Emotions are specific psychological states brought about by
neurophysiological changes associated with feelings, thoughts and behavioral
responses. Emotions were considered as irrational experiences beyond the
domain of logical perception because of their intertwinement with mood,
temperament, creativity, motivation and personality. Through the centuries,
emotions have been the focus of research among great classical philosophers,
doctors, neuropsychologists, neuroscientists, neurologists and
psychiatrists. The neurophysiological basis of behavior, such as emotional
facial expression, and autonomic events in the physiological theory of
William James and James-Lange and modified by Cannon-Bard, was followed by
the two-factor theory of emotions of Schachter-Singer and Lazarus?
higher-order cognitive evaluation. Four components that influence each other
represent the concept of emotions and complete the overall emotional
experience, and these are: autonomous (increase in heart rate, blood
pressure); somatic (body language, facial expressions); cognitive (control,
management), and subjective feeling (emotion, individual experience). The
interplay between emotions and cognition has been the subject of research.
Emotions can be evoked reflexively by simple physical stimuli (bottom-up),
but can also be complex reactions involving cognitive, physiological and
behavioral reactions (top-down). The amygdala, the ?alert" or ?neural alarm?
structure, is responsible for conditioning fear, while the medial prefrontal
cortex participates in emotion self-regulation and decision making.