Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-76fb5796d-5g6vh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-26T10:09:17.683Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Chapter 4 - Factors Affecting the Intensity of Emotions

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 August 2022

Andrew Ortony
Affiliation:
Northwestern University, Illinois
Gerald L. Clore
Affiliation:
University of Virginia
Allan Collins
Affiliation:
Northwestern University, Illinois
Get access

Summary

Two different classes of variables capable of affecting the intensity of emotions are introduced: global variables, which can influence the intensity of many different emotion types across different emotion groups, and local variables, which have relatively local effects, influencing only the intensity of particular emotions or emotion groups. Examples of global variables are presented, including sense of reality, psychological proximity, unexpectedness, and arousal, along with examples of local variables such as deservingness, relevant for Fortunes-of-others emotions such as Schadenfreude, and likelihood, relevant for emotions involving envisaged events. A detailed discussion of examples of emotion types involving both kinds of intensity variables is provided. Also discussed is the relation between global and local variables on the one hand and the central variables discussed in Chapter 3 on the other, with particular attention paid to the issue of how such interactions contribute to the overall intensity of particular emotion types. The difficulty of calibrating intensity across different emotion types is discussed.

Type
Chapter
Information
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×