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Emotionality
R. Sands and Rik Carl D’Amato
School Psychology, The Chicago School of
Professional Psychology, Chicago, IL, USA
Definition
Emotionality includes a variety of subjective feel-
ing states that predictably influence observable
behavior and physiological responses for func-
tional purposes related to adaptation. Emotions
typically involve multiple components including
autonomic, hormonal, behavioral, and cognitive
components. Physiological signs of emotions may
include change in autonomic nervous system
activity which includes changes in heart rate,
muscle tension, perspiration, and metabolic
changes. Ekman’s research on the cross-cultural
invariance of emotional identification and expres-
sion is suggestive of emotions as a species-typical
response. The coordination of the emotional state
is facilitated by the amygdala. The amygdala, a
cluster of nuclei in the limbic system near the
temporal lobes, has been found to be important
for eliciting a cascade of physiological changes
involved in emotional behavior.
Various theories of emotions have been pro-
posed. The James-Lange theory postulates that
emotions are the by-product of the physiological
changes occurring in the body. In contrast, the
Cannon-Bard theory proposed that emotional
experience precedes the physiological responses
corresponding to emotions. Most contemporary
models of emotion provide a synthesis of these
two views that include the interacting influence of
both cognitive appraisal and physiological events.
Assessment of emotional behavior is of critical
importance in clinical neuropsychology as many
emotional behaviors are symptomatic of clinical
conditions. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual
of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5)
includes emotional behaviors or symptoms as
part of many disorders including anxiety, depres-
sion, schizoaffective, and a variety of other disor-
ders. A number of instruments are available to
screen or assess the emotional symptoms of par-
ticular disorders, such as the Beck Depression
Inventory, Second Edition (BDI-II), or to widely
screen multiple disorders, such as the emotional
status exam of the Dean-Woodcock Neuropsy-
chological Battery.
Cross-References
▶Emotion
▶Emotional Intelligence
References and Readings
Dean, R. S., & Woodcock, R. W. (2003). Dean-Woodcock
neuropsychological battery. Itasca: Riverside
Publishing.
Ekman, P. (1980). The face of man: Expressions of univer-
sal emotions in a New Guinea Village. New York:
Garland STPM Press.
#Springer International Publishing AG 2017
J. Kreutzer et al. (eds.), Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology,
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-56782-2_1454-2
