LEESON 4:EMOTIONAL SELF

During the 1970s, psychologist Paul Eckman identified six basic emotions that he
suggested were universally experienced in all human cultures. The emotions he
identified were happiness, sadness, disgust, fear, surprise, and anger.

1. Happiness
Of all the different types of emotions, happiness tends to be the one that people
strive for the most. Happiness is often defined as a pleasant emotional state that
is characterized by feelings of contentment, joy, gratification, satisfaction, and
well-being.
Research on happiness has increased significantly since the 1960s within a
number of disciplines, including the branch of psychology known as positive
psychology. This type of emotion is sometimes expressed through:
 Facial expressions: such as smiling
 Body language: such as a relaxed stance
 Tone of voice: an upbeat, pleasant way of speaking
While happiness is considered one of the basic human emotions, the things
we think will create happiness tend to be heavily influenced by culture. For
example, pop culture influences tend to emphasize that attaining certain things
such as buying a home or having a high-paying job will result in happiness.
The realities of what actually contributes to happiness are often much more
complex and more highly individualized. People have long believed that happiness
and health were connected, and research has supported the idea that happiness
can play a role in both physical and mental health.
Happiness has been linked to a variety of outcomes including increased longevity
and increased marital satisfaction. Conversely, unhappiness has been linked to a
variety of poor health outcomes.
Stress, anxiety, depression, and loneliness, for example, have been linked to
things such as lowered immunity, increased inflammation, and decreased life
expectancy.

2. Sadness

Sadness is another type of emotion often defined as a transient emotional state

characterized by feelings of disappointment, grief, hopelessness, disinterest, and
dampened mood.
 Like other emotions, sadness is something that all people experience from time to
time. In some cases, people can experience prolonged and severe periods of
sadness that can turn into depression. Sadness can be expressed in a number of
ways including:
 Crying
 Dampened mood
 Lethargy
 Quietness
 Withdrawal from others
The type and severity of sadness can vary depending upon the root cause, and
how people cope with such feelings can also differ.
Sadness can often lead people to engage in coping mechanisms such as avoiding
other people, self-medicating, and ruminating on negative thoughts. Such
behaviors can actually exacerbate feelings of sadness and prolong the duration of
the emotion.

3. Fear
Fear is a powerful emotion that can also play an important role in survival. When
you face some sort of danger and experience fear, you go through what is known
as the fight or flight response.
Your muscles become tense, your heart rate and respiration increase, and your
mind becomes more alert, priming your body to either run from the danger or
stand and fight.
This response helps ensure that you are prepared to effectively deal with threats
in your environment. Expressions of this type of emotion can include:
 Facial expressions: such as widening the eyes and pulling back the chin
 Body language: attempts to hide or flea from the threat
 Physiological reactions: such as rapid breathing and heartbeat
Of course, not everyone experiences fear in the same way. Some people may be
more sensitive to fear and certain situations or objects may be more likely to
trigger this emotion.
Fear is the emotional response to an immediate threat. We can also develop a
similar reaction to anticipated threats or even our thoughts about potential
dangers, and this is what we generally think of as anxiety. Social anxiety, for
example, involves an anticipated fear of social situations.
Some people, on the other hand, actually seek out fear-provoking situations.
Extreme sports and other thrills can be fear-inducing, but some people seem to
thrive and even enjoy such feelings.
Repeated exposure to a fear object or situation can lead to familiarity and
acclimation, which can reduce feelings of fear and anxiety.
This is the idea behind exposure therapy, in which people are gradually exposed
to the things that frighten them in a controlled and safe manner. Eventually,
feelings of fear begin to decrease.
4. Disgust
 Disgust is another of the original six basic emotions described by Eckman.
Disgust can be displayed in a number of ways including:
Body language: turning away from the object of disgust
Physical reactions: such as vomiting or retching
Facial expressions: such as wrinkling the nose and curling the upper lip
This sense of revulsion can originate from a number of things, including an
unpleasant taste, sight, or smell. Researchers believe that this emotion evolved
as a reaction to foods that might be harmful or fatal. When people smell or taste
foods that have gone bad, for example, disgust is a typical reaction.
Poor hygiene, infection, blood, rot, and death can also trigger a disgust response.
This may be the body's way of avoiding things that may carry transmittable
diseases.7
People can also experience moral disgust when they observe others engaging in
behaviors that they find distasteful, immoral, or evil.

5. Anger
Anger can be a particularly powerful emotion characterized by feelings of hostility,
agitation, frustration, and antagonism towards others. Like fear, anger can play a
part in your body's fight or flight response.
When a threat generates feelings of anger, you may be inclined to fend off the
danger and protect yourself. Anger is often displayed through:
 Facial expressions: such as frowning or glaring
 Body language: such as taking a strong stance or turning away
 Tone of voice: such as speaking gruffly or yelling
 Physiological responses: such as sweating or turning red
 Aggressive behaviors: such as hitting, kicking, or throwing objects
While anger is often thought of as a negative emotion, it can sometimes be a
good thing. It can be constructive in helping clarify your needs in a relationship,
and it can also motivate you to take action and find solutions to things that are
bothering you.
Anger can become a problem, however, when it is excessive or expressed in ways
that are unhealthy, dangerous, or harmful to others. Uncontrolled anger can
quickly turn to aggression, abuse, or violence.
This type of emotion can have both mental and physical consequences.
Unchecked anger can make it difficult to make rational decisions and can even
have an impact on your physical health.
Anger has been linked to coronary heart diseases and diabetes. It has also been
linked to behaviors that pose health risks such as aggressive driving, alcohol
consumption, and smoking.

6. Surprise
 Surprise is another one of the six basic types of human emotions originally
described by Eckman. Surprise is usually quite brief and is characterized by a
physiological startle response following something unexpected.
This type of emotion can be positive, negative, or neutral. An unpleasant surprise,
for example, might involve someone jumping out from behind a tree and scaring
you as you walk to your car at night.
An example of a pleasant surprise would be arriving home to find that your
closest friends have gathered to celebrate your birthday. Surprise is often
characterized by:
 Facial expressions: such as raising the brows, widening the eyes, and
opening the mouth
 Physical responses: such as jumping back
 Verbal reactions: such as yelling, screaming, or gasping
Surprise is another type of emotion that can trigger the fight or flight response.
When startled, people may experience a burst of adrenaline that helps prepare
the body to either fight or flee.
Surprise can have important effects on human behavior. For example, research
has shown that people tend to disproportionately notice surprising events.
This is why surprising and unusual events in the news tend to stand out in
memory more than others. Research has also found that people tend to be more
swayed by surprising arguments and learn more from surprising information.