Jo Ann A. Abe

The Developmental Functions of Emotions: An Analysis in Terms of Differential Emotions Theory

A substantial body of theoretical literature testifies to the evolutionary functions of emotions. Relatively little has been written about their developmental functions. This article discusses the developmental functions of emotions from the perspective of differential emotions theory (DET; Izard, 1977, 1991). According to DET, although all the emotions retain their adaptive and motivational functions across the lifespan, different sets of emotions may become relatively more prominent in the different stages of life as they serve stage-related developmental processes. In the first section, we present a brief overview of relevant aspects of the theory. In the second section, we discuss how emotions play a central role in helping the individual achieve developmental milestones and tasks during four major periods of life: Infancy, toddler through preschool years, middle to late childhood, and adolescence. The underlying thesis of this article is that emotions play a central role in stimulating social cogniti...

Differential Emotions Theory and Emotional Development

Differential emotions theory (DET) packs the infant. Infants gain possession of a limited set of discrete emotions in the first months of life, and these emotions are organized as a modular system with a high degree of independent functioning. The number of emotions, their expressive signatures, and their links to one another undergo remarkable change over time, to be sure, as do system organization and articulation. The core processes in emotional development, however, consist of the construction and consolidation of affective—cognitive structures, which mediate intersystem coordination of the emotions, cognitive, and motor systems.

Differential Emotions Theory and Emotional Development in Adulthood and Later Life

Publisher Summary This chapter describes how Differential Emotions Theory (DET) serves as a theoretical framework for emotional development across the life span. Most investigations till 1984, using DET as a research paradigm, have focused primarily on issues of early development. Having characterized the emotions in this way, it follows that the quality of life in the older adult can best be explained by a principle that affirms the continuity of emotion feelings and emotion expressions across the life span. This has affirmed that it is the emotional component of consciousness and experience that gives richness and meaning to individual life and relationships. Since 1984, other aspects of DET have been further elaborated, and empirical research has begun to be conducted on emotions in adulthood. . The chapter presents an overview of DET. Following this, it discusses key principles of life span emotional development. The chapter also discusses DET in relation to adult development and aging and illustrates how DET relates to other models of emotion in adulthood. Finally, the chapter highlights the avenues for future research from the perspective of DET.

Shame, guilt, and personality judgment.

Abstract The purpose of this study was to shed further light on the intrapersonal and interpersonal correlates of shame- and guilt-proneness by examining their relations with self- and peer-ratings of the five-factor model (FFM) of personality. Shame- and guilt-proneness were assessed using a scenario-based and a checklist measure. Consistent with findings from previous research, the self-rating data yielded support for the view that shame-proneness may be associated with more maladaptive patterns than guilt-proneness. However, peer-ratings of personality failed to corroborate these findings. Both scenario-based and checklist measures of shame-proneness were associated with a tendency to underestimate one’s Agreeableness relative to peer-ratings. Several possible interpretations of these findings are discussed in light of the extant research on personality judgment.

Changes in Alan Greenspan’s Language Use Across the Economic Cycle: A Text Analysis of His Testimonies and Speeches:

This study examined changes in Alan Greenspan’s language use across the economic cycle by analyzing his testimonies and speeches using the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count Program (LIWC), which is a widely used text analysis program. Consistent with expectations, Greenspan showed an increase in the composite measure of psychological distancing as well as a decline in the measure of cognitive complexity between the economic expansion and downturn periods. Interestingly, these patterns of changes became more pronounced during the purported economic recovery period. In contrast to the measures of psychological distancing and cognitive complexity, the measure of emotionality remained relatively stable across the economic cycle.

Cognitive–Affective Styles Associated With Position on War

This study examined cognitive–affective styles associated with position on the Iraq war by analyzing responses posted on an online discussion forum using a computerized text-analysis program (Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count). Overall, the results were consistent with those obtained in narrative-coding studies. The pro-war group was associated with an external focus and a simplistic style of information processing. The anti-war group was associated with an internal focus and high levels of cognitive processing and negative emotion words. The “neither” group scored the highest on cognitive complexity and positive emotion words, and it was also the most balanced in terms of internal and external focus.

Differential Emotions Theory as a Theory of Personality Development

In The Face of Emotions, which was Carroll Izard’s first major attempt at elaborating his differential emotions theory (DET), he stated that the book “presents a theoretical framework for the study of emotions and their role in personality and interpersonal processes.” Yet, over the years, his contribution to personality theory has generally been overshadowed by the attention focused on his views on facial expressions and the structure of emotions. This article will begin with a brief overview of the DET perspective on personality development. Then, it will examine how the DET framework can be used to organize recent findings from three lines of research on adult personality. It will conclude with suggestions for future research as well as some personal recollections.

A longitudinal follow-up study of happiness and meaning-making

The long-term outcomes associated with happiness and meaning-making were examined by following up on participants in previous studies on experiential learning an average of 2.5 years later. Measures of happiness and meaning-making were extracted by analyzing the participants’ journals using a computerized text-analysis program. Happiness as assessed by a composite measure of positive emotionality showed weak associations with the measures of adaptive functioning, and was negatively correlated with optimism, as well as positively correlated with emotion suppression. By contrast, meaning-making as assessed by composite measures of cognitive processing and self-distancing was robustly positively correlated with almost all measures of adaptive functioning. Regression analyses revealed that the two measures of meaning and their interaction term accounted for 20–24% of the variance in predicting the outcome measures. This study revealed that there may be at times a trade-off between happiness and meaning-making as well as a reversal in their patterns of long-term outcomes.

Personality, Well-Being, and Cognitive-Affective Styles: A Cross-Sectional Study of Adult Third Culture Kids:

Third Culture Kids (TCKs) and their adult counterparts (ATCKs) refer to individuals who spent part of their developmental years abroad and are an important demographic to study in this rapidly globalizing world. To date, the bulk of the research on (A)TCKs has been descriptive and little is known about their developmental trajectories in adulthood. The major objective of this study was to examine the personality traits, dimensions of well-being, and cognitive-affective styles of ATCKs across the adult life span using well-validated psychological measures. A subsidiary goal was to develop a new multidimensional international experiences scale to assess levels of multicultural engagement in ATCKs. The participants in this study (N = 700+; age = 18-80+) were recruited from the Alumni Office of an international school in Japan. Somewhat contrary to how they are often depicted in the news media and in qualitative studies, the ATCKs showed normative changes in personality and well-being in the direction of greater maturity and adjustment during adulthood, with those reporting higher levels of multicultural engagement generally exhibiting a more resilient personality profile, higher levels of well-being, and more adaptive cognitive and affective styles.