What are Emotions? (Definition, List And Characteristics)

What are emotions in psychology?

Let's try to understand what emotions are, from the point of view of psychology and physiology, and why they may not correspond to the situation and look inadequate.

For example, an incident from life. One of my colleagues lost her father. After the search was unsuccessful, he was declared missing and then dead. This is the background. The most amazing thing happened when his remains were found in a nearby forest several years later and relatives were invited to identify him. It must be said that the girl, his daughter, has always been highly emotional and is an outright choleric person. When she was invited to the identification parade, she burst into... No, not mournful sobs. The girl was shaken by bouts of hysterical laughter. This is how her psyche reacted to severe stress, turning on a defensive reaction. According to people whose work involves such situations, such manifestations are not uncommon.

It turns out that we experience the same feelings, but at the same time we show completely opposite emotions. Although most often one corresponds to the other, mismatch is more common than we think. Therefore, it is so important to learn to understand our own feelings, assessing and speaking about what we feel. Anger can turn into crazy fun, joy into tears (this is familiar to many), sorrow can turn into laughter (as is customary in India), and so on.

✔️ The term emotions has French roots - in psychology it means excitement, excitement, subjective state. Not only people, but also animals are subject to emotions. They also experience fear and joy, pleasure, anger, and can “laugh” and cry. The experiences that living beings with a developed nervous system are subject to are called emotions.

✔️ An emotion is a reaction to an irritant (internal or external). This word refers to internal sensations or external manifestations of feelings. Affect is called very strong, but short-term emotions, and deep and extended ones are considered feelings.

✔️ The functions of emotions are to regulate behavior, this is a reflection on external influences of varying strength. In case of danger, fear arises, which includes the instinct of self-preservation, and in the presence of a person who evokes sympathy, pleasure arises, which is an echo of the instinct of procreation. Emotions are the result of evolution; they appeared as a tool for the organism’s adaptation to the environment. The body reacts accordingly - sweat appears, the throat dries out, the pupils dilate, etc...

✔️ According to the theory of emotions, they are interconnected with instincts and reflexes. A flash of anger is accompanied by a grin, constriction of the pupils and clenching of fists; a feeling of pleasure is manifested by the opposite signs - a smile, relaxation of the body and dilation of the pupils. The main set of emotions is transmitted genetically. This is due to the fact that their expression looks the same despite the origin of the person. This is a universal physiological language, understandable to almost everyone.

✔️ At the moment of experiencing strong emotions, a savage and a highly cultured person have the same facial expression and facial expressions. Even advanced animals such as primates, dogs, cats express their emotions in a similar way. In addition to congenital manifestations, there are also acquired ones that develop under the influence of society. They are sometimes paradoxical in nature (laughter in response to grief, joy, songs and dances at the funeral of a loved one).

✔️ This universal language allows people to understand each other, even without verbal communication. Thanks to the same mechanism, higher animals can assess each other’s emotional mood and the mood of people (the owner). The more developed the creature, the richer the set of emotions and their manifestations. In human cultural society, it is customary to hide too strong emotions, especially negative ones. We create artificial clamps to give the deceptive impression of reserved people.

✔️ Willful suppression of emotions has played a cruel joke on humanity. We have learned to hide our experiences so much that we ourselves have ceased to be aware of them. This has a bad effect on the psyche, which is why modern people are so susceptible to stress. We feel negative feelings and emotions, but we cannot admit it to ourselves, we do not know how to formulate our experiences. This gives rise to internal conflict, which entails mental disorder.

✔️ Basic emotions are the same in people and animals. They are aimed at survival, meeting needs and communicating with each other. People differ from their smaller brothers in an additional set that evolution has awarded us. The list includes more complex emotions that even higher primates and animals are unable to feel and express.

Note to entrepreneurs. The Importance of Emotions for Effective Selling

One of the most powerful methods of advertising is the method of using human emotions.

Tom Snyder, founder of a major That says it all!

Emotions are central to sales. If you do not evoke emotions in the buyer in your advertising, then the chances of sales drop significantly.

According to the findings of D. James, a sales expert, there are 6 main emotional states:

envy, greed, fear, pride, shame of being a fool, desire to help others.

REMEMBER that a person buys emotions, but not goods!

How do we deal with unwanted emotions?

When criticizing others, remember that you also have a lot of shortcomings. It's better not to do this. Moreover, do not collect gossip. This will greatly reduce the number of negative emotions in life.

Only for the curious: “Horoscope. What the stars promise us. Truth and reality"
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Look for your options for accepting the “pleasant” - do not mindlessly run in the footsteps of other people.

When faced with a problem, there is no need to immediately “turn on” your emotions. Try to find a way out of an unpleasant situation using intelligence and logic.

Don't do things that others don't like. And, if you are not asked, do not bother with your advice.

If you feel the onset of a “fire” situation in communication, prepare means to extinguish the conflict in advance.

Develop your imaginative thinking. For example, through listening to music. If you know how, then play a musical instrument more often, or learn to do so.

Sing and recite poetry often with expression. Work with a mirror.

You can very well manage your emotions with breathing exercises.

To do this, take just a few slow, deep breaths in and out. You will feel yourself calm down.

Don't suppress your emotions. Very logically, with reason, bring the emotion to the “light of day”, that is, solve the problem now and here.

Remember such simple words as “smile” and “kind attitude”. Look for positive emotions and you will live happily , while allowing others to live peacefully.

Take an interesting test: “Can you read people’s minds?”
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Emotions create our thoughts. And if you think about the beautiful, about ending the conflict with good, then your feelings will be just as beautiful.

At least try to do this.

If you did not stop in your malice and anger, then the consequences for you will be appropriate.

People's statements about emotions. Conclusions and research

Aristotle believed that emotion is a positive quality for a person.

Although in Ancient China they said that excessive emotions harm the normal functioning of human organs.

Yes, human emotions give birth to all conflicts. But without emotions, we will all become like a gray mass consisting of insensitive robots.

Oddly enough, conflicts also provide an opportunity to grow spiritually. By conflicting with this world, we gain enormous experience of communication and emotional charge for future victories in self-education and life.

Looking for a job: “Job search.
Interview" When answering the question - is it good to express emotions in society - more than 55% of people answered that this is not good and that one should behave calmly and civilly in public places. Although 30% of respondents boldly said that any emotions have the right to be open to society.

For a certain reaction to a situation:

emotions either help the mental and physical state and this is the correct reaction, or emotions destroy our body with diseases. And this is the wrong reaction to events

Interesting thoughts from forum members

“Even negative emotions are not always felt as unpleasant. For some, there is nothing more pleasant than a furious argument, while others cry with pleasure when watching sad films.”

(Natalie Kulikova)

“Negative emotions do not always feel unpleasant. For some there is nothing more pleasant than a strong argument, for others it is great pleasure to cry while watching sad films.”

(Katerina Nevinskaya)

In private, a person shows innate expressions of emotions, and in public - controlled expressions.

(Ivan Rusanov)

The mood resembles a mild but continuous emotional state. Irritated behavior can turn into anger. A sad mood can “fall” into a state of deep sadness.

(Anastasia)

Read: “Stress and anxiety. How to deal with such manifestations of rage"

What are the different emotions?

Positive and negative basic human emotions make up a relatively small list of ten manifestations:

1. Joy; 2. Sadness; 3. Disgust; 4. Surprise; 5. Anger; 6. Wine; 7. Fear; 8. Interest; 9. Shame; 10. Contempt.

The classification of emotions involves the emotions themselves and the feelings themselves. In addition, it is customary to distinguish additional mental states: passion, affect, stress, mood. All human emotions make up a much larger list. It includes different aspects of fear, pleasure, anger. We can say that in the human community, with the development of the mental sphere, gradations of basic emotions appeared, which began to be called feelings.

List of human emotions:

Excitement;
Despair;
Fury;
Safety;
Anxiety;
Gratitude;
Sorrow;
Satisfaction;
Disgust;
Astonishment;
Anger;
Guilt;
Dejection;
Delight;
Anxiety;
Arrogance;
Shame;
Pride;
Fear;
Sadness;
Calm;
A pity;
Confusion;
Gloat;
Compassion;
Interest;
Boredom;
Irritation;
Hope;
Disappointment;
Tenderness;
Lust;
Hatred;
Contempt;
Dislike;
Joy;
Sadness;
Sadness;
Disgust;
Resentment;
Disgust.

Some of them are close to each other in sensations and manifestations, related mental states. But due to emotional development, a person is able to separate fear and caution, tenderness and lust. Some researchers include in the list such manifestations as: hunger, thirst, fatigue. These concepts are not emotions, they appear as a result of signals to the brain that are sent by the body's receptors. But the anger, indignation and resentment that arise as a result of these sensations can already be safely called emotions.

Positive emotions

We ourselves put a plus or minus sign in front of any emotion. This is actually a very subjective assessment. Any emotion is a physiological response to a stimulus (internal or external). To be precise, this applies to those manifestations due to which the so-called “pleasure hormone” is produced.

Therefore, the list of positive human emotions given below is also conditional:

Joy;
Love;
Interest;
Satisfaction;
Calm;
Tenderness;
Surprise (questionable);
Lust.

▪️ Characteristics of positive emotions: what is commonly called positive causes pleasure. If the cause is external, then a person strives for it again and again. If it is inside, then an instinctive desire arises to resume the state that causes the release of endorphins. This is how attachments of dependence on something or someone that causes pleasure arise (objects of art, pets, a loved one).

Even positive emotions have a dark side. A maniac and murderer, rapist, torturer of his victims takes pleasure in his perverted activities. The use of narcotic drugs, alcohol, and psychotropic drugs causes artificial bursts of joy and pleasure, becoming the cause of addiction, which is extremely difficult to overcome.

▪️ Even fish can show positive emotions. When they see a potential partner, they show their interest by showing it through their behavior. “Body language” is used by all living beings, although the range of emotions and their depth differ depending on what stage of evolution they are at. At the moment, humans are considered the most developed mammal, although recently they are increasingly saying that dolphins may supplant us on this pedestal.

▪️ Strong emotions provoke the release of adrenaline into the blood, regardless of whether they are positive or negative. If there is too much shock (feeling of danger), there is so much of it that the body is not able to cope with the huge dose, the psyche is in a state of stress, and the body is ready for active action, while consciousness may be clouded.

▪️ In this case, it is customary to talk about a state of affect. Positive emotions help produce oxytocin (pleasure hormone), dopamine and endorphin (happiness hormones). If something frightening and joyful happens at the same time (for example, childbirth), then the blood turns into a “chemical cocktail” oversaturated with various hormones.

▪️ Each of them plays its role in maintaining the vitality of the body. This is how the evolutionary mechanism inherent in us by nature works.

To obtain positive emotions, you can use the properties of the physical body. For this you can use:

1. Moderate physical activity. A walk in nature, around the city. Not too tiring work, jogging, dancing - all these actions contribute to the production of endorphins. Especially if all this happens in the fresh air in a beautiful place that can bring aesthetic pleasure.

2. Favorite hobby. Doing something enjoyable also helps lift your mood.

3. Watching a movie or reading a book. A good work of art deeply touches our feelings, and can even cause catharsis - emotional release through deep emotions, tears. This is a good “reboot” for the body.

4. Communication with pets. Cats, dogs, and other animals can relieve stress, help you relax and bring a lot of positive emotions with their behavior and even their simple presence.

5. Doing good deeds. We are not talking about something global. Small pleasant things that bring pleasure to others resonate in the same way within ourselves. Seeing joy on the face of another person, we receive a non-verbal signal and, against our will, mirror a good mood.

That's why they talk about "infectious laughter", "infectious positivity" and an involuntary improvement in mood in the presence of someone experiencing joy. Joy can be shared, but grief can be infected precisely for this reason - we perceive signals on a subconscious level and project them onto ourselves. Even a drawing (a smiley face) that conveys a mood has a subtle impact.

Negative emotions

The list of a person’s negative emotions is also conditional. “Bad” feelings should be treated as a defense mechanism that has been developed over thousands of years. That is why there is no need to reproach yourself for fear or be ashamed of feeling anxious. However, it is worth remembering that negative emotions encourage certain actions, bad deeds. This is what you need to work with.

If you experience a flash of anger, it is natural and will pass over time, but fighting, insulting, or even more severe actions under the influence of this emotion are something that you need to be able to control.

Destructive emotions have a destructive effect on the psyche and nervous system. These include:

Sadness;
Sadness;
Dejection;
Stress;
Fury;
Anger;
Fear;
Depression.

All these manifestations can significantly worsen health if a person experiences them for a long time. This is explained simply by the same chemical reactions.

The body responds by releasing certain substances into the blood that increase blood pressure, increase alertness, and give strength. But they all work only with short-term exposure. Prolonged and prolonged entry into the blood causes a condition close to poisoning. Active substances break down, releasing toxins. If there are too many of them, then the body simply cannot cope and receives the command to “die”. Therefore, negative and destructive emotions are more dangerous than they might seem. These are not just thoughts in the head, it is a process in which the whole body is involved.

The list of emotions that are commonly called negative:

Fear;
Resentment;
Aggression;
Anger;
Gloat;
Jealousy;
Dejection;
Sorrow;
Yearning;
Disgust;
Confusion.

This list can be supplemented, since in human language there are many names for feelings and experiences that can also be called emotions. I left only the main ones, those that, in my opinion, have the most ancient origin and are closely related to physiology.

Human Emotions Chart

Positive emotions	Negative emotions
Joy	Fear
Love	Resentment
Interest	Aggression
Satisfaction	Anger
Calm	Gloat
Tenderness	Jealousy
Astonishment	Dejection
Lust	Sorrow
Yearning
Disgust
Confusion

Classification

People can be very different from each other. They may live in different countries, be brought up according to different customs, but in most cases their emotions are similar. Animals have a unique ability to understand human emotions. For example, a cat or dog perfectly senses the owner’s mood. If a person is in a good mood, the animal will definitely approach him. Feeling the slightest sign of anger and aggression, the pet will try to stay away from the person.

Scientists cannot yet fully formulate a definition of this phenomenon. It is not clear exactly how animals feel hatred or joy coming from a person. However, almost every person can confirm this phenomenon.

Emotions are different and are divided into several types. They have the ability to quickly replace each other. A person can be depressed and suddenly regain vitality. An unusual surge of strength can also be replaced by apathy and a desire to hide from the world. Being sad and sorrowful, a person can suddenly become cheerful and joyful.

People have a hard time hiding their emotions. Often they are immediately reflected on a person’s face, and in order to avoid this, you need to have incredible control over yourself.

Trying to hide their true feelings, they can give themselves away with gestures, facial expressions, or even their voice.

In general, emotions can be divided into three main groups.

Positive;
Negative;
Neutral;

Positive emotions include joy, laughter, happiness, pleasure, love, sympathy, admiration, bliss and others. They bring only positive feelings to a person and make his life much better.

Negative emotions usually include envy, anger, hatred, resentment, fear, disgust, regret and others. Such emotions drive a person into a depressed state and significantly worsen his life.

Neutral emotions include surprise, curiosity and indifference. Often such emotions do not carry any special subtext and are not of significant interest to a person.

Why do we experience emotions?

If you've made it this far, you may be wondering: how are emotions created? I was also interested in this aspect, and I decided to understand the mechanism of their appearance. The author of the book of the same name (“How Emotions Are Born”), Lisa Feldman Barrett, also thought about this.

In it, she analyzed in detail a person’s emotional feelings, the reasons for their appearance and the mechanisms of influence on others. Any of the experienced feelings is the accumulated experience of previous generations, which parents pass on to their children along with a set of genes. The manifestation of emotions is a reaction to the world around us. Protective, or, conversely, necessary for communication.

Emotions appear on the face unconsciously. The process itself occurs in the cerebral cortex, from where it is transmitted through the nerves. The face is our business card, which reflects a warning or invitation. We read signals from other people without even thinking, and understand them without a translator. The civilized world forces us to move away from nature, and we do everything to hide our real feelings. This happens because now there is a different value system, and pretense is a tool for achieving success and well-being.

Frequently used emotions

Basic human emotions have not changed in thousands of years, and we still experience fear, lust, love and joy. The basic emotions of a person can be counted on one hand, but there are a great many derivatives. The more developed the society, the richer the palette of emotions. In primitive societies, such as the indigenous tribes of the Amazon forest, there is no such diversity. They know what fear, joy, lust, sorrow, pleasure, regret are, and this is quite enough to survive in the wild.

Civilized people also most often experience precisely this set of emotions, but in a “diluted” and modified form. This is due to the active mental work that we all carry out. The simpler life is, the more primitive the emotions. The richer a person’s inner world (readability, education, curiosity, developed nervous system, subtle mental organization), the richer his emotional baggage.

Surprising but true

The most emotionally charged feeling is Love.

Stress from emotions drops to 70% if you watch the underwater world of an aquarium for more than 5 minutes.

This wonderful world: “Flowers - the language of flowers”
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Scientists believe that basic emotions - fear, anger, surprise, love, joy - are innate.

A person begins to feel an emotion when he just begins to change his facial expression.

Our emotions are greatly influenced by colors. For example, red is a stimulating color for most people, while blue and cyan are calming.

In any attempt to hide our strong emotions, the “microexpressions” of our face will be visible in any case. You can't hide them.

Most often, social networks make people lonely. They promote emotional fragmentation.

For some reason, negative emotions are considered more contagious.

Men and women are the same in expressing their emotions. But the “weaker” sex loves to show them off.

You will be interested: “Who is a real man?”
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Emotion always manifests itself automatically.

People with less emotion are considered less attractive conversationalists.

Interest is emotion + fear. When we experience fear, we often try not only to escape, but also to explore what is incomprehensible to us.

Gestures and body movements often betray our emotions

Any person always, at any time, has emotions. They are just very minor.

What do you think: “Should I wait for happiness or strive for it?”
Read! We hope that we have fully covered for you the topic of the role of emotions in our lives.

In the end, let's say in the words of Bertolt Brecht: “Do not live to experience emotions, but simply live and experience emotions.”
And remember that if a person does not know how to suffer or enjoy, then he may have already died mentally long ago.