time and manipulating gaze
(Rubin, 1973; Kellerman, Lewis, & Laird, 1989)
Love as a Basic Emotion: Behavior Change – 4 Gaze Conditions
Gazing at each other’s hands
Having 1 partner gaze at eyes of partner, who is looking away
Have both partners look in eyes to count eyeblinks
Gazing into each other’s eyes to gain rapport
(Rubin, 1973; Kellerman, Lewis, & Laird, 1989)
Love as a Basic Emotion: Facial Expressions Darwin: Maternal vs. Romantic
Ekman: No unique facial expression Could be positive – “I love you” Could be negative – “Don’t cross the street!”
Love facial expressions are distinct from joy Love/Eroticism Expression: semi-closed eyes Love/Tenderness Expression: slight smile,
slight head tilt
Love as a Basic Emotion: Facial Expressions
Manipulation #1: Joy and Happiness Love Sadness Anger
DV = judges ratings of facial expressions
Love as a Basic Emotion: Facial ExpressionsWell, let me tell you . Now that I'm in love, 1 think about John (Susan) constantly. I can twist any conversation around in my mind so that it's really about him (her). I imagine what he (she) would say to me and how I might tell him (her) things 1 have never told anyone else before. When I see him (her), POW! my heart takes a leap, my cheeks flush, and I can't help smiling . At night before I go to bed, l think of how adorable he (she) is and how much I love him (her) .
Love as a Basic Emotion: Facial Expressions
Joy Love Sadness AngerJudges' rating of facial expression
0123456789
10Joy Love Sadness Anger
Inte
nsity
of f
elt e
mot
ion
Love as a Basic Emotion: Physiological Changes
SNS: Blushing, ↑ HR, ↑ Sweat PNS: ↓ HR, ↓Sweat
Increase in vasopressin, oxytocin, dopamine
Brain Activation (positively correlated with intensity of passionate love) Insula Cingulate Cortex – laughter, joy, amusement, social interactions Caudate Nucleus/Putamen – dopamine release; reward circuit Ventral Tegmental Area – dopamine cells
Love as a Basic Emotion: Is love universal?
Anthropological data from166 non-Western cultures Folklore, poems, literature, etc.
Themes of romantic love present in 88.5% of cultures
But, love absent in 19 cultures But only 1 explicitly stated romantic love did not exist Could be b/c these cultures lacked discussion of motivations
for sexual relationships
Seems the theme of love is partially universal.
(Jankowiak & Fischer, 1992)
Is love universal? Prototype Approach: US versus China List all the features of love.
Caring happiness trust sharing commitment honest/sincerity, understanding excitement
warmth giving
Pain sadness loneliness sacrifice, pain, jealousy, unrequited love, being tied down, separation,
loss betrayal/desertion time consumption conflict