Emotion and Culture

Ch 13 sec 2

Objectives

• Emotion and culture• Communicating emotion• Gender and emotion

Culture and emotion

Culture determines what people feel angry, sad, lonely, happy, ashamed or disgusted about.

Some cultures have words for specific emotions unknown to other cultures..E.g., schadenfreude

Some cultures don’t have words for emotions that seem universal to others.Tahitian and sadness

Differences in secondary emotions appear to be reflected in differences in languages.

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Story time!

• Young wife leaves home one morning to draw water from well, husband watches from porch

• Male stranger stops her, and asks for water, she gives it to him invites to dinner. He accepts

• Husband, wife, stranger eat pleasant meal together

Story continued

• Husband in gesture of hospitality, invites guest to stay the night- with his wife

• Guest excepts• In the mourning husband leaves to get

breakfast• When he returns, finds stranger with wife

again• What point does the husband get angry?

Depends on culture

• North American husband- wife has extra marital affair• N.A. wife angry if offered up like a lamb chop• However reactions not universal• Pawnee husband of 19th century enraged about water• Ammassalik Inuit- honorable to offer wife but only

once • Toda husband in India not angry at all…but need to

announce affair, no sneaky affairs

How culture shapes emotions

• Germans have schadenfreude – feeling of joy at others misfortune

• “ glad it didn’t happen to me” Gigi• Japanese speak of hagaii- Helpless with anguish• Tahitians have mehameha, a trembling sensation that

Tahitians feel when ordinary categories of perception are suspended

• All can feel emotions, but cultures more likely to feel ones they name

• Most psychologists believe all humans share primary emotions

Communicating emotions

• Display rules are social and cultural rules that regulates when, how, and where a person may express (or suppress) emotions; grief =weeping, tearless resignation, drink & dance

• Body language is nonverbal signals of body movement, posture, gesture, and gaze; UT Texas something diff Italy (mans wife unfaithful)

• Emotion work is an expression of an emotions, often because of a role requirement, that a person does not really feel

• Job requirement- flight attendant, waitress= happy face• Bill collector, bouncer= menacing but feel sorry

Rules of emotional regulation

Display rulesWhen, where, and how emotions are to be expressed or when they should be squelched

Emotion workActing out an emotion we do not feel or trying to create the right emotion for the occasion

Body languageThe nonverbal signals of body movement, posture, and gaze that people constantly express

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Gender and emotion

• The sexes do not differ in how they feel the range of everyday emotions

• North american women are more verbally and nonverbally expressive than men- smiles and talk more about their emotions

• Men are more likely to express anger at strangers- only emotion more likely in men

• Women more likely emotional disturbances= Panic Disorders, depression

Gender and emotion

In North America women. . .smile more than men.gaze at listeners more.have more emotionally expressive faces.use more expressive body movements.touch others more.acknowledge weakness and emotions more.

Compared to women, men only express anger to strangers more.

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Situations can override gender rules

• Both sexes are less expressive to a person of higher status

• World series, super bowl= both cheer, boo• Both sexes do “emotion work” associated with

their jobs• Some situations foster emotion in everyone• Gender differences vary across culture

Factors influencing emotional expressiveness

Gender rolesCultural normsThe specific situation

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Summary

• Emotion culture• Communicating emotions• Gender and emotion