There are over 7 billion humans on Earth, and each one of us experiences different kinds of emotions. How Many Emotions are There?Īs defined, emotion is a subjective experience.

Having a sound knowledge of these theories provides a better understanding of the theoretical causes of emotions. On the other hand, there are theories that use two-systems view approach, such as the Schachter-Singer Theory. In the early theories of emotion, there is a distinction between cognition and biological responses as the causes of emotions, as explained in the James-Lange Theory and the Cannon-Bard Theory. These theories use the concepts of emotional arousal, physiological responses and/or the subjective perception/interpretation of the event in formulating hypotheses on emotions and their causes. There are several theories that provide explanations regarding the origin and process of emotions and what causes them. The character runs after the protagonist, and you feel your heart beating fast (physiological reaction) and you cover your eyes with your hands in fear (behavioural reaction). Because of this thinking, your face shows fear towards the character (affect). You see the physical form of the antagonist and you think he is so scary and spooky (cognitive reaction). Suppose you are watching a scary television show alone late at night. Let’s use a scenario to clearly discuss these aspects of emotion. Lastly, affect includes the positive or negative state of the emotion and is what makes an emotion a conscious and subjective experience. On the other hand, behavioural reactions comprise the active expression of the emotion. Physiological reactions are primarily caused by changes in the hormonal levels in the body. Cognitive reactions refer to a person’s memory, thinking and perception of an event. From this definition, we can deduce that an emotion has four components, namely: cognitive reactions, physiological reactions, behavioural reactions and affect. Merriam-Webster defines emotion as a conscious and subjective mental reaction toward a particular event and is usually accompanied by changes in the physiologic and behavioural aspects of a person.

Types of moods and emotions