Talk Jens Lange (CISA lecture)

04.06.2024 12:15 – 13:15

Conceptualizing emotions as networks of causal relations between components

Jens Lange, University of Hamburg

Most theories of emotions are difficult to fully understand. Specifically, they are primarily described verbally, which (a) prevents to easily state their central assumptions, (b) hinders the derivation of predictions they make, and (c) makes it challenging to compare them to other emotion theories. This vagueness may then fuel endless debates about seeming differences between emotion theories. To move towards an integrative emotion theory, I propose to use formal modeling. In formal models, researchers explicitly implement their assumptions in equations or code, allowing them to derive or simulate what their model predicts. Furthermore, they can compare different formal models more directly to each other. As a starting point for an integrative theory of emotions, I propose to implement one central characteristic of emotions. Specifically, I propose a formal model of emotions in which the components of emotions (i.e., feelings, cognitions, physiology, motivations, expressions) have direct causal relationships with each other: a network model. Using, reviews, simulations, and data, I provide first evidence (a) that this simple network model accounts for central findings of various, seemingly conflicting emotion theories, (b) that the model better than competing models explains why and when emotions co-occur, and (c) that the model can integrate various findings related to research on emotion duration. In sum, the network model promises to be a viable starting point for timely theoretical integration and advancement in emotion research.

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Zoom meeting
https://unige.zoom.us/j/68796688086?pwd=cVE1WUdIZTNIQWxIZ1ptcUdub0hVUT09

Meeting ID: 687 9668 8086
Passcode: 191051

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Bâtiment: Campus Biotech

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