The cognitive revolution in
psychology has become well-established, and the field is now turning attention
to emotions and affective processes. Although the topic of emotions has never
really disappeared, major lines of research and theory have come to prominence
in theory, research, and practice. 
Current topics in emotion extend from clinical topics to depression and
anxiety in mental health to emotion’s influence on information processing to
imaging studies of the loci of emotions in brain processing.  The "emotion revolution" is now
itself well-established.  

Alex Zautra of Arizona State
University has moved this revolution forward significantly with his new book, which summarizes an exciting conceptual and empirical model of the emotions.    I have been a colleague of his for many
years and I have happily engaged in collaborative research with him on the
topics he presents in this book.  My
enthusiasm for this material should be obvious, and I have no hesitation in
proclaiming my favorable bias in reviewing this book.  I was happy to see him undertake it as a single author project
because of his extraordinary grasp of the central theme and its fascinating
variations. 

Zautra’s book was written to
counter the tendency of researchers to think of emotions as single, discrete
processes.  (e.g., "positive vs.
negative").  Thus, an
investigator may study depression, positive mood, anxiety, or some other single
affective state. The thesis of Zautra’s work is that affect systems such as
these do in fact operate separately, residing with their own separate causal
network. But the great advancement comes where Zautra and his colleagues have
developed a "two-dimensional" approach in which both positive and
negative affects are conceptualized and measured as co-occurring, simultaneous
processes. The central issue at this more complex, integrative level is, how
the emotions relate to each other, either at any given time or over time.  A comprehensive model of the person has to
be complex enough to account for the simultaneous presence of both positive and
negative states.  To date, though,
psychologists have not systematically studied the dynamics of both operating
together.

 
Although that insight (and attendant measurement) is a main contribution
of this new model, even more exciting is the discovery of Zautra and his
collaborators of the conditions under which the emotions actually become
related to each other. Their research shows that under ordinary circumstances
of daily living, the affects are separate systems; one can be happy and sad at
the same time, as in bittersweet circumstances. But under stress, the two
systems become collapsed and highly inversely correlated. Under stress, people
lose the ability to maintain positive feelings because they have become
inversely linked, causally, with negative states. This state of affect
simplification has the effect of reducing information-processing capacity and
therefore reducing emotional clarity, one of the key components of emotional
intelligence.  Thus, it is to stress
that we must look to find the main causal factor in emotional complexity. 

This "dynamic model" of
linked affects is a major contribution to any study of emotions and to any
therapeutic approach aimed at improving mental health.  Interventions have to target both negative
emotions to reduce their impact while also helping the person to experience
positive emotions.

In terms of the organization of the
book, the initial chapters describe the two-factor model of emotions, citing
research varying from cross-cultural similarities in emotion to the circumplex
to Davidson’s brain imaging studies. These all support the basic model of the
separateness of emotions. The role of stress in the physiology of emotions is
discussed and then linked to the book’s main theme of affect relations.   The later chapters pursue the implications
of this insight by a careful explication of how the affects co-occur under the
particular conditions being reviewed. The topics range from physical and mental
health, emotional intelligence, emotions and pain, and depression and
anxiety.  The final chapters review
applications showing how this integrative approach clarifies findings on such
topics as the addictions, emotional abuse of children, marriage and close
relationships, work life, and "the emotional community," discussing
how our community life is compounded out of interacting communal positive
feelings and the impact of stressful community experiences such as the
Columbine school tragedy.  The
literature reviewed in all chapters is by no means exhaustive of the vast
literature on emotions; it is selective and targeted.  The overall effect, however, is to provide a new context and an
exciting heuristic for psychologists to rethink their approach to emotions and
affect in a broader, more dynamic context. 

 Zautra’s book is written for both educated lay people and
professionals.  It will be particularly
exciting to researchers and practitioners since it provides a conceptually
clean and consistent summary of the approach. 
There simply is no comparable book on the market; since this
"two-dimensional" model is at the cutting-edge of emotion research,
Zautra’s exciting book has no competitors.

© 2003
John W. Reich

John W. Reich,
Ph.D., Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 

Categories: Psychology