Schachter-Singer Theory
The Schachter-Singer Theory, also known as the two-factor theory of emotion, proposes that emotions are the result of both physiological arousal and cognitive interpretation of that arousal. According to this theory, the experience and labeling of emotions depend on the individual's interpretation of the physiological arousal in a given situation. This theory emphasizes the role of cognitive processes in shaping emotional experiences.
5 Key excerpts on "Schachter-Singer Theory"
- Chris R. Brewin(Author)
- 2013(Publication Date)
- Psychology Press(Publisher)
...Cognitive theories of emotion assume that a stimulus or a situation must first be attended to, recognized or classified, and related to previous experiences stored in memory before it can be evaluated or can arouse an emotional response. A small number of “basic” emotional responses have been identified, and it has been suggested that other emotions are made up of a blend of these. The five most commonly cited are happiness, anger, fear, sadness, and disgust, although, using the criterion that the facial expression associated with a basic emotion should be recognized all over the world, Ekman (1973) has argued that surprise should be included. Three influential proponents of cognitive theories of emotion are Schachter (1964), Lazarus (1966), and Weiner (1986). Schachter's Theory This two-factor theory of emotion has been extremely influential. According to Schachter, the experience of emotion is dependent on the conjunction of two elements, the perception of peripheral physiological arousal and the label that such arousal is given. The experience of physiological arousal, such as churning of the stomach or rapid beating of the heart, is considered to be relatively nonspecific, i.e., it does not take distinct forms corresponding to different emotional states. Emotional specificity is provided by cognitive appraisal of the source of the arousal. In most instances arousal will be attributed automatically to the stimulus or situation that elicits it, probably on the basis of the temporal contiguity of stimulus and reaction (see Chapter 6 for a discussion of attributional determinants)...
eBook - ePubAnxiety and Cognition
A Unified Theory
- Michael Eysenck(Author)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- Psychology Press(Publisher)
...There is also evidence that emotions differ in terms of autonomic activity. Ekman, Levenson, and Friesen (1983) asked their subjects to recreate the facial expressions of anger, fear, sadness, happiness, surprise, and disgust. Anger, fear, and sadness all produced much greater increases in heart rate than did happiness, surprise, or disgust. Hand temperature increased considerably with anger, and it increased slightly with happiness, but it decreased with disgust. The existence of differential physiological patterning among emotions does not, of course, demonstrate that distinctive emotional feelings depend on such physiological differences. Schachter’s Two-Factor Theory One of the most influential theories of emotion was put forward by Schachter and Singer (1962) and Schachter (1964). In some ways, their two-factor theory can be regarded as a development and extension of the James-Lange theory. As can be seen in Fig. 2.1, emotional experience depends on three factors. First, the situation must be interpreted as being an emotional one. Second, and reminiscent of the James-Lange theory, there must be a state of physiological arousal. Third, the emotional situation must be perceived to be the cause of the physiological arousal. If any of these three factors is missing, then little or no emotion will be experienced. Fig. 2.1. The theory of emotion put forward by Schachter and Singer (1962) and Schachter (1964). The major problem with testing the theory is that the different factors contributing to emotional experience are difficult to disentangle. In everyday life, physiological arousal is normally attributed to an emotional situation, and this attribution is relatively direct and automatic. In order to test the theory, Schachter and Singer (1962) attempted to arrange matters so that arousal could plausibly be attributed to more than one cause. Some subjects were injected with the stimulant drug adrenaline, which increases the level of physiological arousal...
eBook - ePub- Jackie Andrade, Jon May(Authors)
- 2004(Publication Date)
- Taylor & Francis(Publisher)
...1 Fig. 1 In Schachter & Singer's (1962) test of the Two Factor Theory of Emotion, volunteers who were given an arousing drug, but who were not correctly informed about its effects, showed a tendency to feel emotions consistent with the social situation that they were in. Those who were correctly told about the effects of the drug correctly attributed their arousal to the drug, and did not experience a change in emotion. Those who were placed in similar situations but did not receive a drug did also experience some emotional reactions, perhaps because the situation itself was arousing.). This attributional theory said that physiological changes preceded the perception of emotion, like James and Lange, but unlike them it said that cognitive activity could influence the emotion that was felt. The results did not match the predictions of the two factor theory entirely, but the general pattern was in the right direction. In the euphoria condition, the drug-uninformed group did report feeling happier than the drug-informed group. In the anger condition, none of the three groups differed significantly in their reported feelings, perhaps due to the social constraints upon reporting angry feelings. On an objective measure of ‘angry behavioral acts’, though, the drug-uninformed group made more angry acts than the other two groups. Before Schachter and Singer’s work, emotion reflected biologically determined, learnt responses. Social and situational factors could influence the expression of emotion, but not the emotion itself. Afterwards, emotion was a consequence of a cognitive process, and social and situational factors could determine the nature of the emotion felt, given some affective changes in the body. For this reason, this work had most influence in social psychology, where much research was conducted into how people appraised situations to determine the appropriate emotion...
- Willis Overton, Ulrich Mueller, Judith Newman, Willis Overton, Ulrich Mueller, Judith Newman(Authors)
- 2007(Publication Date)
- Psychology Press(Publisher)
...95). 4 Lyons (1980, p. 121) interpreted Schachter and Singer’s study as showing that people do not consider themselves in an emotional state unless they are provided with suitable cognitions. In this view, arousal does not contribute in any way to one’s emotional state. The disembodied stance has been highly influential. Schachter and Singer’s (1962) theory was later refined by so-called “causal attribution” theories (London & Nisbett, 1974; Ross, Rodin, & Zimbardo, 1969), according to which arousal needs to be attributed to a specific cause to acquire affective specificity. Other theorists, such as Reisenzein (1983) and Chwalisz, Diener, and Gallagher (1988), supported a weak form of arousal theory according to which somatic feedback, including that from autonomic arousal, is not necessary for emotional experience, but can only enhance it in certain circumstances. Ironically, cognitive theories of emotion in the 1960s and ’70s were more Cartesian than Descartes himself. The disembodied stance assumed a thorough head/body distinction, and tried to deny any role to the body in the differentiation, or even elicitation, of emotions. The experiments designed in those years to show that emotions are “cognitive” were based on a disembodied notion of cognition—one that placed cognition all on the head side of the head/body distinction. CURRENT EMOTION THEORY: REEMBODIED EMOTIONS OF A DISEMBODIED MIND More recent accounts of emotion have abandoned the disembodied stance of cognitivism. For example, Frijda (1987) acknowledges the cognitive aspect of emotion, but also the role of the body in feelings and the differentiation of emotion, as well as the body’s relation to appraisal and action tendencies. De Sousa (1987) has no doubt that emotion is where mind and body “make contact.” Sue Campbell (1997) argues that feelings are formed through expression, including bodily expression...
eBook - ePub- Antonella Sansone(Author)
- 2020(Publication Date)
- Routledge(Publisher)
...Chapter Two A psychophysiological theory of emotions Our body is involved in our relationships as much as our mind. The two levels of our being are inseparable and a circular relation exists between them. They are split only by language and concepts. While thinking, speaking, dreaming, and interacting there are changes in our breathing, muscle tone, posture, and facial expression, —throughout our body language. They are powerful forms of non-verbal communication. Psychological phenomena emerge from the complex interaction between systems in the body and the brain. The body image exists in the neocortex, which is the outer layer of the brain. It is a process involving the deep brain, the skeletal frame, the muscular system, and all bodily activities. The neocortex is a highly sophisticated entity that collects, assembles, associates, analyses, and stores data provided by sensory organs. The subcortical nervous system or primitive brain is closely connected with the hormonal and immune systems, our emotions and instincts. 1 There is continuous interaction between the neocortex and the primitive brain. Information travels along the spinal cord and reaches the hypothalamus, which controls the autonomic nervous system (Luria, 1973). The hypothalamus is closely connected with the limbic system and together they form the locus of emotional centres. They form a complex network that can be conceived as a “primal adaptive system”. The right hemisphere in particular contains an integrated map of the bodily state and plays a primary role in the regulation of fundamental physiological and hormonal functions...
