Emotions - that's what distinguishes a person from a soulless robot. They are not always possible to control, but they greatly influence our lives and regulate thinking, perception, behavior. From birth, each of us experiences a range of emotions. They reflect the subjective meaning of situations and are represented in our minds in the form of experiences. In this article, we will understand what mental emotional processes exist and how they manifest themselves in our lives.
The Origin of Emotions
Among the most necessary reactions of the body are:
- instincts,
- motives,
- reflexes,
- emotions.
According to some theories, our ancestors originally existed with the help of the first two. Motives indicated in which direction to move. For example, if a person wants to eat, he goes hunting. Instincts and reflexes made it possible to obtain food and build cloisters. Butthere was a clear problem. It was difficult for an individual to train his offspring without an emotional connection. It took too long. It was difficult for mom to understand why the baby was whining. And he, in turn, did not fully realize who was in front of him and what to expect from this person. And while an emotional connection doesn't happen overnight, the stronger it gets, the more understanding comes.
So, based on the data of modern research, we can assume that the origin of emotions is connected precisely with this. In addition, it was very difficult for our ancestors to communicate with each other. A conversation without emotional accompaniment sometimes raised more questions than answers.
Main classification
The human body is complex and multifaceted. And the most difficult area to study is still the brain and the processes that take place in it. The difficulty lies in the fact that each person has a purely individual character. It is difficult to find two people with the same manifestations of all processes. To a greater extent, the differences are influenced by genetic characteristics, and the society in which the personality grows. So, in psychology, the following types of mental processes are known:
- educational,
- volitional,
- emotional.
It is the latter that will be the subject of our study.
During life we encounter various manifestations of emotional processes: joy, fear, anxiety, anger, irritation, etc. Most often, we do not even think about why this happens. Rather, we subconsciously know the reason, but we don’t quite understand what processes in our body control emotions. Moreover, some of them cannot be controlled at all.
But before we consider what types of mental emotional processes are divided into, it should be noted that different researchers classify them differently. In general, there are 4 types:
- Affects.
- Emotions.
- Feelings.
- Mood.
How are they different?
Affects
Have you ever heard that any crime was committed in the heat of passion? These mental emotional processes are short-term and intense. They are accompanied by sudden movements, changes in facial expressions, and even disruption in the work of some organs. Affect is an unconscious objective assessment of a certain situation. This process is characterized by high intensity and short duration. It is also worth noting that the affect arises on the already existing situation and is a protective function of the body. As a rule, the individual is not ready for the events that begin to occur, which is why he falls into a stupor.
The beginning of this process is characterized by increased heart rate, respiration. Spasm of blood vessels, increased sweating, decreased salivation and impaired motor functions are also possible. Affect is a unique process that reveals whether a person is lying or telling the truth. It works on the principle of a lie detector. But in ancient China, a person who was suspected of lying had to take a handful of rice in his mouth and listen tothan he is accused. If the rice stays dry, it means he's lying, but if it's wet, he's telling the truth.
Strong affect disrupts perception and thinking, and can also cause clouding of consciousness and amnesia. Fear can be attributed to such a mental emotional process. The person becomes numb, the heart begins to beat rapidly, the legs give way. Such a reaction to danger occurs reflexively and only if there was no “fear” emotion before.
Another rather interesting process to study is anger. It is difficult to name the origin of emotion precisely, because for different situations, the reasons will be very different. But in general, this is a negatively colored affect, which is directed against injustice or wrongness in actions.
Emotions
These mental processes are less intense, but longer. Like many other mental phenomena, they are not fully understood. Different scientists see these processes in their own way and classify them. But in general terms, even without special knowledge in the field of psychology, the following types can be distinguished:
- positive;
- negative;
- neutral;
- static;
- dynamic.
Considering emotions from the point of view of physiology, we can conclude that this is a state of brain structures that prompts a change in behavior in the direction of minimizing or maximizing its manifestations. In other words, these processes adapt the organism to its environment. For example, if a person experiencesemotion, like fear, the body begins to prepare for "avoidance behavior." At this time, the work of the sense organs intensifies, the muscles tense up, and adrenaline is released.
Scientists have also found that each emotion has its own characteristic involuntary mimic signs. For example, when a person regrets something, he lowers the corners of his lips. And when, on the contrary, he is happy, he smiles. Moreover, there is mimic feedback. Arbitrary movements of the lips, eyebrows can cause one or another emotion. That is why scientists advise smiling as often as possible. After all, it can “call” into your life such emotions:
- joy,
- happiness,
- pleasure.
In turn, according to some theories, being in a state of euphoria can bring many good things to life.
Everything in the world is black and white. Everything cannot always be bright and joyful. Negative emotions occupy the same place in people's lives as positive ones. And even if a person is cheerful, he also has manifestations of resentment, sadness, although, perhaps, this is not particularly noticeable to others. But the less negative emotions you experience, the better your mood will be.
Moods
This type of emotion is considered the longest. Although in fact, a change in the psycho-emotional state of a person can occur very sharply and several times a day. Mood is also understood as the impression of a movie seen or a melody heard. This kind of process can meanalso aspirations, attitudes, desires. The mood determines the general line of a person's life. Unlike affects, it is very easy to hide.
On the other hand, if emotions, for example, are a response to certain events, then the etiology of the mood cannot always be understood. Sometimes a person is just sad. And he doesn't know why this is happening. A prolonged bad mood often leads to depression. Often this process is influenced by the physiological state. For example, when a person is in pain, he is in a bad mood. Fatigue, disruption of the endocrine system may also affect.
Pessimism and optimism
According to scientists, it is these forms of assessing situations that clearly demonstrate the relationship between mental state and emotional processes. So, for example, the properties of temperament predetermine the emotional response to a particular situation. An optimist is a cheerful person. In any situation, he will look for his pluses. Accordingly, this will also affect the mental state in a particular situation. For example, if his wallet is stolen from him, instead of the emotion "anger", he will feel "regret".
The exact opposite of an optimist is a pessimist. This person even in the most harmless situations sees a danger, a problem, in general - a negative. He often experiences longing, anger, irritation. Pessimists are prone to frequent panic attacks and depression. Their lives are dominated by negative emotions, which further exacerbates their difficult life.
Feelings
This groupemotional mental processes in psychology reflects an evaluative attitude to events or objects and, of course, it is necessarily subjective. A person's feelings can wax and wane. And everything will depend not so much on the environment that surrounds him, but on the people (animals) that are nearby.
Feelings differ from the previous three emotional mental processes in that they are attached, as a rule, to objects, and not to any situation. For example, if a person experiences fear, it is an emotion. But if he is afraid of a spider, then this feeling.
They can appear both in relation to real objects and to abstract ones. In addition, these processes may include a whole set of very different emotions and their logical connection. For example, a feeling of envy is formed on the basis of contempt, anger, resentment. And they are united by the fact that the envious person wants to be in the place of another person, dreams of his achievements.
Friendship is also considered a feeling. But it can manifest itself in completely different ways. One day it will be accompanied by joy and fun, and the next by tears and resentment.
One step from love to hate
Even in the IV century BC. e. Aristotle accurately described the concept of feelings. Yes, they may or may not last. And what is most interesting, they can instantly acquire the opposite color. Feelings of love can turn into hate, and trust into caution. And all this happens in just one moment, when a person evaluates the situation and makes an instant decision.
It is important to understand that the same feelingmay manifest differently in different people. This is influenced by the character of the individual, goals, aspirations, as well as education. In addition, many feelings are difficult to explain at all. Different people can describe the same word in a thousand different words. For example, one of the fundamental and common themes in world culture and art is: "What is love." And answers to this question can be found in a huge number and in a wide variety of literature.
Mobilization and survival function
We have already found out that throughout life a person experiences a whole range of different moods, feelings, emotions. But how does it all work and, most importantly, why? To do this, you should carefully study the functions of emotional mental processes.
Most often they manifest themselves at the physiological level. For example, when a person feels fear, a certain portion of adrenaline is released into the blood. And he, in turn, is responsible for the physiological response "flight or fight."
In any case, the body, upon receiving a certain signal, concentrates all efforts in order to overcome the negative situation. That is why in stressful situations we do not always manage emotions. But they control us, and in most cases it can save our lives. In stressful situations, you need to make decisions with lightning speed, and logical thinking is not capable of this.
Communication, problem solving and the role of intelligence
The following functions are communication and solving important problems. Of course, emotions help us communicate, convey feelings andmoods. This is especially important between close people. For example, a mother, having heard the cry of a child, understands that he is in pain, and rushes to help. Emotions allow us to understand how a person is evaluated by society. Sometimes a few glances from the crowd are enough to understand that a person has something wrong with their appearance. The same applies to the reverse side of the coin - approval, admiration.
Some psychologists put emotional processes on a par with intelligence. Only in this case is it the highest manifestation. Positive emotions and their occurrence increase the needs of the individual, while negative ones, on the contrary, reduce the intensity. This is how the necessary tasks are solved. Although it often happens that emotions interfere with making the right decision. And it's about feelings. Attachment to another person makes you close your eyes to many things. That is why people so often forgive betrayal, betrayal.
Rational and emotional thinking are closely related. They allow us to gain experience and use it in the future. The emotional brain works at the subconscious level. He can analyze the situation for a long time. Rational thinking, in turn, helps to make decisions based on past experience.
It often happens that an individual cannot choose whom he needs to listen to. For example, emotional thinking tells him that he needs to relax and rest, the body's strength is at its limit. The person feels really tired and overwhelmed. On the other hand, ration althinking: "We need to work, we can't fail this project." And here you have to choose between two evils. The predominance of certain decisions in a person's life also shows his attitude to various situations. A hard worker will always listen to rational thinking, and a lazy person will not hold back the manifestation of emotions.
It is for this reason that successful people have a very strong and persistent character. They always keep emotions under control and know how to manage them. If emotional processes completely take over a person, his existence will very much resemble the life cycle of an amoeba.
However, their function in people's lives should not be underestimated either. Emotions are also connected with that unconscious part, which is called intuition, chuyka. The algorithm of its work is not yet fully understood. Nevertheless, scientists have concluded that intuition is closely related to a person's experience and emotional state. Complete control over your senses can close these amazing abilities.
The structure of emotional mental processes is quite complex and it is not always easy to explain it. But people who are controlled by mood, not logic, are more creative and extraordinary personalities. They draw beautifully, sing, dance - and all thanks to a wide range of emotions that they feel every day.
