Hockenbury Discovering Psychology 5th txtbk

Emotion345The Functions of EmotionEmotional processes are closely tied to motivational processes. Likethe word motivation, the root of the word emotion is the Latin wordmovere, which means “to move.” And indeed, emotions can move usto act, triggering motivated behavior. In the Prologue, Becky’s frustrationand unhappiness motivated her to end her marriage withRichard. Similarly, anger might motivate you to seek another jobwhen you feel you’ve been treated unfairly.Emotions help us to set goals, but emotional states can also begoals in themselves. We ride a roller coaster to achieve emotional excitementor practice every day to relish the satisfaction of eventuallywinning a piano competition. And most of us direct our lives so asto maximize the experience of positive emotions and minimize theexperience of negative emotions (Gendolla, 2000).At one time, psychologists considered emotions to be disruptive forces that interferedwith rational behavior (Cacioppo & Gardner, 1999). Emotions werethought of as primitive impulses that needed to be suppressed or controlled.Today, psychologists are much more attuned to the importance of emotions inmany different areas of behavior, including rational decision making, purposefulbehavior, and setting appropriate goals (Loewenstein & others, 2001; Mellers,2000). Most of our choices are guided by our feelings, sometimes without ourawareness (Bechara & others, 1997; Kihlstrom & others, 2000). But consider thefate of people who have lost the capacity to feel emotion because of damage to specificbrain areas. Despite having an intact ability to reason, such people tend to makedisastrous decisions (Damasio, 2004; Koenigs & Tranel, 2007).Similarly, people who are low in what is termed emotional intelligence may havesuperior reasoning powers, but they sometimes experience one failure in life after another(Mayer & others, 2004; Van Heck & den Oudsten, 2008). Why? Because theylack the ability to manage their own emotions, comprehend the emotional responses ofothers, and respond appropriately to the emotions of other people. In contrast, peoplewho are high in emotional intelligence possess these abilities, and they are able to understandand use their emotions (Mayer & others, 2008; Zeidner & others, 2008).Evolutionary Explanations of EmotionOne of the earliest scientists to systematically study emotions was Charles Darwin.Darwin published The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals in 1872, 13years after he had laid out his general theory ofevolution in On the Origin of Species by Means of NaturalSelection and only a year after his book on theevolution of humans, The Descent of Man (1871).Darwin (1872) described the facial expressions, bodymovements, and postures used to express specificemotions in animals and humans. He argued thatemotions reflect evolutionary adaptations to theproblems of survival and reproduction.Like Darwin, today’s evolutionary psychologists believethat emotions are the product of evolution (Ermer& others, 2007; Tooby & Cosmides, 2005). Emotionshelp us solve adaptive problems posed by our environment.They “move” us toward potential resources, andthey move us away from potential dangers. Fearprompts us to flee an attacker or evade a threat.Anger moves us to turn and fight a rival. Love propelsus to seek out a mate and care for our offspring.Disgust prompts us to avoid a sickening stimulus.Emotional Intelligence on the Job Haveyou ever known people who were very intelligentbut couldn’t hold down a job becausethey constantly alienated supervisorsand co-workers? Success in any field is atleast partly dependent on your ability tomanage your own emotions and understandthe emotions of others—key aspectsof emotional intelligence. Resolving conflictsin a constructive way, getting alongwith other workers, and functioning wellas part of a team are the kinds of abilitiesthat require a high degree of emotionalintelligence (Mayer & others, 2008).emotionA complex psychological state that involvessubjective experience, a physiologicalresponse, and a behavioral or expressiveresponse.emotional intelligenceThe capacity to understand and manageyour own emotional experiences and to perceive,comprehend, and respond appropriatelyto the emotional responses of others.Darwin and Emotion The Expressionof the Emotions in Man and Animalswas a best-seller when it was firstpublished in 1872. It was also thefirst scientific book to take advantageof the new technology of photography.Charles Darwin was one ofthe first scientists to systematicallystudy emotional expressions. Hehoped to show the continuity ofemotional expressions among nonhumananimals and humans—additional evidence for his evolutionarytheory.