The Physiological And Psychological Workings Of Emotions

What are Emotions and Moods and How Can Understanding Them Help Us to Improve Society? Emotions. They appear to control our lives; from interacting with people to being essential to our survival in situations where our ‘reptilian’ brain (the part of our brain that largely corresponds with that of reptiles and is therefore more instinctual) takes over. At this very moment, all over the globe, emotions are ruling people’s decisions and actions, ultimately moulding the basis of who they are and how they interact with their environments. Our relationships and prejudices, reactions and wellbeing are all influenced by these powerful control systems, yet it seems that society has no idea how emotions work or how we can use them to make everyday life better for ourselves and everyone around us. Despite the fact that they affect us so significantly, we have yet to come to a definitive conclusion on the physiological and psychological workings of emotions. What is an Emotion? The Oxford Dictionary defines an emotion as ‘a strong feeling deriving from one’s circumstance, mood or relationship with others’ or an ‘instinctive or intuitive feeling as distinguished from reasoning or knowledge’ . Although these definitions are sufficient in terms of basic understanding, they do not give any insight into the inner workings of emotions or why we have them. Oliver Burkman, the author of The Antidote: Happiness for People Who Can’t Stand Positive Feeling, said, in a blog, that no one actuallyShow MoreRelatedIncrease Of Working Memory During The Same Period1492 Words   |  6 Pagesincrease of working memory during the same period (Jha, 2010). The study also found that in addition to the gains in working memory capacity, the group that meditated had increased self-reported positive affect. Positive affect is how we experience feelings and emotions, in other words it is our moods. 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