The Four Basic Emotions and their Triggers

Did you any time think how many emotions a human being can feel?

Psychological research says we can feel hundreds of emotions and even thousands!

So, wouldn't it be difficult to recognize hundreds and thousands of emotions of others and of ourselves?

Definitely it is going to be a difficult job!

So, what do we do?

If you have seen the animated movie, "Inside Out" (2015), you will easily understand what the main emotions are: Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust.

Psychologists had been saying that there were eight basic emotions. Later on psychologists reduced the basic emotions to seven...six...and even to five. However, quite recently, psychological research has accepted four emotions as basic emotions.

The Four Basic Emotions and their Shades

1. Often, we feel pleased, contented, amused, cheerful, delighted, excited, elated and ecstatic... The intensity of these emotions may vary, but all these emotions are grouped under one emotion i.e. HAPPINESS
2. We also feel  disappointed, upset, moody, heart-broken, miserable, sorrowful, depressed... In spite of their variation in intensity, all these emotions can be grouped under one emotion i.e. SADNESS.S
3. We also feel irritated, sulky, annoyed, frustrated, mad, irate, outraged, enraged, furious...These emotions can be grouped under one emotion i.e. ANGER
4. We also feel anxious, worried, nervous, frightened, apprehensive, panicky, petrified, horrified, terrified...These emotions can be grouped under one emotion i.e. FEAR

Emotions and their General Triggers

Dr. Paul Ekman, the world's authority on emotions and facial expressions, says that every emotion has a reason or a broad trigger which he calls a 'theme'. The following are the triggers for the four basic emotions:

1. ANGER: The general trigger or theme for anger is that we get angry when things don't go the way we planned. For example, we get angry with the salesman for getting a delivery late. A father gets angry with his son if he does not do as he wishes. 
2. FEAR:  The general trigger or theme for fear is that we get frightened or afraid when there is a threat to our welfare. For example, we get worried when our health gets affected. We are nervous before an exam or presentation. We get terrified when we see a car coming to hit us. 
3. SADNESS: The broad theme of sadness is that we become sad when we lose something. For example, we get sad when we lose a purse or money. We are sad we break up with friends. The most intense feeling of sadness one experiences is when a loved dies.
4. HAPPINESS: The general reason for happiness is when things happen our way or something good happens to us. For example, we are happy when somebody accepts a friend request. We are happy when we get a promotion or get married to the love of our life.      

How can we Recognize these Emotions?

Recognizing these emotions is easy and difficult at the same time. It is easy because we recognize other people's emotions all the time without our knowledge. For example, we know unconsciously when somebody is angry or somebody is sad. Only thing is that we don't do it consciously. The moment we try to do it consciously,  it becomes difficult unless you master it. The following are the basic signs to recognize the four basic emotions:

1. SADNESS: When someone becomes sad, we observe a certain sagging in the body posture and a lack of energy or enthusiasm. When it comes to the facial expressions, the inner corners of the eyebrows go up and the lips get widened and turn downwards.
2. ANGER: When someone is angry, their posture becomes upright and they look strong. They often clench their fist or point a finger. As per the facial expressions, the eyebrows come down; the eyelids go up and the mouth and the jaw become tense.
3. FEAR: When someone is afraid, there is a slouch in the posture as opposed to anger. In the facial expressions, the eyebrows are pulled up and the eyelids are pulled up too; and the mouth is half open.  
4. HAPPINESS: When some one is happy, the most common thing to observe is the smile. In a genuine smile, not only the muscles around the mouth relax, bu also the muscles around the eyes contract. In body posture, one becomes relaxed and the body opens up we feel happy.

Observing body language and recognizing the emotions of the other person will surely benefit us as it helps us empathize with the person. And sometimes it can help us in making a decision as to run away from the person or  show that we are not happy with the person or situation. 

References

• 'Emotions Revealed: Understanding Faces and Feelings" by Paul Ekman, 2004.

To learn more about emotions and for Emotional Intelligence Coaching, contact the author. The author is a Psychotherapist, Life Coach and Behavioral Communication Trainer.