Evolution and Emotions

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Emotion Diary Study Drafting the charts Reading
the charts Anything unexpected? What
kinds of patterns? Any associations between
emotions, stress, health? Connections to class
readings?
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Disgust

• Class 23

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Disgust vs. Other Basic Emotions
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Classes of Food Rejection
1. Distastebased on sensory factors smell,
appearance, taste   2. DangerHarmful, but could
taste, smell good.   3. InappropriateNot edible
substance. Have minimal nutritional value,
almost always inorganic. 4. Disgust   a.
Based the thoughts and images it creates. b.
Also presume they would taste bad. c. Have the
capacity to contaminate d. Usually are animals
or animal productsfeces 1
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Oral Nature of Disgust
Which is more disgusting A. ___ Cockroach in
your mouth B. ___ Cockroach in your stomach
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Disgust based on idea of oral incorporation into
the self   Mouth point of entry to digestive
tract   Mouth is emotionally highly-charged
border between self/non-self   Things in mouth
more disgusting than things that get past mouth
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Inside vs. Outside and Disgust
Things become disgusting when they cross the
self/non-self boundary Waste Saliva Chewed
food
One exception
tears
Meaning of incorporation You are what you eat.
  Transmission of disgusting essences
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A Tale of Two Tribes
Tribe A hunts wild boar
Tribe B hunts sea turtles
Which tribe is more Fierce Steady Noisy Introvert
ed
Tribe A
Tribe B
Tribe A
Tribe B
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Disgust and Omnivore's Dilemma
Omnivore?
Eats plants and animals
  Advantage Wider range of foods, flexibility
in terms of opportunities   Disadvantage More
chances of ingesting harmful things   Role of
Disgust?
Helps quickly develop internal, automatic code
for good vs. bad foods.
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Classification of Disgusting Things
  Disgust derives largely from things associated
with animals   Body waste Decayed animal
matter Carnivorous animals Scavengers Animals
that look like humans Pets   Almost all animals
are considered disgusting food sources   Food
prepared to disguise animal nature
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Why Animal Aversion?
Rot easily   Produce feces   Embody emotionally
charged ideas   Closer to humans evokes
cannibalism taboo   Need to maintain boundary
between selves and animals

mortality fears
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Psychosocial Aspects of Disgust
  Psychological contamination, trace
elements   Sympathetic magic Fudge
"reshaped"   Disgust generalizes, Pavlovian
conditioning study
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Disgust and Human Development
  Disgust not present in infancy   Freud
babies proud of waste   Experiments Kids lt 2
years highly disgust tolerant Imitation dog
poop 62 Whole dried fish 58 Grasshopper 31
Human hair 08   Task of preschool
development--contamination sensitivity   Kids lt
8 reject, but on basis of taste not contamination
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What are these people thinking?
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Disgust as the Basis for Morals I
Does ethical/moral sense arise from disgust? What
words used to describe immoral or unethical
behavior?
Disgusting Nauseating Revolting Left bad
taste in my mouth Turns my stomach
What words used to describe immoral or unethical
people?
  Skunk Rat Louse Garbage Filth
Pig
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Disgust as Basis for Morals, II
Common link   -- Disgust occurs at prospect
of bringing something harmful into ones
self.   -- Disgust serves to expel things that
are dangerous and that contaminate.   --
Moral revulsion serves to keep self, and
social network, pure, free of behaviors that
corrupt or that contaminate.
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Why is Disgust Entertaining?