Emotion: A Biosocial Synthesis

476 Pages·2014·4.27 MB·English

by  Ross Buck

Emotion
Emotionssuffuseourlives:asymphonyoffeeling–usuallywhispering
andmurmuringinpianissimobutoccasionallyscreamingandshouting
infortissimocrescendo–fillingeverywakingmomentandeveninvad-
ing our dreams. We can always be conscious of how happy, sad,
annoyed, or anxious we feel, and also of the feelings we have relative
to other persons: pride, envy, guilt, jealousy, trust, respect, or resent-
ment. Developments in brain imaging and in capturing nuances of
nonverbal display now enable the objective study of emotion and
how biologically based primary emotions relate to higher-level social,
cognitive, and moral emotions. This book presents an integrated
developmental-interactionist theory of emotion, viewing subjective
feelings as voices of the genes: an affective symphony composed of
dissociablealbeitinteractiveneurochemicalmodules.Theseprimordial
voices do not control, but rather cajole our behavior with built-in
flexibility enabling the mindful application of learning, reason, and
language.
ross buck isProfessorofCommunicationSciencesandPsychologyat
the University of Connecticut.
STUDIES IN EMOTION AND SOCIAL INTERACTION
Second Series
SeriesEditors
KeithOatley
UniversityofToronto
AntonyS.R.Manstead
CardiffUniversity
TitlespublishedintheSecondSeries:
ThePsychologyofFacialExpression,editedbyJamesA.Russelland
JoséMiguelFernández-Dols
Emotions,theSocialBond,andHumanReality:Part/WholeAnalysis,by
ThomasJ.Scheff
IntersubjectiveCommunicationandEmotioninEarlyOntogeny,edited
bySteinBråten
TheSocialContextofNonverbalBehavior,editedbyPierrePhilippot,
RobertS.Feldman,andErikJ.Coats
CommunicatingEmotion:Social,Moral,andCulturalProcesses,by
SallyPlanalp
EmotionsacrossLanguagesandCultures:DiversityandUniversals,
byAnnaWierzbicka
FeelingandThinking:TheRoleofAffectinSocialCognition,editedby
JosephP.Forgas
MetaphorandEmotion:Language,Culture,andBodyinHumanFeeling,
byZoltánKövecses
GenderandEmotion:SocialPsychologicalPerspectives,editedby
AgnetaH.Fischer
CausesandConsequencesofFeelings,byLeonardBerkowitz
EmotionsandBeliefs:HowFeelingsInfluenceThoughts,editedby
NicoH.Frijda,AntonyS.R.Manstead,andSachaBem
IdentityandEmotion:DevelopmentthroughSelf-Organization,edited
byHarkeA.BosmaandE.SaskiaKunnen
SpeakingfromtheHeart:GenderandtheSocialMeaningofEmotion,
byStephanieA.Shields

Emotion
A Biosocial Synthesis
Ross Buck
UniversityofConnecticut
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Firstpublished2014
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AcataloguerecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary
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Buck,Ross.
Emotion:abiosocialsynthesis/RossBuck.
pages cm.–(Studiesinemotionandsocialinteraction,secondseries)
ISBN978-0-521-81316-7(Hardback)
1. Emotions–Socialaspects. I. Title.
BF531.B7832014
152.4–dc23 2014008996
ISBN978-0-521-81316-7Hardback
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To Nora, Maya, Will, Hannah, and all the children
Peoplelearntohate,andiftheycanlearntohate,theycan
be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the
human heart than its opposite.
Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom
We live in a world where we have to hide to make love,
while violence is practiced in broad daylight.
John Lennon