The 6 basic emotions according to psychology

Normally we tend to believe that emotions are irrational and that they lead us to poor decision making, which in turn can lead us to conclude that emotions are useless. However, this is a serious mistake. Emotions play a very important role in our life: they help us to modulate our behavior and to act quickly in situations where it is necessary. In this Psychology-Online article, we explain the 6 basic emotions according to psychology

Index

1. 6 or 4 basic emotions?
2. Disgust
3. Surprise
4. Afraid
5. Happiness
6. Sadness
7. Go to
8. Basic and secondary emotions

The most significant emotions are what we call basic emotions (surprise, disgust, fear, happiness, sadness and anger).

These basic emotions are part of the natural development of every human being and are the same for everyone, regardless of the individual's environment. In general, they are processes related to evolution and adaptation and have an innate and universal neural background. In addition, they have a characteristic associated emotional state, which we could call feeling.

According to Ekman's psychology, there are these six basic emotions. However, thanks to new neuroscience techniques, we know that disgust and anger come from a common emotion and that surprise and fear share a basic facial expression. Therefore, we can affirm that there are 4 basic emotions.

However, we are going to define the basic emotions that he proposed to us Ekman's psychological theory

According to Ekman's theory, disgust is one of the basic emotions. It implies a feeling of repulsion or avoidance of the possibility (real or imaginary) of ingesting a dangerous substance with polluting properties. The subjective feeling is one of great displeasure and a marked aversion to the offensive stimulus. The central physiological effects are manifested in different gastrointestinal problems along with nausea. There is also a general increase in activation in the body.

Disgust as a negative emotion it is also reflected in increased heart and respiratory rates, skin conductance response, and muscle tension. The adaptive function of disgust is to reject any stimulus that may be toxic. Nausea and discomfort help the subject avoid ingesting things that are harmful to the body. In addition, over time, this emotion has also acquired a social character. We also reject toxic social stimuli.

According to psychology, we can define surprise as the reaction triggered by something unexpected, new or strange. In other words, it is when a stimulus appears that the subject had not thought about beforehand. The subjective experience that accompanies surprise is a feeling of uncertainty. Regarding physiological reactions, a decrease in heart rate and an increase in muscle tone are usually observed. Breathing deepens, pitch rises, and subject makes spontaneous vocalizations.

The purpose of the surprise is empty working memory of all residual activity in order to cope with the unexpected stimulus. To do this, surprise activates attention processes, along with behavior related to exploration and curiosity. Depending on the quality of the unexpected stimulus, the joy (positive) or anger (negative) they often follow this emotion.

This is the emotion that researchers study the most in humans and animals. Fear is a negative or adverse emotional state. It involves high arousal that leads to avoiding and escaping from dangerous situations. The experience of fear is one of high tension, along with concern for one's health and safety. The correlated physiological symptoms show us a rapid increase in activation and preparation for flight. Heart activity shoots up and breathing speeds up.

Breathing becomes shallow and irregular. Fear is an evolutionary legacy that has an obvious survival value. This emotion is useful to prepare the body and provoke survival behaviors in potentially dangerous situations. In addition, it helps to learn new protection responses.

Of all the basic emotions according to psychology, happiness is perhaps the most positive. We directly associate happiness with pleasure and joy. It comes as a response to the resolution of some personal goal or after mitigating a negative situation, for example. Because of the way we put it, it doesn't seem to have any kind of survival function. It does not seem to be more than the reflection of our internal state. However, happiness is one of the body systems that moves us to action.

Also it's a reward for the behavior that brings us benefits. When we take some kind of action that fulfills a goal, happiness arises. Thanks to that feeling of happiness, we will repeat that behavior to experience pleasure again. These may be the most natural motivators we have. At a physiological level, an increase in heart rate and a better respiratory rate are observed. In addition to that, we find that the brain releases more endorphins and dopamine.

Of all the basic emotions according to psychology, sadness is probably the most negative. This emotion implies a decreased mood, as well as a significant reduction in cognitive and behavioral activity.

Despite the bad reputation this emotion receives, it fulfills roles that are just as important, even more important, than the rest of the basic emotions.

The purpose of sadness is to act in situations in which the subject is powerless or cannot take any direct action. An example is the loss of a loved one. Sadness reduces activity levels, which is the body trying to save resources and avoid unnecessary efforts. Sadness also plays a role in self protection. It generates a perceptual filter that focuses attention on the harmful stimulus. Most importantly, it pushes people to seek social support, which will help them get out of a depressive situation.

Anger arises when an individual finds himself in situations that produce frustration or aversion. The experience of anger is unpleasant. It is accompanied by a feeling of tension that prompts us to act. It is a multifaceted emotion and, in many cases, ambiguous. We say ambiguous because it is not always justified and the object is not always well identified. Physiologically, there is an excessive increase in activation and readiness for action.

We observe a increased heart activity. Muscle tone and respiratory rate also increase, plus there is a significant increase in adrenaline in the blood. This, in turn, increases cognitive stress. Anger has a clear evolutionary function. It gives us the resources we need to deal with frustrating situations.

When we have to face some kind of danger or overcome a challenge, spending these resources to increase activation helps us to be successful. If we don't reach our goal after feeling angry, then we move on to sadness. This means that we seek to solve the problem using other tools.

Whether positive, negative, or neutral, all emotions have a purpose that helps us survive. On the other hand, they can also be dangerous. They can put us in dangerous situations or dominate our behavior. In those cases, emotional regulation is especially important. Emotional regulation is what makes it possible to avoid negativity when emotions are at the helm.

The difference between basic and secondary emotions

In this case we find disparity of opinions: some experts affirm that secondary emotions are those that derive from basic emotions (for example, anxiety may be the mixture of fear with another type of response emotional).

On the other hand, other psychologists affirm that the main difference between basic and secondary emotions resides in the complexity of the latter, developing throughout the time and centuries of human evolution.

This article is merely informative, in Psychology-Online we do not have the power to make a diagnosis or recommend a treatment. We invite you to go to a psychologist to treat your particular case.

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