What Causes Emotion?

The mental and psychological state of a living creature is called emotion. Emotions are part of a person's mood and personality and stem from the individual point of view. People act and behave in a manner that corresponds directly to their emotional state. The causes of emotions are not fully understood, but there are many theories regarding the concept.

Somatics

• In the 1880s, William James presented the theory that somatic responses are the key to the human emotional state. The theory states that emotions are caused purely by the actions of individuals. For example, a person cries and then begins to feel sad.

Neurobiology

• Neural mapping has shown that the mammalian brain causes reactive responses that might be responsible for human emotion. Dopamine, noradrenaline and serotonin cause certain actions in people that we think are feelings.

Cognition

• The cognitive theory of emotions states that judgment and evaluation are the root causes of emotion. This can be either conscious or unconscious, and the general processing of information influences behavior.

Perception

• Perceptual theory states that while emotions are bodily responses to outside events, they are meaningful in some way or another. It states that changes in the body perceive meaningful content that humans consider emotions.

Affective Events

• Many analysts theorize that emotions are communications based. The affective events theory suggests that events influence emotions, which in turn affect attitudes and behaviors.