7 basic emotions that underlie all feelings

As long as humanity has existed, it has been concerned with the question of emotions - what kind of phenomenon they are, why they arise and why they are so difficult to control, what meaning is contained in them and how many of them exist. Many fiction books are devoted to emotions, feelings and experiences of the soul, or touch on this topic in one way or another, and no less number of academic articles and studies have been written about them. At the moment, there are about a hundred scientific definitions of emotions, dozens of classifications and a number of theories regarding this vital phenomenon.

In this article we want to consider the adaptation model of emotions, which was developed by the American psychologist Robert Plutchik. Plutchik devoted many decades to research into the nature of emotions, as well as their evolutionary prerequisites and mechanisms, features and causes of defensive mental reactions, as well as psychodiagnostic details of human types. The fruit of all these scientific researches was the adaptation (or psychoevolutionary) model of emotions and the so-called Wheel of Emotions, which we will consider.

Let's understand the evolutionary background of our emotions better and get acquainted with Plutchik's model in detail.

Psychoevolutionary model of emotions

Plutchik's theory is based on an understanding of emotions as evolutionary mechanisms designed to ensure the best adaptation to external conditions and effective survival. In this paradigm, each emotion plays its role as a stimulator of adaptive behavior, and behind each emotion there is a natural impulse that must find its expression. These mechanisms are genetically determined and work automatically, moving us and helping us respond to external circumstances.

Thus, there are 8 primary, basic (or prototype) emotions:

• anger;
• fear;
• sadness;
• joy;
• disgust;
• astonishment;
• anticipation (also called expectation, and this is a joyful expectation);
• confidence.

At the same time, all of them can be combined into pairs of opposites (bipolar pairs): anger - fear, sadness - joy, disgust - surprise, anticipation (expectation) - trust.

Plutchik notes that all these emotions are observed in animals for the same evolutionary reasons. That is, the fact that emotions are inherent not only to homo sapiens, but also to other biological species, confirms that they have a deep vital meaning. Basic emotions and incentives drive animals, just like us, pushing them towards the most appropriate behavior in terms of adaptation to life.

To better understand what exactly the role of each of the basic emotions is, let's look at them in more detail. Plutchik decomposed the possible phenomena involved in the development of basic emotions into unique chains. In them, an external phenomenon (stimulus) entails a certain perception, a conclusion about it (cognition). This involves a certain experience (the emotion itself) that entails corresponding behavior. And all this is crowned by the effect or goal pursued by the individual in this psychoadaptive model. Plutchik presented all the elements of this system in the form of a table in his book Theories of Emotions, published in 1980. From it we see that:

1. Fear (horror) is characteristic of a situation of threat (signal: “Danger!”), and its meaning lies in self-preservation.
2. The emotion of anger (anger, rage) is a response to an obstacle (“Enemy”), and has the goal of destroying and eliminating this obstacle.
3. Joy (ecstasy) arises at the sight of a potential partner, and generates desire for the purpose of reproduction.
4. The loss of a significant individual causes sadness , grief, signaling abandonment, and encourages people to reintegrate (reunite with people, society).
5. Acceptance and trust are characteristic of situations where we meet a member of our group, “our own” (recognizing him as a “friend”), and strive for accession, a closer connection with him.
6. If we encounter a disgusting object, the natural reaction will be rejection and the emotion of disgust (hatred). The purpose of this process is to reject, reject that which can harm, poison or kill.
7. Anticipation (joyful anticipation) is characteristic of situations where we are faced with something new, unknown to us, new territory. We are driven by interest and the desire to explore terra incognita: “What’s there?” Therefore, our subsequent actions come from the message to explore.
8. And finally, surprise is a response to some new, unexpected or unknown object (“What is this?”) In such a situation, we are driven by the goal of determining our place relative to this object, finding guidelines and understanding the situation so as to know that we are safe regarding this object and can be calm.

Thus, it turns out that the main role of emotions is adaptive. They have evolved in both animals and humans to help them best cope with situations that arise. Depending on what the situation is and what its significance is for the individual, emotion allows one to act on the appropriate impulse, preserving the integrity of the body and well-being.

Here we can draw an interesting analogy with another point of view on the basic emotions inherent in all people. Let's take a closer look at it.

What are emotions

We all experience emotions and feelings, and therefore each of us has a rough idea of ​​what it is. Or at least he thinks so. However, we rarely think about how many there really are and how, for example, joy differs from pleasure, and anger from anger. And it’s not difficult to understand why, because when we experience emotions, we automatically consider them an integral part of ourselves, and therefore something taken for granted. Unfortunately, it often happens that it is precisely those things that seem too obvious to us that are most often left unattended.

Another reason is that we often experience complex emotional states or feelings. At such moments, we cannot accurately formulate what exactly we are experiencing - joy or just satisfaction, surprise or fear, and it also happens that a seemingly negative feeling such as nostalgia (sadness?) causes us something similar to both joy and to sadness at the same time. What about a whole cocktail of emotions, for example, disappointment, grief and anger, but this is nothing more than a well-known resentment.

Everything related to emotions may only seem simple and elementary, but in reality, it can be quite difficult to understand and realize the range of feelings that we experience at the moment - “here and now.” At best, we can identify only a few of our emotions, which seem to us the most significant, and only if they are quite pronounced. And probably everyone is familiar with the state when it is difficult to say what exactly we feel, to such an extent that it is impossible to say whether we are good or bad, happy or sad, and in general it is not clear how.

Why do we need to know about our emotions?

A logical question is whether an ordinary person living a normal social life needs to understand such things as the intricacies of his emotions?

Most people never think about such topics in their entire lives, although many understand that emotions are one of the essential components of our lives. So what? Is there a problem that we use many things, often without any idea of ​​how they work?

This question is probably largely rhetorical. For example, there are such questions as “who am I”, “why do I live”, “what is my place in the world”, for some people they are just a whim, but for others, they are among the most important in life. And, if you are a person from the second category, then the question of emotions will not bypass your interest.

Why can knowledge about emotions and feelings be so important?

Perhaps because this is a question of what exactly I feel, and, if you think about it, this is what our life consists of.

Such a difficult question - how do I feel right now?

Close your eyes and try this. Try to answer this seemingly simple question. I won't be surprised that you'll probably be confused. And you will not only not be able to isolate your emotions separately, but also, you will not be able to describe your state so as to say with confidence - this is exactly what I really feel.

Sometimes it seems to us that this is quite possible. But this is either a delusion, or the emotion is so strong that at the moment it overshadows all others. This happens during stressful events. For example, we experience strong fear during a natural disaster, at such a moment it probably seems to us that we understand that our emotion is fear and nothing more. But now, the danger has passed, the fear has not yet passed, but has decreased so much that we begin to notice that in fact, he was not alone, but there was also surprise, interest, perhaps even delight, just at some point, the fear was so strong that we did not notice everything else.

The nature of the emotional background (integral emotional state) is such that it is always a bizarre mixture of a wide variety of emotions, and even if we could name each of them separately, in the aggregate, it will always remain something to which we can only give a vague name .

Reconstruction of an event from an emotional point of view

Imagine the situation - you are walking through the forest. You are in a hurry to get home, but it seems to you that you have lost your way, and every minute everything around you is getting darker and darker. Dusk is falling. Trees and their shadows take on bizarre and even mysterious shapes, the shadows lengthen, the sound of your steps conceals the carpet of fallen leaves. You are a little tense and anxiety is emerging in you drop by drop. You have neither a flashlight nor a compass and you begin to slowly curse your lack of foresight. Suddenly, when it’s almost completely dark, you see movement ahead of you, some kind of shadow that seems to you either a person or an animal. You felt cold and primitive horror touched you for a split second, but at that very moment the thought came that you were not so far from civilization and an attack by a predator was hardly possible. You calm yourself down and continue to slowly walk forward, and when you pass that place, you see that you have stumbled upon a path leading to a house, and the shadow that scared you so much turned out to be a small and harmless neighbor’s dog. At that very moment the moon rises and illuminates the path so that you can see the fence of the neighboring house very close by. You sigh with relief and go home. Usually we never think at such moments what exactly we feel. Most likely, if you tell this story to your friends over a cup of tea, you will mention the fear, and perhaps the final relief. This means that you only remember the two most powerful emotional moments of this short event. But did you only have two emotions?

Let's try to imagine what you most likely could feel during the described event, which lasted, for example, 2-3 minutes.

Analysis of probable sensations during the event

So, from the very beginning. We walk and a slight anxiety slowly arises in us, we don’t know what’s ahead. It is likely that we feel a slight chill in the solar plexus, stomach and back. We might even feel a little nauseous. We feel the ground with our feet and the slight coolness of the evening air, we feel annoyance (disappointment, and maybe slight anger) because we forgot the lantern and a slight feeling of guilt (disappointment with ourselves) because we forgot the way. We hear the sound of our steps and the rustling of leaves under our feet. Suddenly we see the movement of a shadow, a stream of horror (fear) immediately falls on us, our hands and back become cold and sweat appears, our knees tremble slightly, a story about vampires from a book we recently read flashes in our heads, but at the same moment a rational assessment of the situation comes and the horror passes, but we feel its traces for some time, the strong emotional wave has passed, but fear remains. For these few seconds this is the dominant feeling, at this moment it seems to us that we have only fear and nothing more. We approach a place that frightened us and feel apprehension, wariness (fear that has subsided, but still living in us) and hope that there is no one here and that everything seemed to us. And so, we go out onto the path, see the light of the moon, the dog and the fence, and a feeling of relief and slight joy arises in us that the situation ended so quickly and safely. Our mood (integral emotional state) returned to its previous level and we felt the emotional uplift that we may have felt all the time during today's walk in the forest. We remembered that friends and family were waiting for us in the house and in a few minutes we would see them. A feeling of love rises within us, which lifts our spirits even more and gives us warmth that we literally feel physically. It seems to us that the pleasant emotional range that has washed over us gives us additional strength, we breathe in clean air, quicken our pace, and get closer to home. From what we have experienced in the last few minutes, we begin to feel everything that is happening to us at the moment noticeably more acutely than before the event began.

This is, of course, not a complete list of sensations that we could experience in the described situation.

Of course, in such a situation, everyone would experience something different, but now, try to close your eyes and vividly imagine the described incident. How would you feel?

Now let's figure out what we felt.

1. We had physical reactions and sensations, some of them were consequences of the emotions that gripped us (cold, sweating, trembling, warmth), and some of them were the result of the world around us (sounds, shadows, smell, sensations of cold air and roads under our feet). 2. We experienced emotions - anxiety, fear, horror, frustration, guilt, relief, joy. Collectively, we experienced a rather complex emotional palette, let's call it a feeling and a mood. For example, remembering our loved ones, we experienced love and warmth, we restored what can be called emotional balance - a good mood (positive psychological state). 3. We rationally assessed the current situation and this assessment obviously influenced our emotional background. In addition, memory mechanisms were involved, for example, we remembered the book we read and, most likely, recalled similar situations that we may have found ourselves in before. It is quite possible that some of the memories came to us from the subconscious; these could be some traumatic old events that we had previously repressed from our “working memory”. But not only that. We also involved some memory of the emotions we had previously experienced, because otherwise, how would we know that horror is horror, and joy is joy. In addition, we experienced an automatic reaction - horror (fear), which was not at all a consequence of a rational assessment of events. We simply saw a shadow in the forest, and at the same moment, we automatically felt a powerful emotion and a rush of adrenaline, which generated physical reactions in the body, such as extreme excitement, trembling knees, sweating and coldness in the back.

This is what the consequences of the little thriller we experienced could have been. And all this happened within no more than 2-3 minutes.

An analysis of your experience may tell you that everything that usually happens to us in life from the point of view of an emotional response is much more complex than we might usually think. As an exercise, try doing a similar analysis in your own situation one day. Describe what exactly you experienced, try to isolate individual emotions, describe the general emotional state, whatever you would call it. How and to what your body reacted. What were you thinking, what memories came to you.

So, emotions may differ:

- By intensity (for example, anxiety and horror obviously belong to the same group (fear), but they are different in intensity).

— We are perceived as high quality. For example, as pleasant, unpleasant and neutral (joy is usually perceived as a pleasant emotion, and fear as unpleasant - but this does not always happen).

— Emotions are associated with memory and with sensations in the body (they can both generate these sensations and be generated by them).

- They are conditioned. That is, they are connected with a cause and at the same time they are expedient (they arise as a result and for something).

For example, the cause of an emotion can be an automatic reaction to danger, such as horror, which arose in us without the participation of a rational understanding of the situation. The expediency of such an automatic reaction is inherent in us by nature. This is preparation to either escape or fight for your life. At this moment, a powerful animal and automatic reaction instantly prepared our body for survival without the participation of our rational mind, which is too slow in such situations. A quick and strong irrational emotion can be very helpful.

— We evaluate emotions from rational positions. For example, we have an understanding of what this or that emotion is called, what it is associated with, we evaluate its quality and intensity (note that here we are talking about two different assessments: the direct perception of an emotion, for example, its intensity and quality, and also, the subsequent rational assessment of what has already been experienced.

— Emotions can also be complex (composite), and together create an integral emotional background, which, upon careful examination, is the sum of emotions of different intensity and qualities. For example, the feeling of guilt that we virtually experienced in the described situation is a complex feeling and consists of several, more elementary emotions - fear, shame, anger and grief.

It is necessary to distinguish between guilt and shame, shame is an emotion concerning who I am in general (as a rule, this is an unpleasant feeling that arises as a result of a reaction to the inconsistency of our real internal qualities with our expectations), and guilt is an emotional reaction to the inconsistency of our actions, to our expectations. Naturally, this line is rather conditional, because actions can be performed in one’s imagination and thus feel guilty for something that was not actually done in reality.

Mood and feeling are complex emotional states

Mood is an emotional background (a mixture of different emotions), subjectively perceived by a person as more or less constant. The mood can be perceived as pleasant, unpleasant or neutral, and also differ in intensity, depending on the intensity and ratio of its constituent emotions and on the current situation of the external and internal world (physical events, thoughts, assessments).

A feeling is an emotional background that is more stable over time and, unlike a mood, it is more directional, that is, it is an emotional picture that is more clearly associated with certain events, people, and ideas. Feelings, like moods, depend on events in the external and internal world, however, this dependence gives an emphasis on significant events that are elements of fairly strong attachments.

We looked at emotions in their various manifestations in relation to a specific situation and found out what differences they have from each other, and what they may depend on. Is there some kind of system to this?

Psychologists have not come to a consensus regarding the nature of human feelings. There are quite a few psychological theories of emotions and feelings; the approach of their authors is sometimes significantly different. However, there is something in common. Most psychologists believe that human emotions arose as vital mechanisms necessary for survival. Our automatic response in the forest illustrates this point perfectly. And such a reaction is no different from the automatic reaction of an animal to a significant event.

Basic emotions according to Ekman and how to recognize them

The seven emotions described by Paul Ekman are also called basic or fundamental emotions. This American psychologist and researcher gained great fame thanks to his work, in which he showed that facial expressions of various emotions are universal for all people, regardless of their cultural, racial and other affiliation. Published in 1978, the Facial Action Coding System (FACS) clearly and comprehensively demonstrates what micro-movements and facial expressions look like and offers a unique code for reading emotions.

The 7 universal emotions described by Ekman include:

• astonishment;
• fear;
• disgust;
• anger;
• joy;
• sadness;
• contempt.

Each of the 7 universal emotions is distinguished by its own specific micro-movements and micro-expressions of facial expressions, by which it is possible to accurately recognize it. You can study this aspect in detail in the article “Microexpressions,” but it is better to understand the entire system by reading Paul Ekman’s books “The Psychology of Emotions” and “The Psychology of Lies.”

We also draw your attention to the fact that for those who want to go even further in the ability to understand and “read” people, there is an online profiling training program. It is designed to teach you to get to know a person better, including leaving a psychological portrait and understanding real emotions, recognizing true and false ones. In addition, the program teaches skills to detect lies, stop manipulation and influence people. But let's continue.

As we can easily notice, the above emotions practically coincide with all the basic emotions identified by Plutchik. The exceptions are joyful anticipation (anticipation, interest) and trust, which are present in Plutchik’s system but absent in Ekman, and contempt. However, this fact does not devalue either theory.

Thus, Robert Plutchik's theory of emotions largely overlaps with other theories of basic emotions, in particular with the system of basic emotions, the facial microexpressions of which are clearly described in the works of Paul Ekman.

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Robert's Adaptation Theory of Emotions

was developed as a monograph in 1962.
It received international recognition and was used to reveal the structure of group processes, allowing us to form an understanding of intrapersonal processes and mechanisms of psychological defenses. Currently, the main postulates of the theory are included in well-known psychotherapeutic directions and psychodiagnostic systems. THE FUNDAMENTALS OF THE THEORY OF EMOTIONS ARE SET FORTH IN SIX POSTULATES 1. Emotions are mechanisms of communication and survival based on evolutionary adaptation. They are conserved in functionally equivalent forms across all phylogenetic levels. Communication occurs through eight basic adaptive reactions, which are prototypes of eight basic emotions: Incorporation - eating food or taking favorable stimuli into the body. This psychological mechanism is also known as introjection. Rejection is the ridding of the body of something unsuitable that was previously perceived. Protection is behavior designed to ensure the avoidance of danger or harm. This includes flight and any other action that increases the distance between the organism and the source of danger. Disruption is a behavior designed to destroy a barrier that prevents the satisfaction of an important need. Reproduction is reproductive behavior that can be defined in terms of proximity, tendency to maintain contact, and mixing of genetic materials. Reintegration is a behavioral response to the loss of something important that one possessed or enjoyed. Its function is to regain guardianship. Orientation is a behavioral response to contact with an unknown, new or uncertain object. Exploration is behavior that provides an individual with a schematic representation of a given environment. 2. Emotions have a genetic basis. 3. Emotions are hypothetical constructs based on obvious phenomena of various classes. Hypothetical models are shown in Table 1: Table 1. Incentive - Threat effect[/td]

4. Emotions are chains of events with stabilizing feedback loops that maintain behavioral homeostasis. Events occurring in the environment are subject to cognitive assessment, and as a result of the assessment, experiences (emotions) arise, accompanied by physiological changes. In response, the organism carries out behavior designed to have an effect on stimulus 5. The relationships between emotions can be represented in the form of a three-dimensional (spatial) structural model. The vertical vector reflects the intensity of emotions, from left to right - the vector of similarity of emotions, and the front-to-back axis characterizes the polarity of opposite emotions. The same postulate includes the position that some emotions are primary, while others are their derivatives or mixed. 6. Emotions are correlated with certain character traits or typologies. Diagnostic terms such as depression, mania, and paranoia are considered extreme expressions of emotions such as sadness, joy, and rejection (Table 2). Table 2. Emotions and their derivatives

The structural model of emotions is the basis for constructing a theoretical model of psychological defenses. The model of psychological defense mechanisms was developed by Robert Plutchik in collaboration with G. Kellerman and H. Comte in 1979. HENRY KELLERMAN'S STRUCTURAL THEORY OF PERSONALITY MODEL OF DEFENSE INCLUDES FIVE PRINCIPLES: 1. Specific defenses are formed to cope with specific emotions. 2. There are eight basic defense mechanisms that develop to cope with the eight basic emotions. 3. The eight basic defense mechanisms have properties of both similarity and polarity. 4. Certain types of personality diagnoses are based on characteristic defensive styles. 5. An individual can use any combination of defense mechanisms. On the way to consciousness, information undesirable for the psyche is distorted. Distortion of reality through defenses can occur in the following ways: - ignored or not perceived; - being perceived, forgotten; - in case of admission into consciousness and memorization, interpreted in a way convenient for the individual. The manifestation of defense mechanisms depends on age-related development and characteristics of cognitive processes. In general, they form a scale of primitiveness-maturity. The first to emerge are mechanisms based on perceptual processes (sensation, perception and attention). It is perception that is responsible for defenses associated with ignorance and misunderstanding of information. These include denial and regression, which are the most primitive and characterize the person who “abuses” them as emotionally immature. Next, defenses arise associated with memory, namely with forgetting information - this is repression and suppression. As the processes of thinking and imagination develop, the most complex and mature types of defenses are formed, associated with the processing and revaluation of information - this is rationalization. FOUR GROUPS OF BASIC PSYCHOLOGICAL DEFENSE 1) defense with a lack of content processing: denial, repression, suppression. 2) defense with transformation or distortion of the content of thoughts, feelings, behavior: rationalization, projection, alienation, replacement, reactive formation, compensation. 3) protection with the release of negative emotional tension: implementation in action, somatization of anxiety, sublimation. 4) manipulative type defenses: regression, fantasy, withdrawal into illness or the formation of symptoms. The result of Robert Plutchik's psychoevolutionary theory of emotions and Henry Kellerman's structural personality theory was the “Kellerman-Plutchik Psychodiagnostic System,” which formed the basis of the “Life Style Index” psychodiagnostic methodology. The system is based on the theory that in each individual there is a disposition (hereditary predisposition) to a certain mental disorder. The psychological defense mechanism plays the role of a regulator of intrapersonal balance by extinguishing the dominant emotion. Adaptation theory of emotions by Robert Plutchik System of dispositions according to Kellerman and Plutchik According to the psychodiagnostic system, the analysis of leading dispositions characterizes the personal characteristics of the subject. When interacting with a stimulus, experiences in the form of emotions characteristic of a certain disposition arise. The leading emotion forms a need that is not always included in the framework of acceptable functioning. To maintain adaptation, a defense mechanism is triggered to extinguish the unacceptable emotion, and the individual experiences an unconscious impulse that forces him to re-evaluate the stimulus. Personal balance is achieved through the formation of protective behavior. CHARACTERISTICS OF DISPOSITIONS Disposition of mania. The leading emotion is joy, the need for an excess of pleasant stimuli is hedonism. Defense is a reactive formation by suppressing the attractiveness of pleasant stimuli with the help of the “Super-Ego”. The development of the mechanism is associated with the final assimilation by the individual of “highest social values.” Impulse - reverse it. Overestimation of the stimulus: “Everything connected with this is disgusting.” Defensive behavior is normal: strong feelings about violations of “personal space”, an emphasized desire to comply with generally accepted standards of behavior, relevance, concern for a “decent” appearance, politeness, courtesy, selflessness, sociability. Rejection of everything related to the functioning of the body and gender relations. Disposition of hysteria. The leading emotion is acceptance. Defense is denial. Develops with the goal of containing the emotion of acceptance of others if they demonstrate emotional indifference or rejection. Excessive acceptance is compensated by the denial of those moments that consciousness “does not like.” The flow of positive qualities of the perceived object causes the hysteric to idealize it (for example, hysterics often fall in love). Impulse - don't notice it. There is no overestimation of the stimulus; the stimulus is not noticed. Defensive behavior is normal: sociability, desire to be the center of attention, thirst for recognition, arrogance, optimism, ease, boasting, self-pity, courtesy, affective demeanor, pathos, easy tolerance of criticism and lack of self-criticism. Aggressive disposition. The leading emotion is anger. Protection - replacement. Develops to restrain the emotion of anger towards a stronger, older or more significant subject acting as a frustrator. Substitution can be directed both externally, forming destructive behavior, and internally in the form of auto-aggression. Impulse - attack something that replaces it. Overestimation of the incentive: “That’s who is to blame for everything.” Defensive behavior is normal: impulsiveness, irritability, short temper, demanding of others, protest reactions in response to criticism, lack of guilt. Disposition of psychopathy. The leading emotion is surprise. Defense is regression. Develops in early childhood to curb feelings of self-doubt and fear of failure associated with taking initiative. As a rule, it is encouraged by adults who have an attitude towards emotional symbiosis and infantilization of the child. The impulse is to cry about it. Revaluation of the stimulus: “You are obliged to help me.” Defensive behavior is normal: impulsiveness, weak character, lack of deep interests, susceptibility to the influence of others, suggestibility, inability to complete a task, easy mood swings, ability to easily establish superficial contacts. A penchant for mysticism and superstition, intolerance to loneliness, the need for stimulation, control, encouragement, consolation, and the search for new experiences. In an exquisite situation - increased drowsiness and excessive appetite, manipulation of small objects, involuntary actions (rubbing hands, twisting buttons, etc.), specific “childish” facial expressions and speech. Depressive disposition. The leading emotion is sadness. Protection is compensation; it compensates for the lack of self-esteem, which allows the individual to cope with the state of depression. Impulse – try to acquire this. Overestimation of the stimulus: “But I... Still, I... Someday I...”. Defensive behavior is normal: constant suffering due to the loss of an imaginary object and loss of self-esteem. Behavior determined by the attitude towards serious and methodical work on oneself, finding and correcting one’s shortcomings, achieving high results in activities; serious sports, collecting, striving for originality. Paranoid disposition. The leading emotion is disgust (rejection). Defense is projection. Develops as a result of emotional rejection in early childhood by significant others. Projection allows you to transfer your own inferiority onto others. Impulse - blame it. Overestimation of the stimulus: “All people are vicious.” Defensive behavior is normal: control, lack of suggestibility, increased criticality, pride, pride, selfishness, rancor, heightened sense of justice, arrogance, suspicion, jealousy, hostility, stubbornness, intractability, intolerance to objections, isolation, pessimism, increased sensitivity to criticism and comments, demanding of oneself and others, the desire to achieve high performance in any type of activity. Passive disposition. The leading emotion is fear. Defense – suppression (repression). It develops to contain the emotion of fear, the manifestations of which are unacceptable for positive self-perception and threaten to become directly dependent on the aggressor. Impulse - I don't remember about it. Re-evaluation of the stimulus: “This is unfamiliar to me.” Defensive behavior is normal: inertia and passivity, withdrawal, lack of initiative, a tendency to be dependent on someone, careful avoidance of situations that can become problematic and cause fear, humility, timidity, forgetfulness, fear of new acquaintances. Obsessive disposition. The leading emotion is anticipation. Protection – rationalization (intellectualization and sublimation). Develops in early adolescence to contain emotions of expectation or anticipation, fear of experiencing the disappointment of failure and uncertainty in competition with peers. Impulse - redefine, rethink it. Revaluation of the stimulus: “Everything is explainable.” Defensive behavior is normal: increased control, which does not allow one to recognize the emotions of others, a tendency to analysis and introspection, responsibility, conscientiousness, thoroughness, love of order, uncharacteristic bad habits, foresight, discipline, individualism, the desire to adhere to the middle in everything.

The Wheel of Emotions by Robert Plutchik

The Wheel of Emotions, created by Plutchik in 1980, represents emotions as a flower with eight petals. Each “petal” symbolizes one of the prototypical emotions, with opposing emotions located opposite each other. It turns out that polar emotions oppose and balance each other:

There can be a huge variety of different emotions and feelings, but they are all either basic emotions or their mixtures and derivatives. Thus, the eight emotions located outside the wheel, in the space between the petals, are a combination of the emotions of adjacent petals.

The wheel of emotions is made in color, which makes a lot of sense. Each emotion has its own color, and its saturation reflects the intensity of the experience, the brightness of the emotion. It turns out that in the very heart of the diagram there are the most vivid, intense emotions, in the second row (the second segment of the petals) the actual main (or basic) emotions, and then - a less pronounced version of each emotion.

It is worth noting that Plutchik himself did not call his graphic scheme a flower and did not use the term “petals.” In his works, he presented a model of a wheel and a model of a cone, which form one whole. If the Wheel of Emotions is an expanded two-dimensional diagram, then the cone is the same model, but in a collapsed three-dimensional form. The original graphical model clearly demonstrating both patterns and their relationship can be found in Plutchik's 2001 article [The Nature of Emotions, 2001]

To summarize: the main 8 emotions and their different degrees of intensity can be represented in the form of a circle, flower or wheel. This diagram, called the Wheel of Emotions, reflects both the intensity of each emotion through a color code and demonstrates the relationship of polarity or opposition of emotions. In addition to the basic emotions themselves, she indicates 8 derivatives formed by mixing two prototypical emotional states.

Basic emotions in adolescents. How do they manifest themselves?

Emotions are manifested in frequent changes in mood, the appearance of aggression, anger, it seems to them that the whole world is against them, adults do not understand them, and everything is very bad in life, fear prevails, and sometimes unreasonable impulses of joy. Of course, after some time all these manifestations will subside and the child will grow up. But while a teenager is in this state, he can commit rash acts and even harm his health. At this age, children run away from home or try to commit suicide under the influence of emotions.