:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/GettyImages-525848853-56a7971b5f9b58b7d0ebf53a.jpg?ssl=1 "Overview of the 6 Major Theories of Emotion")
Key takeaways
- There are six main theories of emotion: evolutionary theory, James-Lange theory, Cannonbard theory, Schachter-Singer theory, cognitive appraisal theory, and facial expression theory.
- Emotions can help people respond quickly to danger and improve their chances of survival.
Emotions can be complex and confusing. Why do we have emotions at all? What is their cause? Researchers, philosophers, and psychologists have proposed various theories of emotion to explain the hows and whys behind our complex feelings.
There are many different theories of emotion that attempt to explain the purpose, causes, and effects of people’s emotional responses. Emotions exert a powerful force on human behavior. Strong emotions can cause people to take actions they might not normally take or avoid situations they enjoy.
Emotion is a complex state of feeling that results in physical and psychological changes that affect thinking and behavior. Such sensations include physical arousal, conscious experiences, and behavioral impressions. Emotionality is related to a range of psychological phenomena, including temperament, personality, temperament, and motivation.
Let’s take a closer look at some theories of emotion, what they mean, and how they help explain different aspects of our emotional experiences.
Types of Emotion Theories
Emotional theories differ in what they focus on. Major theories of emotion can be divided into three main categories:
- Physiological theories suggest that reactions within the body are responsible for emotions.
- Neurological theories Suggest that activity within the brain leads to emotional responses.
- Scientific theories Argues that thoughts and other mental activities play an important role in the formation of emotions.
In addition to these three main categories, psychologists have proposed six main theories of emotion: evolutionary theory, James-Lange theory, Cannonbard theory, Schachter-Singer theory, cognitive appraisal theory, and facial-feedback theory.
Very Well / Jiaqi Chow
An evolutionary theory of emotion
The evolutionary theory of emotions suggests that our emotions are rooted in evolution. Charles Darwin proposed that emotions evolved because they were adaptive, helping humans and animals survive and reproduce. For example, love motivates people to seek mates, while fear motivates them to fight or run away from danger.
Our emotions play an adaptive role by motivating immediate responses to environmental stimuli, increasing the likelihood of success and survival.
Recognizing the emotions of others also plays an important role in safety. For example, if you encounter a surging animal, you may quickly interpret its emotions as fear or defense and decide to retreat.
Accurately interpreting the emotions of people and animals helps you respond appropriately and avoid danger.
James Lange’s Theory of Emotion
The James-Lange theory is a well-known physiological theory of emotion, proposed by psychologist William James and physicist Karl Lange. It suggests that emotions result from physiological reactions to events.
According to this theory, an external event causes a physical response, and your interpretation of that response results in an emotional experience.
For example, if you see a bear in the woods, you may shiver and feel your heart racing. James Lange’s theory suggests that you conclude that you are afraid because you are trembling. Thus, you feel fear not because of the bear but because of the physical changes in your body.
According to this theory of emotion, you are not shaking because you are afraid. Instead, you feel scared because you are shaking.
Canon Bard’s Theory of Emotion
Cannonbard theory is another well-known physiological theory of emotion, proposed by Walter Cannon in the 1920s and later expanded by Philipp Bard. This challenges the James-Lange theory by suggesting that emotions and physiological responses occur simultaneously rather than sequentially.
Cannon argued that people can have physical reactions without feeling emotions. For example, your heart may race because of exercise, not fear.
Furthermore, he suggested that emotional responses occur more quickly than are simply the result of physical states. When faced with danger, you often feel fear before physical symptoms, such as sweating or a racing heart, appear.
According to Canon Bard’s theory of emotion, we feel emotions and simultaneously experience physical reactions such as sweating, trembling, and muscle tension.
Cannon first proposed his theory in the 1920s, and his work was later extended by the physicist Philip Bard during the 1930s.
More specifically, the theory proposes that emotions arise when the thalamus sends a message to the brain in response to a stimulus, which results in a physiological response. At the same time, the brain also receives signals that trigger emotional experience.
Cannon and Bard’s theory suggests that physical and psychological experience of emotion occur simultaneously and do not cause each other.
Schachter-Singer theory
Also known as the two-factor theory of emotion, the Schachter-Singer theory is an example of a cognitive theory of emotion. This theory suggests that physical arousal occurs first, and then the individual must identify the cause of that arousal in order to experience and label it as an emotion. A stimulus leads to a physiological response that is then cognitively interpreted and labeled, resulting in an emotion.
Schachter and Singer’s theory is based on both the James-Lange theory and the Cannon-Bard theory. Similar to the James-Lange theory, the Schachter-Singer theory suggests that people infer emotions based on bodily responses. The important factor is the situation and the cognitive interpretation that people use to label the emotion.
The Schachter-Singer theory is a cognitive theory of emotion that suggests that our thoughts are responsible for emotions.
Like the Cannon-Bard theory, the Schachter-Singer theory suggests that similar physiological responses can produce different emotions. For example, if you experience a racing heart and sweaty palms during an important exam, you would probably identify these feelings as anxiety. If you experience similar physical reactions on a date, you may interpret those reactions as love, affection, or arousal.i
A Theory of Cognitive Assessment
According to emotion appraisal theories, emotions must be thought of before they are experienced. Richard Lazarus was a pioneer in this field of emotion, and this theory is often referred to as the Lazarus Theory of Emotion.
Cognitive appraisal theory asserts that your mind first evaluates a situation, and the resulting response is an emotion.
According to this theory, the sequence of events first involves a stimulus, followed by thought, which then leads to the simultaneous experience of bodily responses and emotions.
For example, if you encounter a bear in the forest, you will immediately begin to think that you are in great danger. This then leads to the emotional experience of fear and the physical response associated with the fight or flight response.
Facial feedback theory of emotion
The facial expression theory of emotion suggests that facial expressions are associated with experiencing emotions. Both Charles Darwin and William James noted early on that, at times, physiological responses are often directly influenced by emotions, rather than simply being the result of emotions.
Facial feedback theory suggests that emotions are directly linked to changes in facial muscles. For example, people who are forced to smile cheerfully at a social event will have a better time at the event than if they presented a more neutral facial expression.
Comparing six theories of emotion
| The theory | Summary |
| evolutionary | Emotions have evolved to aid in survival. |
| James Lange | Emotions are the result of the interpretation of bodily reactions. |
| Canon Bard | Emotions and physical reactions occur simultaneously. |
| Schachter-singer | Emotions arise from the cognitive evaluation of bodily reactions. |
| Cognitive assessment | Emotions arise from our cognitive evaluations. |
| Facial feedback | Facial expressions influence emotional experiences. |
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