Emotion & Cognition: Sample open-ended questions
Practice Exam
1. Define emotion. Name one method for studying it. Structure your response like this:
a. Emotion is … One method to study emotions is….
Emotion: discrete, brief and consistent reaction to an external or internal stimulus/event that is of
relevance to the organism. Emotions involve a range of physiological and cognitive aspects.
One method to study emotion is…
● Self-report measures: questionnaires, interviews
● Physiological measures: skin conductance response, heart rate, brain activity
● Behavioural measures: facial expressions
2. What do Cognitive Appraisal Theories suggest in order to close the gap left by William
James and Carl Lange?
a. What is a cognitive appraisal?
b. Draw a schematic illustration of the chain of events from the eliciting stimulus to
subjective feeling, according to the theories of cognitive appraisal.
c. How does it solve the gap in reasoning left by James-Lange theory?
2(a)
Cognitive appraisal: the process of evaluating and interpreting a situation or event in order to
determine its significance and potential outcome. Cognitive appraisal can influence emotions and
physiological responses experienced in response to an event.
2(b)
3(c)
Highlight shortcomings of James-Lange Theory
● The James-Lange Theory posits that emotion arises from feedback from physiological
arousal/ANS activation (e.g., I feel sad because I’m crying)
● This theory assumes that each discrete emotion has a unique physiological arousal pattern
that allows it to be easily differentiated from other discrete emotions → it has been
disproven (different discrete emotions can have the same physiological arousal pattern)
● The cognitive appraisal theory solves this gap by introducing cognitive appraisal relative to
the event, which explain that emotions are not just caused by bodily changes, but that they
are shaped by how we interpret the situation in which those changes occur
● This theory focuses on interpreting stimulus and bodily states more specifically and
considers the effect of the event on emotion
1
, 3. Mirror Neuron Theory provides explanations for action understanding mechanisms, but
also for emotions. How does Mirror Neuron Theory explain emotional processing?
Mirror neuron theory: proposes that when an individual observes another person performing an
action, the same neural networks that are activated during the actual execution of the action are also
activated in the observer’s brain
● Thought to play a key role in action understanding: allows individual to understand
intention and meaning behind the action of others
● Thought to play a role in understanding and experiencing emotions: allows observer to
simulate and share emotional experiences of others
The Mirror Neuron Theory suggests that physiological responses are a primary determinant of
emotional experiences. This is because the Mirror Neuron Theory emphasises the role of the
observer's own motor and physiological systems in experiencing emotions, as a result of
mirroring the emotional experiences of others.
4. What is the threat superiority effect? Provide an example.
Threat superiority effect: the threat superiority effect occurs when a threatening or dangerous
stimuli are detected more rapidly and accurately, as compared to neutral stimuli
● Suggests that our attentional systems are finely tuned to detect potential threats in our
environment, which could be crucial for survival
Example: individuals tend to identify images or sounds associated with danger (e.g., snakes,
aggressive faces, or loud noises) more quickly than non-threatening stimuli.
5. Elizabeth Loftus has described what she called a “weapon focus” phenomenon.
a. Describe the ‘weapon focus’ phenomenon
b. What aspect(s) of cognition and emotion interaction are illustrated by this phenomenon?
c. Describe an experimental study that tested this phenomenon in the lab.
5(a)
‘Weapon focus’ phenomenon: the presence of a weapon can be highly salient and emotionally
arousing, which can lead to a narrowing of attention and a focus on the weapon itself, rather than
other details of the situation. This can impair the encoding and storage of other important
information, such as the perpetrator's facial features or clothing.
5(b)
This phenomenon highlights the interaction of emotion with memory. While emotional intensity
may lead to better memory for certain aspects of the visual scene, this often comes at the expense of
poor encoding and retention of other details.
● ‘Gist’ bias: the tendency to remember central aspects of an event at the expense of more
peripheral details
5(c)
One experiment used negative salient vs. neutral scenes with varying amount of detail in them,
modulated by zooming in on the picture. They replicated the weapon focus phenomenon and
suggested a ‘Tunnel Memory’ regarding the better recall of central, emotion arousing details.
● Easterbrook (1959) hypothesis: narrowing of attentional focus in emotional situations
→ ”Zoomed in” representation of affective scene
2
Practice Exam
1. Define emotion. Name one method for studying it. Structure your response like this:
a. Emotion is … One method to study emotions is….
Emotion: discrete, brief and consistent reaction to an external or internal stimulus/event that is of
relevance to the organism. Emotions involve a range of physiological and cognitive aspects.
One method to study emotion is…
● Self-report measures: questionnaires, interviews
● Physiological measures: skin conductance response, heart rate, brain activity
● Behavioural measures: facial expressions
2. What do Cognitive Appraisal Theories suggest in order to close the gap left by William
James and Carl Lange?
a. What is a cognitive appraisal?
b. Draw a schematic illustration of the chain of events from the eliciting stimulus to
subjective feeling, according to the theories of cognitive appraisal.
c. How does it solve the gap in reasoning left by James-Lange theory?
2(a)
Cognitive appraisal: the process of evaluating and interpreting a situation or event in order to
determine its significance and potential outcome. Cognitive appraisal can influence emotions and
physiological responses experienced in response to an event.
2(b)
3(c)
Highlight shortcomings of James-Lange Theory
● The James-Lange Theory posits that emotion arises from feedback from physiological
arousal/ANS activation (e.g., I feel sad because I’m crying)
● This theory assumes that each discrete emotion has a unique physiological arousal pattern
that allows it to be easily differentiated from other discrete emotions → it has been
disproven (different discrete emotions can have the same physiological arousal pattern)
● The cognitive appraisal theory solves this gap by introducing cognitive appraisal relative to
the event, which explain that emotions are not just caused by bodily changes, but that they
are shaped by how we interpret the situation in which those changes occur
● This theory focuses on interpreting stimulus and bodily states more specifically and
considers the effect of the event on emotion
1
, 3. Mirror Neuron Theory provides explanations for action understanding mechanisms, but
also for emotions. How does Mirror Neuron Theory explain emotional processing?
Mirror neuron theory: proposes that when an individual observes another person performing an
action, the same neural networks that are activated during the actual execution of the action are also
activated in the observer’s brain
● Thought to play a key role in action understanding: allows individual to understand
intention and meaning behind the action of others
● Thought to play a role in understanding and experiencing emotions: allows observer to
simulate and share emotional experiences of others
The Mirror Neuron Theory suggests that physiological responses are a primary determinant of
emotional experiences. This is because the Mirror Neuron Theory emphasises the role of the
observer's own motor and physiological systems in experiencing emotions, as a result of
mirroring the emotional experiences of others.
4. What is the threat superiority effect? Provide an example.
Threat superiority effect: the threat superiority effect occurs when a threatening or dangerous
stimuli are detected more rapidly and accurately, as compared to neutral stimuli
● Suggests that our attentional systems are finely tuned to detect potential threats in our
environment, which could be crucial for survival
Example: individuals tend to identify images or sounds associated with danger (e.g., snakes,
aggressive faces, or loud noises) more quickly than non-threatening stimuli.
5. Elizabeth Loftus has described what she called a “weapon focus” phenomenon.
a. Describe the ‘weapon focus’ phenomenon
b. What aspect(s) of cognition and emotion interaction are illustrated by this phenomenon?
c. Describe an experimental study that tested this phenomenon in the lab.
5(a)
‘Weapon focus’ phenomenon: the presence of a weapon can be highly salient and emotionally
arousing, which can lead to a narrowing of attention and a focus on the weapon itself, rather than
other details of the situation. This can impair the encoding and storage of other important
information, such as the perpetrator's facial features or clothing.
5(b)
This phenomenon highlights the interaction of emotion with memory. While emotional intensity
may lead to better memory for certain aspects of the visual scene, this often comes at the expense of
poor encoding and retention of other details.
● ‘Gist’ bias: the tendency to remember central aspects of an event at the expense of more
peripheral details
5(c)
One experiment used negative salient vs. neutral scenes with varying amount of detail in them,
modulated by zooming in on the picture. They replicated the weapon focus phenomenon and
suggested a ‘Tunnel Memory’ regarding the better recall of central, emotion arousing details.
● Easterbrook (1959) hypothesis: narrowing of attentional focus in emotional situations
→ ”Zoomed in” representation of affective scene
2
