Neurobiology of emotion Based on discoveries made through neural mapping of the limbic system, the neurobiological explanation of human

emotion is that emotion is a pleasant or unpleasant mental state organized in the limbic system of the mammalian brain. If distinguished from reactive responses of reptiles, emotions would then be mammalian elaborations of general vertebrate arousal patterns, in which neurochemicals (for example, dopamine, noradrenaline, and serotonin) step-up or step-down the brain's activity level, as visible in body movements, gestures, and postures. For example, the emotion of love is proposed to be the expression of paleocircuits of the mammalian brain (specifically, modules of the cingulate gyrus) which facilitate the care, feeding, and grooming of offspring. Paleocircuits are neural platforms for bodily expression configured before the advent of cortical circuits for speech. They consist of pre-configured pathways or networks of nerve cells in the forebrain, brain stem and spinal cord. Prefrontal cortex There is ample evidence that the left prefrontal cortex is activated by stimuli that cause positive approach.[10] If attractive stimuli can selectively activate a region of the brain, then logically the converse should hold, that selective activation of that region of the brain should cause a stimulus to be judged more positively. This was demonstrated for moderately attractive visual stimuli[11] and replicated and extended to include negative stimuli.[12] Two neurobiological models of emotion in the prefrontal cortex made opposing predictions. The Valence Model predicted that anger, a negative emotion, would activate the right prefrontal cortex. The Direction Model predicted that anger, an approach emotion, would activate the left prefrontal cortex. Homeostatic/primordial emotion Another neurological approach distinguishes two classes of emotion. "Classical" emotions including love, anger and fear, are evoked by appraisal of scenarios fed by environmental stimuli via distance receptors in the eyes, nose and ears.[18] "Homeostatic"[19] or "primordial"[20] emotions are feelings such as pain, hunger, thirst and fatigue, evoked by internal body states, communicated to the central nervous system by interoceptors, which motivate behavior aimed at maintaining the body's internal milieu at its ideal state.[21] These demanding sensations that capture conscious attention are coordinated from the lower or basal regions of the brain and impact diverse regions of the brain, including the frontal lobes.[20]
Cognitive theories

Several theories argue that cognitive activityin the form of judgments, evaluations, or thoughtsis necessary for an emotion to occur. This, argued by Richard Lazarus, is necessary to capture the fact that emotions are about something or have intentionality. Such cognitive activity may be conscious or unconscious and may or may not take the form of conceptual processing.

An influential theory here is that of Lazarus: emotion is a disturbance that occurs in the following order: 1.) Cognitive appraisalThe individual assesses the event cognitively, which cues the emotion. 2.) Physiological changesThe cognitive reaction starts biological changes such as increased heart rate or pituitary adrenal response. 3.) ActionThe individual feels the emotion and chooses how to react. For example: Jenny sees a snake. 1.) Jenny cognitively assesses the snake in her presence, which triggers fear. 2.) Her heart begins to race faster. Adrenaline pumps through her blood stream. 3.) Jenny screams and runs away. Lazarus stressed that the quality and intensity of emotions are controlled through cognitive processes. These processes underlie coping strategies that form the emotional reaction by altering the relationship between the person and the environment. George Mandler provided an extensive theoretical and empirical discussion of emotion as influenced by cognition, consciousness, and the autonomic nervous system in two books (Mind and Emotion, 1975, and Mind and Body: Psychology of Emotion and Stress, 1984) There are some theories on emotions arguing that cognitive activity in the form of judgements, evaluations, or thoughts is necessary in order for an emotion to occur. A prominent philosophical exponent is Robert C. Solomon (for example, The Passions, Emotions and the Meaning of Life, 1993). The theory proposed by Nico Frijda where appraisal leads to action tendencies is another example. It has also been suggested that emotions (affect heuristics, feelings and gut-feeling reactions) are often used as shortcuts to process information and influence behavior.[22] The affect infusion model (AIM) is a theoretical model developed by Joseph Forgas in the early 1990s that attempts to explain how emotion and mood interact with one's ability to process information. Perceptual theory A recent hybrid of the somatic and cognitive theories of emotion is the perceptual theory. This theory is neo-Jamesian in arguing that bodily responses are central to emotions, yet it emphasizes the meaningfulness of emotions or the idea that emotions are about something, as is recognized by cognitive theories. The novel claim of this theory is that conceptually-based cognition is unnecessary for such meaning. Rather the bodily changes themselves perceive the meaningful content of the emotion because of being causally triggered by certain situations. In this respect, emotions are held to be analogous to faculties such as vision or touch, which provide information about the relation between the subject and the world in various ways. A sophisticated defense of this view is found in philosopher Jesse Prinz's book Gut Reactions and psychologist James Laird's book Feelings. Affective events theory This a communication-based theory developed by Howard M. Weiss and Russell Cropanzano (1996), that looks at the causes, structures, and consequences of emotional experience (especially in work contexts). This theory suggests that emotions are influenced and caused by events which in turn influence attitudes and behaviors. This theoretical frame also emphasizes time in that human beings experience what they call emotion episodesa "series of emotional states

extended over time and organized around an underlying theme." This theory has been utilized by numerous researchers to better understand emotion from a communicative lens, and was reviewed further by Howard M. Weiss and Daniel J. Beal in their article, "Reflections on Affective Events Theory" published in Research on Emotion in Organizations in 2005. CannonBard theory In the CannonBard theory, Walter Bradford Cannon argued against the dominance of the JamesLange theory regarding the physiological aspects of emotions in the second edition of Bodily Changes in Pain, Hunger, Fear and Rage. Where James argued that emotional behavior often precedes or defines the emotion, Cannon and Bard argued that the emotion arises first and then stimulates typical behavior. Two-factor theory Another cognitive theory is the SingerSchachter theory. This is based on experiments purportedly showing that subjects can have different emotional reactions despite being placed into the same physiological state with an injection of adrenaline. Subjects were observed to express either anger or amusement depending on whether another person in the situation displayed that emotion. Hence, the combination of the appraisal of the situation (cognitive) and the participants' reception of adrenaline or a placebo together determined the response. This experiment has been criticized in Jesse Prinz's (2004) Gut Reactions. Component process model A recent version of the cognitive theory regards emotions more broadly as the synchronization of many different bodily and cognitive components. Emotions are identified with the overall process whereby low-level cognitive appraisals, in particular the processing of relevance, trigger bodily reactions, behaviors, feelings, and actions.

Feeling theory A non-cognitive and non-physical approach to emotions has recently been developed by Marc Jackson in his book Emotion and Psyche. Jackson has taken the approach of classifying emotions by how they feel as they are experienced "It is on that basis of feeling tone that they will be distinguished"[23] . Using the different felt quality of emotions Jackson has identified 25 different emotions, which he has categorised into 4 groups based on similarity of feeling. According to Jackson these felt emotions do not have to be associated with any particular thoughts or actions "Emotions are not tied down to being felt about certain things"[24] . For example love could potentialy be associated with anyone, anything or any behavior. These emotions seek to be exercised and thereby build up associations. Once an association is established an encounter with the associated thing can trigger the feeling of the emotion. Types

Basic emotion Basic opposite Joy Sadness Trust Disgust Fear Anger Surprise Anticipation Sadness Joy Disgust Trust Anger Fear Anticipation Surprise
Human Feelings (The results of Emotions.) Optimism Love Submission Awe Disappointment Remorse Contempt Aggression Feelings Anticipation + Joy Joy + Trust Trust + Fear Fear + Surprise Surprise + Sadness Sadness + Disgust Disgust + Anger Opposite Disappointment Remorse Contempt Aggression Optimism Love Submission

Anger + Anticipation Awe

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Emotions are felt by everyone love, hate, fear, joy, and so on. However, while these emotions are an inextricable part of life, they need to be controlled in order to ensure that you respond to a situation in the right way. This is especially important when it comes to negative emotions.

People that do not know how to control their emotions can show this in a number of ways. Firstly, anger may be uncontrolled and intense. They may show impulsiveness in areas such as substance use, sex, driving, and so forth. There may be uncertainty in relationships, values, selfimages, and the goals that have been set. People may show a lack of self esteem, be chronically bored, or have a fear of abandonment. They can even show suicidal tendencies. Personal relationships may be unstable or volatile. Finally people may show extreme mood swings that include recurrent depression and anxiety.