Feelings are like colors and colors – they vary in intensity and can mix. How to determine your “leading emotion”? What if our environment does not accept it?
Psychology professor Robert Plutchik listed eight basic emotions and their corresponding functions: fear-protection, anger-destruction, joy-reproduction, sadness-reconnection, trust-attachment, disgust-rejection, expectation-orientation, surprise-exploration.
Like paint on an artist’s palette, emotions can mix to form other, more complex emotions. Why is this classification useful? It gives a subtle knowledge of the nuances of emotions, which helps us to better understand our reactions.
Each of us, according to Plutchik’s theory, has a leading emotion. If its manifestation is not approved by our environment or is dangerous for self-perception, defensive behavior is activated.
Joy. Protective behavior: concerns about violations of personal space, the desire to comply with generally accepted standards of behavior, concern for a “decent” appearance, politeness, courtesy, disinterestedness, sociability.
The trust. Defensive behavior: sociability, desire to be the center of attention, thirst for recognition, optimism, ease, boastfulness, self-pity, courtesy, pathos, easy tolerance of criticism and lack of self-criticism.
Fear. Protective behavior: inertia, passivity, withdrawal into oneself, lack of initiative, humility, tendency to depend on someone, avoidance of problem situations, timidity, forgetfulness, fear of new acquaintances.
Surprise. Protective behavior: impulsiveness, lack of deep interests, suggestibility, inability to complete the work begun, quick mood swings, ability to easily establish superficial contacts.
Sadness. Defensive behavior: suffering from the loss of an imaginary object and loss of self-esteem, finding and correcting one’s shortcomings, achieving high results in activities, playing sports, collecting, striving for originality.
Disgust. Protective behavior: control, lack of suggestibility, increased criticality, pride, pride, selfishness, a heightened sense of justice, sensitivity to criticism and comments, exactingness towards oneself and others.
Anger. Protective behavior: impulsiveness, irritability, irascibility, exactingness towards others, protest reactions in response to criticism, lack of guilt.
Expectation. Protective behavior: increased control, not allowing to know the emotions of others, a tendency to analyze and introspection, conscientiousness, thoroughness, love of order, foresight, individualism.
We can become more aware of our emotions by asking ourselves questions such as:
- What is happening to me now?
- What sensations do I have in my body?
- What do I want to do now?
- How to call what I feel?
- Can my feeling get stronger?
- What will it look like then?
- Can my feeling become weaker? .. and so on.
By understanding our emotions, we get to know ourselves and our desires better. And we can consciously find a way to satisfy them.
Primary dyads (combination of primary emotions)
- Joy + trust = love
- Trust + fear = submission
- Fear + surprise = awe
- Surprise + sadness = disappointment
- Sadness + disgust = regret
- Disgust + anger = contempt
- Anger + anticipation = aggression
- Expectation + Joy = Optimism
Secondary dyads (combination of emotions separated on the wheel by another emotion)
- Joy + fear = guilt
- Trust + surprise = curiosity
- Fear + Sadness = Despair
- Surprise + disgust = disgust
- Sadness + anger = jealousy
- Disgust + expectation = cynicism
- Anger + Joy = Pride
- Expectation + Trust = Fatalism
Tertiary dyads (combination of emotions that are separated on the wheel by two other emotions)
- Joy + surprise = admiration
- Trust + Sadness = Boredom
- Fear + disgust = shame
- Surprise + anger = outrage
- Sadness + anticipation = pessimism
- Disgust + joy = pain
- Anger + trust = dominance
- Expectation + fear = anxiety