Pleasure and Pain
Exactly how much chocolate can someone eat before enjoyment turns into disgust? Why do people choose to experience the terrifying sensations of bungee-jumping? Can forcing a smile actually create happiness? Using entertaining experiments and person-...
Emotions and Quality of Life
Psychologist and author Paul Ekman talks about the link between emotions and quality of life. Dr. Ekman says there are about ten enjoyable emotions, "...and most of us are organizing our lives in order to maximize one or more of these enjoyable emot...
Positive and Negative Emotions
Psychologist and author Paul Ekman talks about the lengths to which some people will go to experience emotions that are positive or to avoid those that are negative. "Without emotions," Dr. Ekman concludes, "our lives would probably be very dry...pr...
Basic Human Emotions
Psychologist and author Paul Ekman discusses the seven emotions that are generally considered most basic and universal. Dr. Ekman adds that, "...each basic emotion has a theme that is universal, but the details of it are filled in by culture and fam...
Embarrassment
Psychologist and author Paul Ekman talks about embarrassment, which he claims does not qualify as a basic emotion because it doesn't have a universal signal. Dr. Ekman notes that embarrassment can be flattering or unflattering, and adds that Darwin ...
When Emotions Emerge
Psychologist and author Paul Ekman talks about the debate over when emotions emerge. Some believe they are present at birth, while others contend that they emerge more gradually during childhood.
Emotions and Physical Reactions
Psychologist and author Paul Ekman talks about the physiological changes that accompany emotions. "We were able to...establish different patterns of changes in heart rate, skin conductants, skin temperature for fear, anger, sadness and disgust," Dr ...
Emotion and Cognition
Psychologist and author Paul Ekman explains that, while "...cognition is always there during emotion," there's generally no consciousness of cognition in the process of emotional experience. Dr. Ekman adds that there are, however, exceptions, such a...
Emotional Profiles
Psychologist and author Paul Ekman explains that, "...although we all have the same emotions, we have different emotional profiles." The two parts of the profile that Dr. Ekman has studied are the speed of emotional response and the strength of the ...
Regulating Our Emotions
Psychologist and author Paul Ekman talks about the difficulty of trying to control or regulate one's emotions. "For some people, it'll be easier to achieve," Dr. Ekman says, "because nature gave them more of a gap between impulse and action. It's a ...