"The Cognitive Labeling View of Emotions"

1.          In chapter 7 of our textbook on page 175 the author Woods provides us with a visual diagram of “the Perceptual View of Emotions”. The diagram goes from External Event to Perception of Event to Interpreted Emotion to Response. This diagram offers a basic understanding of how we interpret an incident and then relate it to emotion. However another diagram is offered by the author on the same page called “The Cognitive Labeling View of Emotions”. I believe this diagram provides a better understanding of emotions and how they are interpreted. The diagram goes in the following manner “External Event to Physiological Responses to Label for Response to Emotion”. The main factor is how we label our physiological response. This diagram makes more sense to me because we all react differently to situations. It is when our body reacts to stimulation that our brain labels whether it is a positive or negative reaction. This is usually caused by past experiences that we react in a certain manner. However, new experiences may tend to make use nervous, scared or anxious because it is the unknown.

        Other perceptions of emotions appear to me to be more geared to a particular environment such as work or they lack including the external event as part of their method. The external event must take place for there to be an emotional/physiological reaction which then triggers us to label it and provide what the individual feels is an appropriate response.

          An example of this is when my grandfather passed away. My sister and I were upset and cried because we lost a loved one very close to us and didn’t want him to be gone. My mom cried very little because she knew she had to be a strong support for my grandmother and mom knew that my grandfather had lived a long and happy life and he would be with God now. My grandmother never cried at all, she was still in shock weeks after the funeral had passed. At some point she started to have mini strokes, I think it was a reaction to the loss of her lifelong friend and soul mate.

-Katrina