Theories of Emotion and Arousal

Theories of Emotion and Arousal

The two theories of James-Lang and Canon-Bard were very similar in ultimate end result, yet very different in their application and process of arriving there. The James-Lang theory asserted that upon an individual being stimulated, there is a process of behaviors that follow, resulting in the arousal of the subject. “Lang is the recipient of an award for distinguished scientific contributions due to his outstanding contribution to the understanding of emotion”

(Lang, 1994) James and Lang believed that emotions do no subsequently follow perception, but only after the body has responded. Once there is a physical response, only then does an emotional response occur. For example, a stimulus such as seeing a snake in your driveway initiates a physical response of fear and apprehension, and then the emotion of fear kicks in, this relates to human motivation because it displays how things can be a catalyst for our behaviors. Fear, anger, love, lust, and compassion are some emotions that are motivated by this theory. Seeing a spider, getting cut off in traffic, holding a baby, going to a strip club, and seeing a starving stray dog are all events that can elicit a physical and emotional response from humans. Different emotions occur and then a physical response occurs. Canon-Bard expanded upon this theory to encompass a total response. The Canon-Bard theory relevant to human motivation and emotions agrees upon this theory, but expands on it, saying that there is another step in this process. Canon-Bard believes that the thalamus, a part of the human brain, kicks in after the stimulus is perceived, thus igniting the physical and emotional response at the same time. For example, upon seeing a snake in one's driveway, the individual would see the snake (the stimulus), and immediately experience an emotional and physical response simultaneously. This is also referred to as the Fight or Flight response. The difference in these two theories is...