Question

If you were walking alone at night and heard some footsteps behind you, what would your emotional reaction be, considering the major theories of emotion: James-Lange, Cannon-Bard, and Schacter-Singer,  describe how each theory would predict the sequence of events that would occur as you experience a reaction to this situation.

Answer 1

A- The various theories of emotions in Modern psychology seek to interpret how we experience emotions and describe how stimuli and emotions relate to each other. Under each of these theories the sequence of events that occur as a result of the same situation would be different.

The James-Lange theory of emotion- According to this theory, emotions are the result of our interpretations of physiological responses to stimuli.

As per this theory, sequence of events would be as follows:

• hearing the footsteps behind

• reacting in some manner. For e.g. running

• then feeling an emotion as a result of the reaction. For e.g. feeling scared while running.

The Cannon-Bard theory- According to this theory, stimulus results in emotional and bodily reaction simultaneously.

As per this theory, sequence of events would be as follows:

• Hearing the footsteps behind which is emotion-provoking.

• Feel an emotion and bodily action together. For e.g. feeling scared and running at the same time.

The Schacter-Singer theory- According to this theory, emotions are produced from a state of arousal and an attribution of that arousal.

As per this theory, sequence of events would be as follows:

• Hearing the footsteps behind

• Experiencing state of alertness

• Recognizing an environmental explanation for the footsteps, and attaching emotions to this source discovered.