No abstract

Time flies when you're having fun, but what is it about pleasant experiences that makes time seem to go by faster? In the experiments reported here, we tested the proposal that approach motivation causes perceptual shortening of time during pleasant experiences. Relative to a neutral state or a positive state with low approach motivation (experiment 1), a positive state with high approach motivation shortened perceptions of time. Also, individual differences in approach motivation predicted shorter perceptions of time. In experiment 2, we manipulated approach motivation independently of the affective state and showed that increasing approach motivation caused time to be perceived as passing more quickly. In Experiment 3, we showed that positive approach motivation, as opposed to arousal, shortens perception of time by comparing a highly arousing positive state with a highly arousing negative state. Shortening of time perception in appetitive states may prolong approach-motivated behavior and increase the likelihood of acquiring appetitive objects or goals.

For the last 50 years, research investigating the effect of emotions on scope of cognitive processing was based on models proposing that affective valence determined cognitive scope. More recently, our motivational intensity model suggests that this past work had confounded valence with motivational intensity. Research derived from this model supports the idea that motivational intensity, rather than affective valence, explains much of the variance emotions have on cognitive scope. However, the motivational intensity model is limited in that the empirical work has examined only positive affects high in approach and negative affects high in avoidance motivation. Thus, perhaps only approach-positive and avoidance-negative states narrow cognitive scope. The present research was designed to clarify these conceptual issues by examining the effect of anger, a negatively valenced approach-motivated state, on cognitive scope. Results revealed that anger narrowed attentional scope relative to a neutral state and that attentional narrowing to anger was similar to the attentional narrowing caused by high approach-motivated positive affects (Study 1). This narrowing of attention was related to trait approach motivation (Studies 2 and Study 3). Anger also narrowed conceptual cognitive categorization (Study 4). Narrowing of categorization related to participants' approach motivation toward anger stimuli. Together, these results suggest that anger, an approach-motivated negative affect, narrows perceptual and conceptual cognitive scope. More broadly, these results support the conceptual model that motivational intensity per se, rather than approach-positive and avoidance-negative states, causes a narrowing of cognitive scope.

Decades of research have shown that the left- and right-frontal cortical regions are asymmetrically involved in affective processing. Specifically, this past work has demonstrated that greater left-frontal activation is related to positive-approach, and greater right-frontal activation is related to negative-withdrawal. However, much of this past work confounded motivation and affective valence. The current experiment sought to illuminate whether frontal asymmetry is related to motivation or affective valence by examining frontal-lateralized late positive potentials (f-LPPs) and frontal cortical alpha power activation to approach-positive, approach-negative, and withdrawal-negative affects in the same participants. Results revealed that f-LPPs to approach-positive and approach-negative pictures were larger in left- (vs. right-) frontal regions, whereas f-LPPs to withdrawal-negative pictures did not differ between frontal regions. In addition, midline LPPs to approach-positive and approach-negative pictures related to greater left-frontal cortical activation. Together, these results suggest that greater relative left-frontal activation is associated with positive and negative approach-motivated states in the same participants. More broadly, these results are consistent with conceptual models that asymmetric hemisphere activation is related to motivational direction, rather than affective valence.

Behavioral approach and avoidance are fundamental to the experience of emotion and motivation, but the motivational system associated with anger is not well established. Some theories posit that approach motivational processes underlie anger, whereas others posit that avoidance motivational processes underlie anger. The current experiment sought to address whether traits related to behavioral approach or avoidance influence responses to anger stimuli using multiple measures: ERP, electroencephalographic (EEG) α-asymmetry and self-report. After completing the behavioral inhibition system/behavioral approach system (BIS/BAS) scales, participants viewed anger pictures and neutral pictures. BAS predicted larger late positive potentials (LPPs) to anger pictures, but not to neutral pictures. In addition, BAS predicted greater left-frontal asymmetry to anger pictures. Moreover, larger LPPs to anger pictures related to greater left-frontal EEG asymmetry during anger pictures. These results suggest that trait approach motivation relates to neurophysiological responses of anger.