8 Core Emotions – How Do I Express Them?

The recent special edition of Time (July 2019) titled Mental Health: A New Understanding was a breath of fresh air for the work we are doing at R1 Learning. In the article “Finding the Right Words” (subtitled “language takes the stage as researchers strive to understand how we think about what we feel”), David Bjerklie shares some of the latest work by Tim Lomas of the University of East London. According to Lomas, “When we can describe our feelings with precision, it gives us information we can act on.” This is precisely the fundamental and useful thinking made concrete in our latest Discovery Cards product: Emotions & Feelings.

Words matter. The more words or labels people have to help them describe and express what they are thinking and feeling – to family, friends, and counselors – the sooner they can make healthy choices, take action, and move forward toward meaningful change.

Today’s post is the second in our category of The 101s. Today’s topic is Emotions and Feelings. Our research landed us on three important models related to emotions and feelings:

  1. The Basic Theory of Emotions and Feelings,

  2. An Emotions and Feelings Vocabulary, and

  3. Emotional Regulation Practices, or coping strategies, to help manage emotions and feelings.

Today we want to cover the first two and leave the 10 Emotional Regulation Practices for an upcoming post.

The Basic Theory of Emotions and Feelings

The chart below represents Klaus Scherer’s five components of processing of emotions in conjunction with Richard Lazarus’s cognitive emotions theory. An emotion, which results from some stimulus, goes through this process in the order shown in the chart below. See R1 Emotions & Feelings Facilitator Guide, Pages 8-9

References
Lazarus RS. “Cognition and Motivation in Emotion.” American Psychologist 46:352–367, 1991

Scherer KR. “What Are Emotions? And How Can They Be Measured?” Social Science Information 44:693–727, 2005

In this example of Greg encountering the stimulus of a grizzly bear, Greg screams and runs away… and escapes unharmed. That’s the good news. But what impact will this traumatic experience have on Greg over the next hours, days, weeks, or even years? Will he tell the tale joyfully as a brave survivor of this near-death experience? Or will the event replay negatively in Greg’s memories, causing anxiety, depression, and other unhealthy thoughts or behaviors? Will similar environments or experiences cause similar feelings of terror, panic, and being unsafe even without a bear present? There are many different ways of reacting to and coping with such stimuli. No matter the reaction, it will be important for Greg to express what happened to him that day – both in terms of his beliefs, the facts, but also in terms of what he was thinking and feeling before, during, and after the situation. It will be advantageous for Greg to process his emotions and feelings in these conversations. What Greg needs is a taxonomy of emotions and feelings.

8 Core Emotions – An Emotions and Feelings Taxonomy

First, let’s define what we mean by emotions and feelings:

Emotions – in the body. Instinctual biochemical reactions in the body that alter one’s physical state. Emotions serve an adaptive role by helping people deal with difficult or survival issues imposed by the environment.

 Feelings – in the mind. Mental associations and reactions to an emotion that are personal and acquired through experience.

Below we provide a taxonomy for the 8 Core Emotions and the associated feelings. This taxonomy will help individuals express their emotions (what they are feeling physically in their bodies) as well as their feelings (how they interpret these physiological changes in their mind).

1.      Anger – Emotion of annoyance, displeasure, or hostility, often expressed antagonistically. Feelings examples include: Frustrated, Furious, Irritable, Mad, Resentful

2.       Fear – Emotion driven by a sense of danger or something threatening. Feelings examples include: Anxious, Scared, Terrified, Threatened, Unsafe

3.       Pain –  Emotion bought on by a sense of suffering, hurt, or loss. Feelings examples include: Grief or Loss, Hurt, Lonely, Pity (Self and Others), Sad

4.       Shame – Emotion of humiliation or regret caused by awareness of wrong or improper behavior. Feelings examples include: Ashamed, Disgraced, Embarrassed, Humiliated, Shameful

5.       Guilt – Emotion of remorse or responsibility for an offense, improper act, or sense of inadequacy. Feelings examples include: Irredeemable, Regretful, Remorseful, Sorry, Wrongful

6.       Joy – Emotion of happiness, pleasure, or delight. Feelings examples include: Celebratory, Content, Grateful, Happy, Hopeful

7.       Strength – Emotional capacity to withstand difficulties and overcome obstacles. Feelings examples include: Confident, Fearless, Resilient, Safe, Strong

8.       Love –  Emotion of affection, devotion, or admiration for a person, place, or thing. Feelings examples include: Affectionate, Caring, Connected, Longing, Passionate

Does this list help bring structure to your discussions with others? Obviously these ideas don’t just apply to the Geoff and the Grizzly Bear example but can be used in lots of different situations that happen in our daily lives. Other examples include:

  • School achievement or disappointment

  • A play in a sporting event

  • Illness, injury, or death of a loved one

  • A song or a movie

  • The list is endless…

  • Situation with a family member or friend

  • Change in a romantic relationship

  • A traffic interaction

  • Work or financial setback or success

  • A place that sparks a memory

Emotional State Dimensions

Let’s take this exploration one step further with one of the 8 Core Emotions. Let’s look at FEAR in more detail given Geoff’s bear experience. Emotions and feelings serve a purpose. They are instinctual responses to one’s environment. They can be felt physiologically in specific areas of the body and act as an early-warning system for the triggering of survival reactions. How they are felt in the body can be expressed in terms of the Emotional State Dimensions listed below. Building a vocabulary that helps differentiate feelings on an intensity scale can also aid individuals in clarifying in more detail what they are experiencing.

Emotional State Dimensions – Discovery Cards content

  1. Type – Which emotion(s) do you feel?
    (Anger, Fear, Pain, Shame, Guilt, Joy, Strength, Love)

  2. Body Location – Where (in the body) do you feel them?

  3. Body Feeling – How do they feel in your body?

  4. Intensity – How strong do they feel?

  5. Frequency – How often do they occur?

  6. Rate of Change – How fast do they come or go?

  7. Duration – How long do they last?

Questions to Explore

Take a moment and answer the following questions:

  1. Geoff and the Grizzly Bear: Think about the Emotions and Feelings taxonomy listed above given Geoff’s experience. Do you think these words will be helpful to Geoff in telling his story? Why?

  2. You: Can you see how the Emotions and Feelings taxonomy will be useful given your own experiences? Think about a situation you’ve experienced recently and see if you can use these words to describe your emotions and feelings effectively.

  3. Individuals You Support: Do you think this model will resonate with individuals you are counseling or coaching? Why? How can you use this model in your next group or 1-on-1 session?

Were the Emotions and Feelings definitions helpful in thinking about Geoff, yourself, and individuals you support? Did you wish you had more of the emotions cards to refer to like the Fear example card above? Emotions and Feelings and my inability to manage them were the reasons why I started R1 Learning in the first place. I have struggled with them personally, especially at the start of R1 given the hurt and pain I was feeling at the time. I have found the cards to be incredibly helpful in giving me a concrete way to think and speak about my emotions. They stimulate lots of ideas to help me clarify what I’m thinking and feeling so that I can figure out how to express myself in a constructive way.

References
Gorski TT. Starting Recovery with Relapse Prevention. Gorski Publications, 2012, p 32 (https://www.gorskibooks.com /collections/workbooks/products/starting-recovery-with-relapse-prevention)

Handel S. “Classification of Emotions.” The Emotion Machine: Psychology + Self Improvement in the 21st Century. Posted 24 May 2011. Retrieved 30 April 2012.

Mellody P. Feelings Card/Talking Boundaries. The Meadows, 2014 (https://www.themeadowsbookstore.com/product_info.
php?cPath=12_7&products_id=6&osCsid=ldh78p6qomrqv7i42pmigg35c7)

Plutchik R. “The Nature of Emotions.” American Scientist 89:344–350, 2001

Copyright 2023 R1 Publishing LLC / All Rights Reserved. Use of this article for any purpose is prohibited without permission.

Emotions & Feelings Discovery Cards and Group Kits – Tools for Practice
Integrating these tools into your groups will allow individuals to build their own vocabulary, think about these concepts concretely, and put their choices into action. Visit the R1 Store to learn more about our Emotions & Feelings Discovery Cards Group Kits. The cards are an amazing tool for exploring emotions and feelings with individuals or groups.

This is just the beginning of our Emotions and Feelings discussion. We will be exploring 10 Emotional Regulation Practices in an upcoming post, so stay tuned.


Want to keep the momentum going? Here’s how: 

  1. Share this blog post with others. (Thank you!)   

  2. Start a conversation with your team. Bring this information to your next team meeting or share it with your supervisor. Change starts in conversations. Good luck! Let us know how it goes.   

  3. Visit www.R1LEARNING.com to learn more about R1, the Discovery Cards, and how we’re creating engaging learning experiences through self-discovery.   

Tom Karl