Emotional States and Health

Mind and Body

 Can the body affect the
mind?
 Example?
 How about the mind
affecting the body?
 Example?
 Two-way communication
between mind and body
Psychosomatic Medicine
 Psyche (mind)
 Soma (body)
 Butterflies in the
stomach
 Anxious before giving
speech
 Indigestion, nausea
 Stress may contribute
to getting an ulcer.
Reducing the effects of stress
 Stress is less harmful if
 Have some control (even if just belief).
 Predictable (“going to feel a little pinch”).
 Know the duration.
 Coping mechanism.
 Some way to relieve stress.
 Positive attitude.
 Active participant in process.
Relieve stress
 Meditation
 Listening to soothing
music
 Taking a quiet walk
 Reduce stress
 Eliminate butterflies
Affects on long-term health
 Attitude towards illness
can affect healing.
 Thought, beliefs and
emotions have major
impact on physical
health.
 Link between mind and
body is the immune
system.
The Immune System

Cells that protect the body against

intruders such as viruses and bacteria.
 Like a police force
 Too weak and criminals (viruses etc.) run wild
 Ex: Opportunistic diseases seen with HIV-AIDS
 Too strong and it attacks law-abiding citizens:
 The body’s own cells (Autoimmune disease)
 Ex. Rheumatoid arthritis
What is Emotion?
Internal conscious states that we infer
in ourselves and others.
 Emotions are private experiences.
 We use operational definitions
because we cannot actually see
feelings.
 We infer observable behavior
associated with emotion.
Emotions are
Multidimensional
Four components of Emotion

Feelings

Social- Bodily
Expressive
Emotion
Arousal

Sense of
Significant life event Purpose
Feeling component

 Emotions are subjective feelings

 Make us feel in a particular way.
 Anger or joy.
 Meaning and personal significance.
 Vary in intensity and quality.
 Rooted in mental processes
(labeling).
Bodily Arousal

 Biological activation.
 Autonomic and hormonal systems.
 Prepare and activate adaptive
coping behavior during emotion.
 Body prepared for action.
 Alert posture, clenched fists.
Purposive component

 Give emotion its goal-directed force.

 Motivation to take action.
 Cope with emotion-causing
circumstances.
 Why people benefit from emotions.
 Social and evolutionary advantage.
Social-Expressive component
 Emotion’s communicative aspect.
 Postures, gestures, vocalizations,
facial expressions make our
emotions public.
 Verbal and nonverbal
communication.
 Helps us interpret the situation.
 How person reacts to event.
Emotions read in the face

The Japanese Female Facial Expression (JAFFE) Database

Aspect of Emotional Intelligence
 Peter Salovey (Yale)
 John Mayer (U of NH)
 Four branch ability model of
emotional intelligence
 Mayer-Salovey-Caruso
Emotional Intelligence Test
 MSCEIT
Identifying Emotions (Branch 1)

 Skills needed to perceive and express

feelings.
 Recognizing facial expressions.
 Non-verbal communication.
 Tell when someone is being authentic.
 Express accurate emotions for situation.
 Foundation for other branches.
Identifying Emotions (MSCEIT)
Facilitating Emotions (Branch 2)

 Using emotions to facilitate thinking.

 Improve problem solving and boost
creativity.
 Emotional component to motivation.
 “Care enough to send the very best.”
 Using emotion to help make decisions.
Facilitation (MSCEIT)

  What mood(s) might be helpful to feel when

meeting in-laws for the very first time?
                 Not Useful              Useful
a) Tension                       1      2      3      4      5
 b) Surprise                     1      2      3      4      5
 c) Joy                               1      2      3      4      5
Understanding emotions (Branch 3)

 Understanding complex and conflicting

emotions.
 Emotions and behavioral consequences.
 Read a situation and respond correctly.
 Some emotional responses are
maladaptive.
 Jealousy and envy are destructive.
Understanding Emotions (MSCEIT)

Tom felt anxious, and became a bit

stressed when he thought about all the
work he needed to do. When his supervisor
brought him an additional project, he felt
____.  (Select the best choice.)

a) Overwhelmed
 b) Depressed
 c) Ashamed
 d) Self Conscious
 e) Jittery
Managing emotions (Branch 4)

 Developing mood regulation skills.

 Productive ways to change mood.
 Avoid over and under regulation.
 Seek natural means rather than alcohol,
tobacco or other drugs.
 Stress coping strategies.
 Use optimistic explanatory style.
Managing Emotions (Branch 4)
1. Debbie just came back from vacation. She was feeling
peaceful and content.  How well would each action
preserve her mood?

 Action 1: She started to make a list of things at home that

she needed to do.
 Very Ineffective..1.....2.....3.....4.....5..Very Effective

 Action 2: She began thinking about where and when she

would go on her next vacation.
 Very Ineffective..1.....2.....3.....4.....5..Very Effective

 Action 3: She decided it was best to ignore the feeling

since it wouldn't last anyway.
 Very Ineffective..1.....2.....3.....4.....5..Very Effective
Emotional States and Physical
Health
Salovey et at
American Psychologist (1/2000)
Healing through laughter
 Norman Cousins
 Anatomy of an Illness (1979)
 Life-threatening inflammatory
disease
 Cartoons and Marx Brothers
 10 mins of laughing gave him 2
hrs of pain-free sleep
 Laughter reduced inflammation
 Healing power of positive mood
Emotional states and immunity

 Negative emotional states associated

with unhealthy physical states.
 Positive emotional states associated with
healthier states.
 Cardiovascular and immune systems.
 S-IgA = secretory immunoglobulin A
 First line of defense in the immune
system
S-IgA levels and emotion
 Increased occurrence of
desirable events predicts
higher S-IgA.
 Positive moods boost the
immune system.
 Negative moods lower S-
IgA levels.
 Undesirable events
suppress immune system.
 Negative moods increase
susceptibility to illness.
Manipulating Emotion
 Healthy college students
watching videos.
 Humorous video
enhanced immune
function ( S-IgA)
 Sad video suppressed
immune function ( S-IgA)
 Not clear how long these
changes persist.
 Contribute to illness.
Coping styles and illness
 People dealing with severe stressors more
susceptible to illness.
 Negative emotional states reduce immune
function.
 Coping styles could aid healing.
 Pennebaker: helping people process and
confront traumatic life events improves health.
 Talk about illness, release pent-up negative
emotions.
Emotion and environment
 Positive emotional states
signal a safe environment.
 Negative states signal an alert.
 Something is wrong and must
be corrected.
 Function of pain.
 It hurts; get help.
Role in seeking help
 Some believe that:
 Happy people less likely
to recognize signs of
distress and less likely to
get help.
 Unhappy people more
vigilant and seek help.
 Better to be pessimistic?
Processing health information
 Other evidence that:
 Positive outlook may make it
easier to process threatening
information (diagnosis).
 Seek help.
 Negative outlook may cause a
person not recognize new
symptoms as threatening.
 Not seek help.
Optimistic outlook
 Positive emotional states provide
resilience.
 Strength to confront illness.
 Personal resources to seek solutions.
 Creativity in thought and action.
 Focus on and plan for future outcomes.
 Belief that you will get well.
 Do what you can to support recovery.
Healthy heart surgery
 Men undergoing cardiac
bypass surgery.
 Optimistic men better able to
focus on postoperative goals.
 5 years post surgery, optimists
had healthier habits.
 Diet and exercise programs
 Scheier et al. (1989)
Role of health care worker
 One who inspires hope in others.
 Freud: patient’s expectations
“colored by hope and faith and
an effective force in all our
attempts at treatment and cure.”
 Positive mood comes from a
renewal of hope.
Social Support
 With social support, observe:
 Lower mortality
 More resistant to disease.
 Lower incidence of heart
disease.
 Faster recovery from surgery.
 Decreased levels of stress.
 Improved coping with illness.
Affect on Health

 1. Buffering hypothesis:
 Social support buffers individual from
stressful life event. Only when needed.
 2. Direct effect:
 Social support promotes well-being at all
times. Not just under stress.
 Both are possible, depending on the
nature of the stressor.
Role of Social Support
 Mediated by emotional experience.
 Know that help will be provided if
needed.
 Less likely to feel lonely and
depressed.
 Positive outlook on life more likely
to get social support.
 Develop and maintain social
network.
Spirituality

 Also plays a role in

wellness and
recovery from illness.
 A topic for later
discussion.