Page 342 - Understanding Psychology

Emotions
Reader’s Guide
Exploring Psychology
Victory!
The United States and China were locked in a scoreless tie. . . . The game— the Women’s World Cup final—had come down to a single penalty kick. [Brandi] Chastain approached the ball and barely hesitated before drilling her shot perfectly into the upper right corner of the net. As frenzied fans in Pasadena, Calif.’s Rose Bowl roared, she whipped off her shirt and waved it at the crowd before being buried in celebration by a pile of her teammates. “I didn’t hear any noise. I didn’t look at the [Chinese goalkeeper],” she said of her shot. “As soon as the whistle blew, I just stepped up and hit
it. I just kind of lost my mind.”
—from Newsweek, July 19, 1999
s Main Idea
All emotions consist of three parts—the physical, cognitive, and behavioral aspects. Theories of emotion propose that emotions result from physical changes and/or mental processes.
s Vocabulary • emotion
s Objectives
• Give examples of the physiological
theories of emotion.
• Explain the cognitive theorists’
approach to the study of emotion.
What drove Brandi Chastain to perfect her soccer game? Why did she try so hard? How did she feel when she scored the winning goal? Was she tired, thirsty, excited, nervous, or happy? It is difficult to draw a clear line between motives and emotions. When a person needs food, the stomach contracts, the level of sugar in the blood drops, neural and endocrine systems are thrown slightly off bal- ance, and taste buds become more sensitive. When a person is frightened, heart and breathing rates quicken, energy level rises, the senses mobilize, and blood rushes away from the stomach into the brain, heart, and other muscles. Of course, a poet might diagnose a pounding heart, loss of appetite, and heightened awareness of the moonlight and scented breezes
328 Chapter 12 / Motivation and Emotion