PSYCH 111 Study Guide - Sympathetic Nervous System, Prefrontal Cortex, Amygdala
Document Summary
They exist not to give us interesting experiences but to enhance our survival. When we face challenges, emotions focus our attention and energize our action. Emotions are a mix of: physiological arousal (heart pounding, expressive behaviors (quickened pace, conscious experience, including thoughts (is this a kidnapping?) and feelings (a sense of fear, and later joy) The puzzle for psychologists has been figuring out how these three pieces fit together. There are two controversies over the interplay of our physiology, expressions, and experience in emotions. Common sense tells most of us that we cry because we are sad, lash out because we are angry, and tremble because we are afraid. First comes conscious awareness, then the physiological trimmings. But to pioneering psychologist william james, this commonsense view of emotion was 180 degrees out of line. According to james, we feel sorry because we cry, angry because we strike, afraid because we tremble .
