Analysis of Human Emotions Using Galvanic Skin Response and Finger Tip Temperature

2. Stimulus For Emotions

Emotional content can modify and update the goals and consequently alter the direction of attention to the presented stimuli (Figure 1). Emotions and goals are strongly intertwined in the sense that the immediate relevance of any stimulus to a goal defines the emotionality of the stimulus. The relationship between emotions and the personal goals and concerns of individuals is often suggested to be the basis for emotion elicitation and differentiation by appraisal theorists.

Figure 1.

Block diagram of the designed system

For instance the emotional tag of fear can be attached to a threatening stimulus in so far as the latter can potentially impede the goal of survival. Another example is the emotional tag of happiness that can be assigned to any stimulus that advances the goal of well-being. In a similar fashion numerous emotional tags can be given to stimuli that promote or hinder the attainment of goals ranging from basic individual survival goals to more complex social interaction goals (Table 1). This vast range of emotions and the related goals is not likely to have been formed concurrently. Rather, emotions evolved from very simple mechanisms that ensured harm avoidance and attainment of vital physical resources into more complex mechanisms that guide complex social behavior. This evolution of emotions may in fact be reflected in the brain systems that generate them, with emotions linked to survival arising from evolutionarily old brain systems. Thus the more primitive emotions would be expected to be elicited by more primitive aspect of the environment, and only at higher levels of evolution would complex classification of stimuli have had related emotions associated with them (Ross & Jain, 2003).