Emotional Experience, Expression, and Communication : A Developmental-Interactionist Approach to Biological and Higher-Level Social, Cognitive and Moral Emotions

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Emotional Experience, Expression, and
Communication A Developmental-Interactionist
Approach to Biological and Higher-Level Social,
Cognitive and Moral Emotions

• Ross Buck
• University of Connecticut
• Presented at Yale University Emotion Interest
  Group,
• Spring semester, 2003

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• This PowerPoint presentation may be used for
  educational purposes only, with citation of the
  original source.

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PART II EMOTIONALDEVELOPMENT
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THERE ARE THREE KINDS OF BIOLOGICAL
MOTIVATIONAL-EMOTIONAL READOUTS
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THERE ARE THREE KINDS OF BIOLOGICAL
MOTIVATIONAL-EMOTIONAL READOUTS

• EMOTION I PERIPHERAL BODILY READOUT (Autonomic,
  Endocrine, Immune system AROUSAL).

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THERE ARE THREE KINDS OF BIOLOGICAL
MOTIVATIONAL-EMOTIONAL READOUTS

• EMOTION I PERIPHERAL BODILY READOUT (Autonomic,
  Endocrine, Immune system AROUSAL).
• EMOTION II SOCIAL DISPLAY (EXPRESSION)

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THERE ARE THREE KINDS OF BIOLOGICAL
MOTIVATIONAL-EMOTIONAL READOUTS

• EMOTION I PERIPHERAL BODILY READOUT (Autonomic,
  Endocrine, Immune system AROUSAL).
• EMOTION II SOCIAL DISPLAY (EXPRESSION)
• EMOTION III BODILY AWARENESS (SUBJECTIVE
  EXPERIENCE).

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Emotion as readout of motivational potential
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Emotion I
Autonomic/endocrine/ immune system responding
Function Adaptation/ homeostasis
Emotion as readout of motivational potential
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Emotion I
Emotion II
Autonomic/endocrine/ immune system responding
Expressive behavior
Function Social coordination
Function Adaptation/ homeostasis
Emotion as readout of motivational potential
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Emotion III
Emotion I
Emotion II
Autonomic/endocrine/ immune system responding
Expressive behavior
Subjective experience
Function Social coordination
Function Self-regulation
Function Adaptation/ homeostasis
Emotion as readout of motivational potential
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Inhibition
Emotion II
Emotion I
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Different aspects of the emotional readout are
differentially accessible during development
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Different aspects of the emotional readout are
differentially accessible during development

• For this reason, emotional education is distinct
  from other sorts of learning.

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Different aspects of the emotional readout are
differentially accessible during development

• For this reason, emotional education is distinct
  from other sorts of learning.
• Coherent emotional expression is critical for
  successful emotional education and the
  development of emotional competence.

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Emotional Development
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Emotional Development

• Neurochemical systems underlie a subjectively
  experienced internal reality that is
  characterized by affects desires and feelings
  (The Emotion III readout).

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Emotional Development

• Neurochemical systems underlie a subjectively
  experienced internal reality that is
  characterized by affects desires and feelings
  (The Emotion III readout).
• Children must learn about this reality just as
  they learn about physical and social reality
  emotional education.

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Emotional Development

• Neurochemical systems underlie a subjectively
  experienced internal reality that is
  characterized by affects desires and feelings
  (The Emotion III readout).
• Children must learn about this reality just as
  they learn about physical and social reality
  emotional education.
• This learning is related in complex ways to the
  Emotion I (arousal) and Emotion II (expressive)
  readouts.

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Emotional Development

• Neurochemical systems underlie a subjectively
  experienced internal reality that is
  characterized by affects desires and feelings
  (The Emotion III readout).
• Children must learn about this reality just as
  they learn about physical and social reality
  emotional education.
• This learning is related in complex ways to the
  Emotion I (arousal) and Emotion II (expressive)
  readouts.
• This learning is based upon emotional
  communication.

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Emotion III
Accessible to self
Subjective experience of feelings and desires
(affects)
Social biofeedback
Inhibition
Emotion II
Accessible to others
Expressive Display Facial expressions, postures,
pheromones
Emotion I
Emotional communication, social biofeedback, and
emotional education lead to the control
of expression and emotional competence
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Emotion III
Accessible to self
Subjective experience of feelings and desires
(affects)
Social biofeedback
Inhibition
Other persons
Emotion II
Accessible to others
Expressive Display Facial expressions, postures,
pheromones
Emotion I
Emotional communication, social biofeedback, and
emotional education lead to the control
of expression and emotional competence
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Emotion III
Accessible to self
Subjective experience of feelings and desires
(affects)
Social biofeedback
Inhibition
Other persons
Emotion II
Accessible to others
Expressive Display Facial expressions, postures,
pheromones
Emotion I
Emotional communication, social biofeedback, and
emotional education lead to the control
of expression and emotional competence
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Emotion III
Accessible to self
Subjective experience of feelings and desires
(affects)
Social biofeedback
Inhibition
Other persons
Affords EMOTIONAL EDUCATION leading to the
CONTROL of expression and EMOTIONAL COMPETENCE
Emotion II
Accessible to others
Expressive Display Facial expressions, postures,
pheromones
Emotion I
Emotional communication, social biofeedback, and
emotional education lead to the control
of expression and emotional competence
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Emotional Education and Alexithymia

• Nemiah and Sifneos (1970) coined the term
  alexithymia (no words for mood) to describe
  emotion in patients with psychosomatic disease.

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Emotional Education and Alexithymia

• Nemiah and Sifneos (1970) coined the term
  alexithymia (no words for mood) to describe
  emotion in patients with psychosomatic disease.
• Such patients could not describe emotions in
  words, and showed high levels of autonomic
  nervous system responses.

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Emotional Education and Alexithymia

• Nemiah and Sifneos (1970) coined the term
  alexithymia (no words for mood) to describe
  emotion in patients with psychosomatic disease.
• Such patients could not describe emotions in
  words, and showed high levels of autonomic
  nervous system responses.
• More recent work has shown that impulsive
  persons, with low ANS responses, also have
  difficulty describing feelings.

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Emotional Education and Alexithymia

• Nemiah and Sifneos (1970) coined the term
  alexithymia (no words for mood) to describe
  emotion in patients with psychosomatic disease.
• Such patients could not describe emotions in
  words, and showed high levels of autonomic
  nervous system responses.
• More recent work has shown that impulsive
  persons, with low ANS responses, also have
  difficulty describing feelings.
• The common factor may be poor emotional
  communication during development, and therefore
  deficits in emotional education and emotional
  competence.

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Emotional suppression and inhibition can result
in hypoexpressive alexithymia
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Emotional suppression and inhibition can result
in hypoexpressive alexithymia

• Inhibition may be based upon temperament (extreme
  introversion), social learning to suppress
  emotional expression, or both.

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Emotional suppression and inhibition can result
in hypoexpressive alexithymia

• Inhibition may be based upon temperament (extreme
  introversion), social learning to suppress
  emotional expression, or both.
• Studies with the slide-viewing technique (Buck et
  al.) demonstrate that in the USA, adult males,
  but not preschool-age boys, show symptoms of
  hypoexpressive alexithymia (high ANS responding
  and low emotion sending accuracy).

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Emotional disinhibition can result in
hyperexpressive alexithymia
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Emotional disinhibition can result in
hyperexpressive alexithymia

• Disinhibition may be based upon temperament
  (extreme introversion), social learning fostering
  emotional disinhibition, or both.

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Emotional disinhibition can result in
hyperexpressive alexithymia

• Disinhibition may be based upon temperament
  (extreme introversion), social learning fostering
  emotional disinhibition, or both.
• Studies with the slide-viewing technique
  demonstrate that behaviorally-disordered children
  and some schizophrnia patients show symptoms of
  hyperexpressive alexithymia (high expressiveness
  and low emotion sending accuracy).

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Measuring Sending Accuracy

• The Slide-Viewing Technique Senders view and
  rate their feelings toward emotionally loaded
  slides while being filmed.

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Measuring Sending Accuracy

• The Slide-Viewing Technique Senders view and
  rate their feelings toward emotionally loaded
  slides while being filmed.
• Receivers judge the type of slide being viewed
  and guess the senders emotional response.

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Measuring Sending Accuracy

• The Slide-Viewing Technique Senders view and
  rate their feelings toward emotionally loaded
  slides while being filmed.
• Receivers judge the type of slide being viewed
  and guess the senders emotional response.
• Sending accuracy scores reflect the accuracy of
  receivers judgments.

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Measuring Expressiveness

• Segmentation Technique Judges viewing senders
  are asked to press a button whenever something
  meaningful occurs in the senders behavior.

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Measuring Expressiveness

• Segmentation Technique Judges viewing senders
  are asked to press a button whenever something
  meaningful occurs in the senders behavior.
• The mean number of button presses is an
  operational measure of expressiveness.

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Expressiveness versus Sending Accuracy

• Sending accuracy and expressiveness may show a
  curvilinear relationship

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High
Hypoexpression
Hyperexpression
Normal Expression
Sending accuracy
High Communication Accuracy
Low
Low
High
Expressiveness
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Expressiveness versus Sending Accuracy

• Sending accuracy and expressiveness may show a
  curvilinear relationship
• Sending accuracy will tend to be greatest (all
  else equal) at moderate levels of expressiveness.
  

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Expressiveness versus Sending Accuracy

• Sending accuracy and expressiveness may show a
  curvilinear relationship
• Sending accuracy will tend to be greatest (all
  else equal) at moderate levels of expressiveness.
  
• Sending accuracy will tend to be low at the
  extremes of expressiveness.

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Implications

• Understanding the role of emotional expression
  and communication in personality and
  psychopathology.

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HIGH
Hypoexpression
Hyperexpression
Normal Expression
Communication (Sending) Accuracy
High Communication Accuracy
Inhibitory Psychopathology
Disinhibitory Psychopathology
Low Psychopathology
LOW
LOW
HIGH
Expressiveness
Alexithymia
Hypoexpressive
Hyperexpressive
Normal
Personality
Extreme Introvert
Extreme Extrovert
Expressive Style
Internalizing
Externalizing
Emotional Education/ Competence
LOW
LOW
HIGH
Curvilinear relationship between expressiveness
and sending accuracy.
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Implications

• Understanding the role of emotional expression
  and communication in personality and
  psychopathology.
• Low expressiveness is related to hypoexpressive
  alexithymia, extreme introversion and
  internalizing, high ANS responding, and low
  sending accuracy.

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Implications

• Understanding the role of emotional expression
  and communication in personality and
  psychopathology.
• Low expressiveness is related to hypoexpressive
  alexithymia, extreme introversion and
  internalizing, high ANS responding, and low
  sending accuracy.
• High expressiveness is related to
  hyperexpressive alexithymia, extreme extraversion
  and externalizing, low ANS responding, and low
  sending accuracy.

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Implications

• Understanding the role of emotional expression
  and communication in personality and
  psychopathology.
• Low expressiveness is related to hypoexpressive
  alexithymia, extreme introversion and
  internalizing, high ANS responding, and low
  sending accuracy.
• High expressiveness is related to
  hyperexpressive alexithymia, extreme extraversion
  and externalizing, low ANS responding, and low
  sending accuracy.
• These relationships are due to the effects of the
  extremes of expressiveness on the accuracy of
  EMOTION COMMUNICATION during development.