Etymologically the word ’emotion’ is derived from the Latin word, ‘emovere which means’ to stir up or ‘to excite’ In common terms, emotion is mentioned as a subjective feeling. Feelings have the simple experiences of the affective type which may be pleasant or unpleasant and also havecomplex affective experiences in which the whole individual is stirred/stimulated.
Emotion is the feelings or affective experiences characterized by physiological changes that generally conduct them to perform some or the other types of behavioural actions.
Meaning of emotions: –
The normal human experience and psychiatric diseases are greatly influenced by emotion. Humans’ reactions to events or circumstances, or their behaviours, are known as emotions. The situation that causes emotional control and the kind of emotion that a person will feel. For instance, when someone hears excellent news, they are happy. When someone is in aggressive/danger, they become afraid.
Our daily lives are significantly impacted by our emotions. Depending on our emotion happiness, rage, sadness, boredom, or frustration we make choices. Knowing our emotions can make life easier and more stable for the person to manage and live happily.
Definition: – Emotion is a ‘moved’ or ‘stirred-up’ state of an organism. It is a stirred-up state of feeling and appears that way to the individual himself. It is a disturbed muscular and glandular activity and appears that way to the external observer.
-Woodworth (1945)
Development of emotions:-
Learning what feelings and emotions are, how and why they happen, recognising your own feelings and those of others, and creating effective coping mechanisms for those feelings are all part of emotional development. Psychologists are divided emotional Development into 4 Stages of life These are given below-
- Emotional development during Infancy
- Emotional development during childhood
- Emotional development during Adulthood
- Emotional development during old age
1. Emotional development during Infancy
1. From the birth of the newborn, they cry and his/her bodily movements seem to give evidence of the presence of an emotional element in the newly born individual.
2. Honestly, as per Mrs. Hurlock’s phrase. “The first indication of emotional behaviour is broad arousal in response to the intense stimulus at birth and shortly thereafter. No signs of distinct, clear–cut emotional patterns that may be identified and classified as particular emotional states are present.” As a result, it is the phase of uniform excitation in response to any stimuli.
3. The broad excitement quickly differentiates into basic reactions that suggest pleasure and annoyance, ending the stage of undifferentiated excitement in a very short period of time. Pleasant reactions are induced by stimuli such as unexpected loud noises, the application of wet, cold, or hot substances to a baby’s skin, feelings of hunger and discomfort, etc.
4. According to Spitz, the separation of general excitation into pleasing and unpleasant responses follows the following pattern: “For the first two months, physical stimulation is what triggers feelings of pleasure and repulsion. after three months. The physiological stimulus causes pleasure, as evidenced by the baby’s smile in response to a human face. The baby’s response to being left alone is an example of how psychological as well as physical inputs can cause slightly later annoyance.”
5. As was previously said, there are just two feelings (distress and delight) at this age, and emotional behaviour is communicated through pleasant and painful responses. When a baby reaches his sixth month, the negative emotions gain control, and throughout the following months, distinct feelings of fear, contempt, wrath, and jealousy all emerge. Positive feelings such as joy, love, sympathy, and delight all come into play during the tenth and twelve months.
6. According to Bridges’ 1931 study, practically all emotions, both pleasant and negative, take shape and become quite distinct during the first two years.
2. Emotional Development during Childhood
As said above, almost all emotions make themselves distinguishable up to the beginning of childhood.
Therefore, emotional development after the stage of infancy, concerns itself, only with the changes in the nature of situations or stimuli arousing emotions and the changes in the expression of emotional experiences. We find the following changes in the child during childhood:
- During infancy, the child is simply thinking about himself. Therefore, circumstances that are relevant to his immediate well-being tend to generate emotions. But as he gets older, his world gets bigger, and he has to react to more different stimuli. His emotional behaviour is influenced during his formative years by peer group relationships, the school environment, and other environmental circumstances. His emotions are connected to his new interests and experiences, and his emotional behaviour is connected to new stimuli. He does not, however, respond to many earlier stimuli. For instance, he does not express resentment for having to be dressed or showered, nor does he exhibit any dread of strangers.
- The way that emotional behaviour is expressed has undergone a striking transformation. Infancy is a time when this behaviour is typically characterised by excessive intensity, which is typically communicated by motor responses like screaming, sobbing, etc. However, the child strives to express his behaviour by suitable means while still in childhood, especially in later years. This behaviour is the result of a variety of reasons. The ability to verbally convey one’s feelings through language is present in childhood. Second, he starts to interact with people and realises that it might not always be desirable or appropriate for him to display his emotions. Thirdly, his brain starts to exercise proper control over emotional outbursts.
3.Emotional Development during Adolescence and in the old age group-
In adolescence, the emotional balance is once more upset. The person goes through the same intense and violent emotional stream once more. This is a time of intense tension and form in terms of emotional experiences. Adolescence is the only time in life when this emotional energy is as potent and hazardous. An adolescent finds it extremely challenging to regulate his emotions. He becomes restless due to the abrupt onset of sexual gland function and the enormous rise in physical energy.
Additionally, teenagers’ emotional consistency is inconsistent. At this point, emotions change rapidly and frequently. It depresses them. They experience great happiness and extreme sadness in quick succession at different times. Therefore, the nature of their emotional states is too ambiguous.
Alteration of emotion-
case story- Hina is trying to find work. She feels more comfortable going into the interview because she prepared properly. She is really tense as she walks into the room and the interview starts. Her heart begins to beat, her feet become numb, and she is unable to respond effectively. Why did that take place? Consider a situation that is comparable to the one you have experienced in the past. Can you give some possible explanations for this? We’ll see that when we experience emotion, a lot of physiological changes take place. These physical alterations may be pretty simple to observe when we feel excited, fearful, or furious.
You must all notice that when you are upset or passionate about something, your heart rate increases, your temples beat, you sweat a lot more, and your limbs shiver. It is now possible to measure the exact physiological changes that go along with emotions thanks to specialized technology. The somatic and autonomic nervous systems both are crucial to the emotional process. The thalamus, hypothalamus, limbic system, and cerebral cortex are all heavily involved in a cycle of neurophysiological activations that lead to the perception of emotions. People who have suffered severe damage to these brain regions have been reported to exhibit diminished emotional capacities. Experimental evidence indicates that distinct emotions can be induced in both newborns and adults by selectively activating certain brain regions.
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