Seminar on Emotion

Psychology 169/277

Fall Quarter, 1997

Th 1:15-3:45

Instructor: James Gross, Ph.D.

Office: Jordan, Room 124; Phone: 723-1281

Office Hours: Thursdays 5:00-6:45 pm

Email: james@psych.stanford.edu

This seminar provides a selective overview of the scientific study of emotion. Topics include: (1) Models of emotion, (2) Emotion antecedents, (3) Emotional responses (facial, subjective, and physiological), (4) Functions of emotion, (5) Emotion regulation, (6) Individual differences, and (7) Health implications. Our focus will be on interesting, experimentally tractable ideas.

Nuts and bolts

Meetings involve both lecture and discussion. Course requirements include: completing assigned readings, contributing to class discussion, writing a paper in the form of a grant application with a graded first draft (5-8 pp UG, 8-10 pp G), and taking an in-class final examination.

Readings

Readings will be drawn from two texts and a reader. One text is Ekman, P., & Davidson, R. J. (Eds.). (1994). The nature of emotion: Fundamental questions. New York: Oxford University Press. The second text is Strunk, W., & White, E.B. (1979). The elements of style (3rd ed.). New York: Macmillan. Texts and reader are available from the Stanford Bookstore. They also are on reserve at Meyer Library.

Seminar on Emotion

James Gross, Ph.D.

Fall, 1997

September 25: Models of emotion

Darwin, C. (1872). The expression of the emotions in man and animals. London: Albemarle. PAGES 347-366.

James, W. (1884). What is an emotion? Mind, 9, 188-205.

Cannon, W. B. (1927). The James-Lange theory of emotions: A critical examination and an alternative theory. American Journal of Psychology, 39, 106-124.

October 2: Emotion antecedents

Strunk, W., & White, E.B. (1979). The elements of style (3rd ed.). New York: Macmillan. CHAPTER 1.

Ekman, P., & Davidson, R. J. (Eds.). (1994). The nature of emotion: Fundamental questions. New York: Oxford University Press. PAGES 141-177.

Scherer, K.R., Summerfield, A.B., & Wallbott, H.G. (1983). Cross-national research on antecedents and components of emotion: A progress report. Social Science Information, 22, 355-385.

Frijda, N.H. (1988). The laws of emotion. American Psychologist, 43, 349-358.

Gross, J.J., & Levenson, R.W. (1995). Emotion elicitation using films. Cognition

and Emotion, 9, 87-108.

October 9: Emotional responses: Faces

Strunk, W., & White, E.B. (1979). The elements of style (3rd ed.). New York: Macmillan. CHAPTER 2.

Rinn, W. E. (1984). The neuropsychology of facial expression: A review of the neurological and psychological mechanisms for producing facial expressions. Psychological Bulletin, 95, 52-77.

Ekman, P. (1993). Facial expression and emotion. American Psychologist, 48, 384-392.

Tuesday, October 14: Emotional responses: Feelings

(NOTE SPECIAL MEETING TIME!)

Strunk, W., & White, E.B. (1979). The elements of style (3rd ed.). New York: Macmillan. CHAPTER 3.

Ekman, P., & Davidson, R. J. (Eds.). (1994). The nature of emotion: Fundamental questions. New York: Oxford University Press. PAGES 377-407.

Watson, D., & Tellegen, A. (1985). Toward a consensual structure of mood. Psychological Bulletin, 98, 219-235.

Myers, D.G., & Diener, E. (1995). Who is happy? Psychological Science, 6,

10-19.

October 23: Emotional responses: Physiology

Strunk, W., & White, E.B. (1979). The elements of style (3rd ed.). New York: Macmillan. CHAPTER 4.

Ekman, P., & Davidson, R. J. (Eds.). (1994). The nature of emotion: Fundamental questions. New York: Oxford University Press. PAGES 235-262.

LeDoux, J.E. (1993). Emotional networks in the brain. In M. Lewis & J.M. Haviland (Eds.), Handbook of emotions (pp. 109-118). New York: Guilford Press.

Davidson, R.J. (1993). The neuropsychology of emotion and affective style. In M. Lewis & J.M. Haviland (Eds.), Handbook of emotions (pp. 143-154). New York: Guilford Press.

Levenson, R. W. (1988). Emotion and the autonomic nervous system: A prospectus for research on autonomic specificity. In H. Wagner (Ed.), Social psychophysiology: Perspectives on theory and clinical applications (pp. 17-42). London: Wiley.

October 30: Functions of emotion

Strunk, W., & White, E.B. (1979). The elements of style (3rd ed.). New York: Macmillan. CHAPTER 5.

Ekman, P., & Davidson, R. J. (Eds.). (1994). The nature of emotion: Fundamental questions. New York: Oxford University Press. PAGES 97-139.

Tooby, J., & Cosmides, L. (1990). The past explains the present: Emotional adaptations and the structure of ancestral environments. Ethology and Sociobiology, 11, 375-424. PAGES 407-424.

Fridlund, A.J. (1994). Human facial expression: An evolutionary view. San Diego, CA: Academic Press. PAGES 124-186.

Averill, J.R. (1980). A constructivist view of emotion. In R. Plutchik & H. Kellerman

(Eds.), Emotion: Theory, research, and experience (pp. 305-339). New York: Academic Press.

November 6: Emotion regulation

Ekman, P., & Davidson, R. J. (Eds.). (1994). The nature of emotion: Fundamental questions. New York: Oxford University Press. PAGES 263-281.

Gross, J.J., & Munoz, R.F. (1995). Emotion regulation and mental health. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 2, 151-164.

Gross, J. J., & Levenson, R. W. (1997). Hiding feelings: The acute effects of inhibiting

negative and positive emotion. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 106, 95-103.

Wegner, D. M. (1994). Ironic processes of mental control. Psychological Review, 101, 34-52.

November 13: Personality and emotion

Kagan, J., & Snidman, N. (1991). Temperamental factors in human development. American Psychologist, 46, 856-862.

Mischel, W., Shoda, Y., & Rodriguez, M. L. (1989). Delay of gratification in children.

Science, 244, 933-938.

Larsen, R.J., & Ketelaar, T. (1991). Personality and susceptibility to positive and negative emotional states. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 61, 132-140.

Shedler, J., Mayman, M., & Manis, M. (1993). The illusion of mental health. American Psychologist, 48, 1117-1131.

November 20: Emotions and health

Watson, D., & Pennebaker, J. W. (1989). Health complaints, stress, and distress:

Exploring the central role of negative affectivity. Psychological Review, 96, 234-254.

Barlow, D.H. (1991). Disorders of emotion. Psychological Inquiry, 2, 58-71.

Gullette, E. C. D., Blumenthal, J.A., Babyak, M., Jiang, W., Waugh, R.A., Frid, D.J.,

O'Connor, C.M., Morris, J.J., Krantz, D.S. (1997). Effects of mental stress on myocardial ischemia during daily life. Journal of the American Medical Association, 277, 1521-1526.

December 4: Is the phrase "science of emotion" an oxymoron?

Ekman, P., & Davidson, R. J. (Eds.). (1994). The nature of emotion: Fundamental questions. New York: Oxford University Press. PAGES 409-430.

**DATE OF FINAL EXAM TO BE ANNOUNCED**