Throughout the day we experience a large number of different emotions, but many times we are unable to identify what we are feeling. The psychologist Robert Plutchik defended that emotions change throughout the evolution of the human being to adapt to their context and developed a resource in the form of a drawing that facilitates the recognition and understanding of the complexity of emotions. If you want to know more about The wheel of emotions by Robert Plutchik, Keep reading this Psychology-Online article.
What is Robert Plutchik’s wheel of emotions
Robert Plutchik was an American psychologist who developed a model of emotions based on the psychoevolutionary theory of emotions. This theory defends that the emotional map of both human beings and animals has been evolving with the aim of adapting to the external environment. For Plutchik, emotions are neither good nor bad in themselves, but rather they are all necessary and have specific functions that promote survival and adaptation. Based on this conceptualization of emotions, this psychologist developed in 1980 the wheel of emotionsalso called circle of emotions or flower of emotions.
Three-dimensional model of emotions developed by Robert Plutchik
What is the wheel of emotions? The wheel of emotions is a graphic resource in the shape of a flower with eight petals of different colors, there is also the conical model, that shows and identifies different emotions and the relationships established between them. How does the wheel of emotions work? The wheel of emotions theory It is based on the criteria of typology, antagonism and intensity:
1. The typology
Emotions are divided into basic and compound emotions:
- The basic emotions They are located in the central core of the entire circle, in the second circumference and are: joy, trust, fear, surprise, sadness, aversion, anger and anticipation.
- The rest of the emotions that appear are classified as compound or secondary emotions.
2. Antagonism
Emotions are located depending on their degree of similarity and discrepancy; those most similar are close and the most antagonistic are in opposition. In this way four axes of opposition are created:
- Joy – sadness
- Anticipation – surprise
- Disgust – trust
- Anger – fear
3. Intensity
It refers to the vertical axis of the wheel. Basic emotions present different levels of intensity, which is reflected in the strength of colors of this roulette. Therefore, the closer the emotion is to the core, the greater the intensity, and the further away the emotion, the lower. The more intense the emotion, the more likely the person is to act in a way consistent with it. For example, with respect to fear, terror is more intense and fear less.
How to use the wheel of emotions
To know how to work the wheel of emotions, it is essential to understand the classification of emotions and their relationships according to Plutchik. As mentioned before, in this wheel we find the eight basic emotions, with greater and lesser intensity. The combination of these gives rise to the so-called compound emotions, which are made up of two basic emotions.
Are compound or secondary emotions They are found in the outermost part of the drawing, in the area without color, and are part of the first emotional dyad. The combination of basic emotions gives rise to a total of twenty-four compound emotions, which Plutchik classified into three different dyads, giving rise to less frequent emotions. Let’s see what Robert Plutchik’s combined emotions are:
1. Primary dyad
The first dyad is made up of the combination between the basic emotions that are found next to it:
- Joy + Confidence → Love
- Joy + Anticipation → Optimism
- Trust + Fear → Submission
- Fear + Surprise → Alarm
- Surprise + Sadness → Disappointment
- Sadness + Disgust → Remorse
- Disgust + Anger→ Contempt
- Anger + Anticipation → Aggression
2. Secondary dyad
The second dyad is formed by the combination of basic emotions with a degree of separation:
- Joy + Fear → Guilt
- Joy + Anger → Pride
- Trust + Surprise → Curiosity
- Confidence + Anticipation → Fatalism
- Fear + Sadness → Despair
- Surprise + Disgust → Disbelief
- Sadness + Anger→ Envy
- Disgust + Anticipation → Cynicism
- Anger + Sadness → Envy
3. Tertiary dyad
The third dyad is the result of the mixture of basic emotions with two degrees of separation:
- Joy + Surprise → Delight
- Joy + Disgust→ Morbidity
- Trust + Sadness → Sentimentalism
- Trust + Anger → Domination
- Fear + Disgust → Shame
- Fear + Anticipation → Anxiety
- Surprise + Anger → Outrage
- Sadness + Anticipation → Pessimism
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What is the wheel of emotions for?
The wheel of emotions is an extremely valuable resource, which can be useful for different purposes and in various areas of psychology:
- Facilitates the classification of emotions in a relatively simple and visual way, simplifying an extremely complex topic.
- It enables the identification of emotions in a more precise and clear way.
- It stimulates the understanding of the relationships and interrelationships between different emotional states, the understanding that emotions do not occur in isolation and a stimulus can trigger a variety of emotional reactions of different intensities.
- Promotes the understanding of other people’s emotions.
- Promotes the detection of events that trigger emotions.
- It helps because it facilitates attention and identification of one’s emotions.
- Increases the ability to manage and handle emotions due to emotional understanding.
- It can be very useful from educational psychology and emotional education., as a learning tool. The very useful wheel of emotions to work with boys and girls.
- From and therapy as self-knowledge resource and tool for acquiring own self-regulation resources.
Basic emotions according to Robert Plutchik
According to Ekman’s psychological theory, there are a total of 6 basic emotions. These are surprise, disgust, fear, anger, joy and sadness. These emotions would be universal, present in all cultures.
However, Plutchik identifies a total of eight basic emotions. What are the basic emotions according to Robert Plutchik? This psychologist establishes the same emotions as basic as Ekman, but adds two more. He argues that emotions are not positive or negative. per se, rather it establishes that all of them have a concrete and adaptive function. These can be activated consciously or unconsciously, but they act as precursors to a series of behaviors that guarantee survival. Below we show the list of basic emotions according to Plutchik are:
- Happiness: expansive emotion that results in an increase in energy, is activated by positive events. Its function is to reproduce those actions that generate it and to open it to people.
- Fear: It is a survival emotion that warns of danger, allows us to act with caution and is activated by the perception of a threatening stimulus. Its function is orientation towards protection.
- Sadness: introspective emotion that allows the person to reorganize and confront losses, since it is activated by them. Its function is that of reintegration, recognition of loss and knowledge of one’s own limits. Here you will find more information about the .
- Disgust: survival emotion that warns of danger, is activated by the perception of objects, substances or even entities that seem threatening to us. Its function is protection through the generation of rejection.
- Gonna: emotion that connects with strength, it is activated in the face of frustration, deception or when the energy of our desire and goal is blocked by an obstacle. The function of the is the mobilization of energy aimed at causing a change in a situation that bothers us, as well as the destruction of danger.
- Surprise: emotion that is activated by the unexpected or unforeseen. The function of this emotion is orientation, since it facilitates the processes linked to attention and exploration.
- Trust: emotion related to security and hope in positive aspects. Its function is incorporation, and allows the generation of social ties and support.
- Anticipation: It is the emotion linked to the search for resources or alternatives in advance through the generation of expectations. It allows preparation and its function is exploration.
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Bibliography
- Belli, S., & Íñiguez-Rueda, L. (2008). The psychosocial study of emotions: A review and discussion of current research. Psycho39(2), 139-151.
- Díaz, JL, & Enrique, F. (2001). The structure of human emotion: A chromatic model of the affective system. Mental health24(4), 20-35.
- Plutchik, R. (1984). Emotions: A general psychoevolutionary theory. Approaches to emotion1984, 197-219.