VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, HANOI

UNIVERSITY OF LANGUAGES AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

FACULTY OF LANGUAGE EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

FINAL ASSIGNMENT OF COURSE INTRODUCTION TO PSYCHOLOGY

ACADEMIC YEAR 2020 – 2021

TOPIC: EXPERIENCING EMOTION

Full name: Le Thi Linh

Student’s code: 20043568
Class: SHU20E5

Hanoi, 12/2021
Table of Contents

I. Introduction..........................................................................................................3
II. Report Content....................................................................................................3
A. Basic emotions..................................................................................................3
B. The causes and consequences of anger...........................................................5
III. Conclusion..........................................................................................................9
IV. References.........................................................................................................10
I. Introduction

Emotions are a part of our daily lives and there are many different types of emotions that have
an influence on how we live and interact with others. At times, it may seem like we are ruled by
these emotions. The choices we make, the actions we take, and the perceptions we have are all
influenced by the emotions we are experiencing at any given moment. Emotional experiences are
an integral part of life. However, for many people, emotions remain mysterious, confusing, and
difficult to express constructively. In the following, we will learn about the basic types of
emotions and how to experience anger, we will learn about what causes us to feel angry and how
it affects our lives.

II. Report Content

The content of the report is divided into two main parts, focusing on five questions related to the
topic of emotional experience:

(1) What are some of the basic emotions?

(2) What are the causes and consequences of anger?

A. Basic emotions

The first section considers the question: “What are some of the basic emotions?”. There are many
different types of emotions that people experience. In the following, we will categorize and
explain the emotions people feel.

Similar to how most topics rise into comprehension, we first start with the definition of the
subject, or the simple question: “What is emotion?”. To answer, in psychology, emotion is often
defined as a complex state of feeling that results in physical and psychological changes that
influence thought and behavior. Emotionality is associated with a range of psychological
phenomena, including temperament, personality, mood, and motivation. According to author
David G. Myers, human emotion involves "...physiological arousal, expressive behaviors, and
conscious experience." (verywellmind. Overview of the 6 Major Theories of Emotion)

How many distinct emotions are there? When surveyed, most emotion scientists agreed that
anger, fear, disgust, sadness, and happiness are basic human emotions (Ekman, 2016). Carroll
Izard (1977) isolated 10 basic emotions (joy, interest-excitement, surprise, sadness, anger,
disgust, contempt, fear, shame, and guilt), most present in infancy. Others believe that pride and
love are also basic emotions (Shaver et al., 1996; Tracy & Robins, 2004). But Izard has argued
that other emotions are combinations of these 10, with love, for example, being a mixture of joy
and interest-excitement.
 Figure 1: Some naturally occurring infant emotions

To identify the emotions generally present in infancy, Carroll Izard analyzed the facial
expressions of infants.

a) Joy (mouth forming smile, cheeks lifted, twinkle in eye)

b) Anger (brows drawn together and downward, eyes fixed, mouth squarish)
c) Interest (brows raised or knitted, mouth softly rounded, lips may be pursed)
d) Disgust (nose wrinkled, upper lip raised, tongue pushed outward)
e) Surprise (brows raised, eyes widened, mouth rounded in oval shape)
f) Sadness (brows’ inner corners raised, mouth corners drawn down)
g) Fear (brows level, drawn in and up, eyelids lifted, mouth corners retracted)

B. The causes and consequences of anger

The second section focuses on the question: “What are the causes and consequences of
anger”. There are two main issues that we need to explore in this question which are the causes
of anger and its impact on our lives. Moreover, I will also give some of my personal views on the
emotion of anger.
Anger can be a particularly powerful emotion characterized by feelings of hostility, agitation,
frustration, and antagonism towards others. Like fear, anger can play a part in your body's fight
or flight response. (Verymind. The 6 Types of Basic Emotions and Their Effect on Human
Behavior)

When we face a threat or challenge, fear triggers flight but anger triggers fight-each at times an
adaptive behavior. What makes us angry? There are many reasons why we get angry and here are
the basic ones:

 People generally become angry with those who commit wrongdoings - especially if they
are willful, unjustified, and avoidable.
 People can also be angered by other things (such as foul odors, high temperatures, traffic
jams, and aches and pains)

When something (or someone) makes you angry, you often try to make actions and gestures to
show that you are angry. Therefore, according to The 6 Types of Basic Emotions and Their
Effect on Human Behavior. Verymind. Anger is often displayed through:

 Facial expressions: such as frowning or glaring

 Body language: such as taking a strong stance or turning away
 Tone of voice: such as speaking gruffly or yelling
 Physiological responses: such as sweating or turning red
 Aggressive behaviors: such as hitting, kicking, or throwing objects

Anger can harm us (Verymind. The 6 Types of Basic Emotions and Their Effect on Human
Behavior): anger can become a problem, however, when it is excessive or expressed in ways that
are unhealthy, dangerous, or harmful to others. Uncontrolled anger can quickly turn
to aggression, abuse, or violence.

This type of emotion can have both mental and physical consequences. Unchecked anger can
make it difficult to make rational decisions and can even have an impact on your physical health

Anger has been linked to coronary heart diseases and diabetes. It has also been linked to
behaviors that pose health risks such as aggressive driving, alcohol consumption, and
smoking.

Next, we will give some examples of angry, it will analyze the causes and consequences of anger
for ourselves and others:
  Robert and William are playing basketball together at recess. Robert wins the game and
says, “Whoo hoo! I won! I’m the best player and you can't win me” This makes William
angry, so he frowns and pushes Robert down on the ground. William shows his anger by
frowning and pushing his friends. This is a bad action because Robert can be injured and
longer William may have a habit of hurting others when he is angry.
 Laura and Emma are roommates. One day when Laura was cleaning the room,
unfortunately broke Emma's favorite item and she immediately apologized to Laura but
Laura was very angry and did not listen to Emma explained. Laura shouted and said,
"Why are you so careless, it's a very important item to me. If you don't touch it, it doesn't
break, don't ever touch my clothes anymore." This made Emma very sad and she cried a
lot. Although Laura knew Emma did not intentionally, she didn't control her anger so
Laura made Emma hurt a lot, and that would affect their friendship.

My personal opinion: when we are angry it is very difficult to stay calm and control our behavior
so we sometimes unintentionally hurt those close to us. We think that when we say or do things
that hurt the other person, we will release the pressure. But on the contrary, it can make us feel
even more angry and the relationship between us and the person we hurt will not be the same and
will be broken. Therefore, I have a piece of advice that: "When you are angry, you should not
talk or do anything", because then we cannot think what is right and what is wrong. We can do
anything and we will act on our emotions so it is easy to make mistakes. An example of myself, I
have also made mistakes when angry, I have hurt my loved ones, I have said words that should
not have been said, made them sad and cry but that doesn't make me angry. After a while, when I
calmed down enough, I started to think again and I realized that I was wrong, I shouldn't have
done this and I felt very guilty. Then I went to apologize to my relatives. Even though the person
forgave me, I know that they still feel very sad and hurt. In short, stay calm and try to control
your anger as best you can, because you can't go back in time to change what you've done. Now
you feel regret for what you did and you ask yourself why did you do it.

Catharsis Hypothesis: emotional release. In psych, the catharsis hypothesis maintains that
"releasing" aggressive energy (through action or fantasy) relieves aggressive urges.

Individualist cultures do encourage people to vent their rage. Such advice is seldom heard in
cultures where people’s identity is centered more on the group. People who keenly sense their
interdependence see anger as a threat to group harmony (Markus & Kitayama, 1991). In Tahiti,
for instance, people learn to be considerate and gentle. In Japan, from infancy on, angry
expressions are less common than in Western cultures, where in recent politics and on social
media anger seems all the rage.

The Western vent-your-anger advice presumes that aggressive action or fantasy enables
emotional release, or catharsis. Experimenters report that sometimes when people retaliate
against a provoker, they may calm down if they direct their counterattack toward the provoker,
their retaliation seems justifiable, and their target is not intimidating (Geen & Quanty, 1977;
Hokanson & Edelman, 1966; Verona & Sullivan, 2008). In short, expressing anger can be
temporarily calming if it does not leave us feeling guilty or anxious.

Despite this temporary afterglow, catharsis usually fails to cleanse our rage. More often,
expressing anger breeds more anger. For one thing, it may provoke further retaliation, causing a
minor conflict to escalate into a major confrontation. For another, expressing anger can magnify
anger. As behavior feedback research demonstrates, acting angry can make us feel angrier (Flack,
2006; Snodgrass et al., 1986). Anger’s backfire potential appeared in a study of people who were
asked to wallop a punching bag while ruminating about the person who had recently angered
them (Bushman, 2002). Had the opportunity to “drain off” their anger reduced it? Quite the
contrary. Later, when given a chance for revenge, those who vented their anger became even
more aggressive.

When anger fuels physically or verbally aggressive acts we later regret, it becomes maladaptive.
Anger primes prejudice. After the 9/11 terrorist attacks, Americans who responded with anger
more than fear displayed intolerance for immigrants and Muslims (DeSteno et al., 2004; Skitka et
al., 2004). Angry outbursts that temporarily calm us may also become reinforcing and therefore
habit forming. If stressed managers find they can temporarily drain off some of their tension by
berating an employee, then the next time they feel irritated and tense they may be more likely to
explode again.

What are some better ways to manage your anger? Experts offer three suggestions:

 Wait: doing so will reduce your physiological arousal. “What goes up must come down,”
noted Carol Tavris (1982). “Any emotional arousal will simmer down if you just wait
long enough.”
 Find a healthy distraction or support: calm yourself by exercising, playing an instrument,
or talking things through with a friend. Brain scans show that ruminating inwardly about
why you are angry serves only to increase amygdala bloodflow (Fabiansson et al., 2012).
 Distance yourself: try to move away from the situation mentally, as if you are watching it
unfold from a distance or the future. Self-distancing reduces rumination, anger, and
aggression (Kross & Ayduk, 2011; Mischkowski et al., 2012; White et al., 2015).
My opinion: While anger is often thought of as a negative emotion, it can sometimes be a good
thing. It motivates us to solve problems, makes us aware of injustice, and it can also push us
toward our goals.

 Anger motivates us to solve problems: when things don't go our way, we can get angry. If
things don't go as planned and need to be changed, anger drives us to do something and
pushes us to find solutions to our problems. Anger is activated when we are faced with an
obstacle or an individual (or something else) that blocks our needs. An example related to
myself, me and my friends are in the same class, we study the same subjects, but my
friend's academic achievement is much higher than mine. The reason is very simple
because my friend is working very hard to do homework and review lessons, instead of
just studying in class like me. I thought and got angry at myself, why can't my friend
study so hard but I can't? I am not satisfied with myself and I am using my time
wastefully. Since then, I decided to change myself, divide my time reasonably, study
harder and as a result, my academic performance has improved significantly. Anger made
me look at myself.
 Anger makes us aware of injustice: we often get angry when our rights are denied or
when faced with insults, disrespect, injustice, or exploitation. Anger serves as an internal
system of guidelines that indicate something is not right, that someone has treated us
unfairly or unfairly. On a global level, fighting injustice can prevent people from taking
advantage of others. This kind of anger can bring about positive change in society. In the
past, there were still regulations that women could not do this or that, but now that men
and women are equal, what men can do, women can also do. Now football is for both men
and women. Men can be prime ministers and women can also be prime ministers. It is a
process of struggle to achieve equality between men and women.
 Anger drives us towards our goals: anger drives us to pursue goals and desired rewards.
When we don't get what we want, anger flares up and shows that we have strayed from
the desired goal. Anger tries to get rid of whatever is stopping us from fulfilling our
desires. It energizes and motivates us to act towards our goals and ideals. There was a
time when I studied English very hard but the results were still not as expected, I felt very
angry because I had spent a lot of time and effort on my English learning. I didn't give up
and spent more time studying English. In the end, my English test results improved.
Anger gave me strength to study hard to get good grades.

What if someone’s behavior really hurts you, and you cannot resolve the conflict? Research
commends the age-old response of forgiveness. Without letting the offender off the hook or
inviting further harm—sometimes we need to distance ourselves from an abusive person—
forgiveness may release anger and calm the body. In a study of the neural effects of forgiveness,
German students had their brain scanned while someone thwarted their opportunity to earn
money (Strang et al., 2014). Next, the students were asked whether or not they forgave the
wrongdoer. Forgiveness increased bloodflow to brain regions that help people understand their
own emotions and make socially appropriate decisions.

III. Conclusion

Emotions are a part of our daily lives. Sometimes, our feelings can control the way we think
and act to the point where we feel like we have no control. Emotional experiences are an integral
part of life. However, for many people, emotions remain mysterious, confusing, and difficult to
express constructively. While anger is often thought of as a negative emotion, it can sometimes
be a good thing. It motivates us to solve problems, makes us aware of injustice, and it can also
push us toward our goals. However, anger can become a problem when it is excessive or
expressed in ways that are unhealthy, dangerous, or harmful to others. We should learn to stay
calm and control our anger.
IV. References

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https://www.verywellmind.com/theories-of-emotion-2795717
 Kendra Cherry. (August 16, 2021). 8 Basic Psychology Facts You Need to Know
https://www.verywellmind.com/psychology-basics-4157186
 Kendra Cherry. (August 12, 2020). What Is Personality?
https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-personality-2795416
 Kendra Cherry. (April 27, 2020). What Is Motivation?
https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-motivation-2795378
 Ekman, P. (2016). What Scientists Who Study Emotion Agree About. Perspectives on
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https://www.verywellmind.com/an-overview-of-the-types-of-emotions-4163976
 Kendra Cherry. (November 18, 2021). What Is Aggression?
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