Emotion – The Conversation

Fear has important consequences for how people vote, what they spend their money on, who they consider to be part of their communities, and who they treat as outsiders.

New research based on student journalling reveals how American and Chinese cultural standpoints wildly differ in how they make sense of awe.

The meaning of ‘happiness’ was in flux in Shakespeare’s England, and his plays capture many senses of the word.

People who dive into misinformation are driven to satisfy an emotional need, according to our new research.

Vibes – ambiguous as they are – have become part of the cultural zeitgeist. Studying them could help us better understand human relationships and experiences.

Science denial is not new, but researchers have learned a lot about it. Here’s why it exists, how everyone is susceptible to it in one way or another and steps to take to overcome it.

Going out of your way to get grossed out might seem like a contradiction of human nature. But it serves a strong evolutionary purpose.

In a systematic review of existing studies, researchers found that air pollution such as fine particulate matter can interfere with regions of the brain responsible for emotional regulation.

Laughter is so fundamental that animals like chimps, rats and dogs share the ability with humans. But in people it serves more serious social functions than just letting others know you’re having fun.

Chatbots want you to think you’re talking to a human, but AI-generated emotion is essentially a linguistic sleight of hand.

For most people, there’s a strong ‘awe’ factor when witnessing inter-species bonding. What is it about our own psychology that prompts this?

Neuroscientists found that music cannot only influence your emotions in the present − it can also alter how you remember your memories.

Seeing the world with a restricted color palate seems to tone down an emotion-based resistance to new foods.

The idea of healing benefits and emotional catharsis through reading is intuitively appealing. But does it work that way? Jane Turner Goldsmith finds answers in neuroscience, philosophy and more.

Lots of people will do a lot to avoid feeling negative emotions. But researchers are figuring out how these unpleasant feelings actually have benefits.