Re: affect
Dale Cyphert (DXC20 who-is-at PSUVM.PSU.EDU)
Sat, 11 May 96 09:33 EDT
I am not familiar with most of the texts that have been recommended on
affect, but a model that has worked well for me is Masano Toda's
decision-theory view. ("Emotion and Decision Making," Acta Psychologica
45 (1980): 133-55 is a summary) The gist is that emotions act as
cognitive cues with respect to the person's relationship in the social
network: anger and fear are inherently individual reactions to threat,
and are thus warnings of danger to individual members of the community,
whereas shame, pride, pity, and love all promote group viability by
promoting pro-social behaviors. They don't necessarily "feel" good to
the individual, but are necessary for the group's overall health.
dale