INDUSTRIAL PSYCHOLOGY

Module #3
EMOTIONS AND EMOTIONAL BEHAVIOR
Birion defined emotions as a manifestation of feelings that are evoked when
we are confronted with a stimulus associated with an important person, object or
events. Emotions are affective states involving a high level of activation, visceral
changes and strong feelings (Kahayon and Aquino).
Emotion comes from the Latin verb emovere which means to stir up,
agitate, upset or move. It has been defined as a strong feeling or agitation involving
internal and external bodily changes or a condition of upset that drives the
individual to move.
Feeling is only one aspect of emotion. To the emotionally aroused individual
himself, the most obvious aspect of emotion is feeling. He feels hot or cold, excited
or calm, tense or relaxed, happy or sad. Feeling is the experience or pleasantness or
unpleasantness that you may have during an emotion.
Aspects of Emotion
1.
2.
3.
4.

Personal emotional experiences

Physiological or bodily changes that occur during emotion
Behaviour of the person
Motivational aspect

Functions of Emotions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Motivates one in the learning process

Enriches the actions of individuals
Releases tension and energy
Achieves signification
Inspires individuals to heights of glory, creativeness or ambition

Plutchiks research made him believe that there are eight primary emotions.
Motivations as Motives
Sometimes emotions may function as motives. Once an emotional state has
been fully connected by experiences to an object or situation, that emotion also
meets our definition of a motive, that is, a condition of the organism leading it
through selective and directed behaviour to seek a certain goal.
A person who has developed a fear of getting stomach trouble after eating a
certain food from a canteen or restaurant can guide and direct his behaviour toward
other eateries. For these reasons, emotions cannot always be separated from
motives; sometimes they are epitomes of motives. One becomes emotional when
the motivation is strong. It is a general rule that the stronger the motivation, the
more likely is the response to become emotional. One becomes emotional when
motives are thwarted. A person becomes emotional also when motives are suddenly
removed.
Classification of Emotions
Cole classifies emotions according to their origin as basic or derived;
according to their nature as aggressive, defensive or joyous; according to the

feeling they create as pleasant or unpleasant; and according to their effects as

positive or negative.
Basic versus Derived Emotions. The basic emotions, believed by Watson to be
inborn, are fear, anger, and lust or love because they are strong and they appear
before the other emotions. As they are conditioned to various stimuli, they become
modified into what are known as derived emotions. Joy, pleasure, delight, affection
and happiness, for example, are derived from love; worry, shame, guilt, anxiety and
disgust are derived from fear and jealousy, envy, hostility, annoyance and have are
derived from anger.
Mild versus Intense Emotions. Emotions may vary from very slight to very great or
intensive. Milder forms and intensities of emotion provide a motivational
background to much that we do. Intense emotions such as anger, fear, jealousy and
grief, involve a marked degree of activity in the body precipitated by the upsetting
of the autonomic nervous system. On the other hand, mild states such as
annoyance, worry, affection, disappointment and sadness may mean only a small
degree of bodily activity. Since the autonomic nervous system acts as a whole, it is
believed that different kinds of emotions are organically alike provided they are of
the same degree.
Positive versus Negative Emotions. Emotion has positive or negative effects upon
people and their relationships. Emotions that are integrating and up building such
as love, affection, joy, etc are not only pleasant but also positive emotions. They
help in the building up of mature persons as well as of happy and harmonious
relationships. On the other hand, negative emotions such as anger, hostility, hate,
resentment, fear, guilt, shame, etc are corrosive in their effects; hence, destructive
to persons and relationships. Negative emotions can make your personality
unwholesome and negative.
The Control of Emotions
Emotional control is necessary when one wants to adjust to a situation. There
are different ways through which one may respond to an emotional situation. Bucu
enumerated some of these:
1. Learn to face failure, sometimes we may realize that failure can be the
stepping stone for success.
2. Awareness of the types of emotional problems one has to encounter and the
emotional reactions he is expected to give in meeting the problem.
3. Suppression of emotions.
4. Determination to overcome bad emotional habits.
5. Analyse the situation before giving vent to the emotion
6. Cultivate a good sense of humor
How to Deal with Emotional Behavior
People in business cannot avoid contacts with other people. Their getting in
touch with people is the means by which they make money. For these interactions
with others and in their attempt to persuade them favourably, emotional patterns of
behaviour can be expected. The success of businessman depends upon his ability to
recognize these emotional reactions and to deal with them effectively. Therefore the
businessman should avoid incurring his customers negative emotions such as
anger, fear, annoyance or irritability. He should try to stimulate positive reactions
toward himself as well as toward his business, to maintain a friendly atmosphere in
order that his goal may be achieved, and to make the customer feel that the
commodity is worth his money.

STRESS
The term stress is commonly used to describe a feeling or emotion. Stress is
defined as the process by which the individual responds to environmental and
psychological events that are perceived as threatening or challenging. It can be
defined as the demand placed on a person to adapt, adjust and to cope. Producers
of stress such as physical exercise, various emotional states, and creative activity
are usually considered healthy. If the situation or experience is a positive one for
you, you do not generally think of it as stress.
If the level of stress is particularly high and if it becomes too uncomfortable,
there is a need to reduce the stressor because such condition adversely affects the
persons personality. Stress can make people physically sick. Anyone who has had
to prepare for a big examination knows that stress can lead to a loss of appetite,
insomnia and tension headaches.
Stress is the non-specific response of the body to any demand made upon it.
The body goes through three stages in its response to stressors: the alarm stage,
resistance stage and exhaustion stage.
MAJOR TYPES OR CAUSES OF STRESS
Stressors are the factors that cause stress. It is important that we learn to
control stress and live with it. The first step is to find out what your stressor are,
that is, what stresses you personally. The following are causes of stress:
1. Frustration. Frustration is experienced when ones pursuit of a goal is
thwarted. There are many situations in life where in we are not able to get
what we desire because of obstacles or hindrances. Some frustrations do not
cause much worry, hence their impact are not significant.
2. Conflict. Conflict occurs when a person is faced with two or more opposing
situations of which he has to choose. Conflict comes in four types: the
approach-approach, the avoidance-avoidance, the approach-avoidance and
the multiple approach-avoidance.
3. Change. Change is inevitable. Positive or desired changes just like the
undesired ones may also cause stress. The reason for this is because they
alter the usual order of activities of a person. It is important to note however
that the kind of change that may occur determines the level of stress upon
the person.
4. Anxiety. This is a feeling similar to fear, except that you do not know what
you are afraid of. You feel uneasy and experience a sense of foreboding.
Although you are aware of being tense, worried, nervous and moody, you
dont know why. Some anxiety on the job is good and aids in your top
performance. This positive anxiety ensures that you arrive at work on time,
show respect for your boss and give a days work for a days pay. Too much
anxiety, however, interferes with planning, thinking and performing.
5. Pressures. Stress may not only stem from frustrations and conflicts but also
from pressure to achieve goals or to behave in particular ways. In general,
pressure forces a person to speed up intensity or change the direction of a
goal-oriented behaviour. In some instances, pressure seriously taxes our
adjustive resources and if it becomes excessive, may lead to breakdown.
Stress Signals
Just as it is helpful to know our own stressors, it is also good to learn to
recognize the signals in ourselves which tells us that we are over-stressed. These
signals can be mental, physical, emotional or behavioural. Stress signals act as a

red light or warning bell to tell us that action is needed to prevent more serious
problems developing. The trouble is we do not always recognize the warning signs
straight away, and even if we do see them, we do not always act quickly enogh. The
longer we go without taking action on a warning, the more likely we are to damage
our health and the more difficult it will be to achieve a cure.
Personal Problems
Depression. Depression is a common psychological problem characterized by
feelings of hopelessness, worthlessness, and sadness in response to real or
imagined loss, failure or misfortune. It affects more than your body. Thoughts,
feelings and behaviour are also affected by depression.
Burn-out. Job burn-out occurs when a person who has been experiencing a high
level of stress hasnt been able to cope with it. However, when a person dreads
going to work because of unhappiness and frustration regularly, day after day,
thats job burn-out, according to Larry Cherniss. Cherniss sees burn-out as a
reaction to a stressful job. The symptoms of stress and burn-out are similar, but
burn-out is more intense. It is defined as the depletion of physical and mental
resources caused by striving to reach some unrealistic job-related goals. Emotional
and physical exhaustion is also apparent in the burned-out worker.
Effects of Stress
The effects of stress can be complex but they all involve a certain group of
basic body responses. These responses arise in the course of evolution, as the
individual meets physical danger. In the human body, when danger is perceived
(whether real or imaginary), the pituitary gland releases a hormone called
adrenocorticotropic hormone.
Positive effects of stress. Under certain circumstances, stress is valuable, as for
instance, in sports and making speeches. The stress response puts people on their
mettle, increases alertness, improves sight, strengthens muscles and reduces
reaction times. The stress response increases our ability to stand and fight or turn
and flee and to mobilize all our resources to achieve whatever what we decide to
do. Another positive effect is the zest that stress adds to life by stimulating the
senses and the passions. Many people need challenge in their lives and would be
unhappy without it. Stress has a positive effects if it can be worked off.
Negative Effects of stress. Once pressure becomes unbearable, several negative
reactions may flow out. Decline in work performance like inability to meet deadlines
or submitting poor quality work results to poor job performance. Physical or body
conditioning is also greatly affected. Since a person under stress is highly
emotional, he gets easily irritated and anxious over things no matter how trivial
they may seem to be. The negative effects of stress are evident when stress
remains in the body, usually when there is no chance to take the necessary steps to
release a stress response that is too strong or lasts too long. The negative effects of
stress show up in the following ways: 1) Unsuitable behaviour 2) Lower energy
performance levels and 3) Poorer health. Knowing the negative effects of stress,
there is a need for us to manage our stress or it will shorten our life.
Stress at Work
Many employers have recently become aware of the harmful effects of jobinduced stress on the mental and physical health of their employees. Stress can
interfere with production and efficiency on the job and can debilitate persons to the

point of requiring medical or psychological treatment. Prolonged stress can lead to

serious, even fatal illness. Today, organizations that attempt to deal with the effects
of stress through psychological counselling programs are increasing in number.
Researches are being conducted by psychologists and behavioural scientists to
determine the aspect of work life that induce stress and how the job and job
environment can be redesigned to be less stressful.
Unhealthy Ways of coping with Stress
These coping strategies may temporarily reduce stress, but they cause more damage in the
long run:

Smoking

Drinking too much

Stress eating

Zoning out for hours in front of the

TV or computer

Withdrawing from friends, family,

and activities

Using pills or drugs to relax

Sleeping too much

Filling up every minute of the day

to avoid facing problems

Taking out your stress on others

(lashing out, angry outbursts,
physical violence)

How to Cope with Stress

There are three major categories
informational and behavioural responses.

of

coping

with

stress:

cognitive,

Cognitive Responses. Cognitive coping involves reappraisal, raising selfesteem, and developing self-efficiency. In a disappointing and stressful situation, the
amount of stress experienced is as much due to the way we interpret the event as
to the event itself. Stress could be reduced by re-examining the situation and
identifying the positive aspects of it.
Informational Responses. Uncertainly caused by lack of information
contributes to the stress of the situation. Seeking out information and gaining a
better understanding of the stressful situation can be an important step in coping
stress.
Behavioural Responses. There are many behavioural responses to stress. The
following may help us cope with stress:
1. Do things you enjoy
2. Sleep well, eat well, avoid harm and have regular exercise.
3. Be part of a social network. Knowing that we can rely on others to help us in
time of crisis plays a major role in coping with stress.
4. Learn to set aside problems temporarily
5. Have a clear picture of your life goals
6. Nurture your faith dimension by having regular meditation, prayer and study
time.
7. Take a break or vacation