Biochemical Measurements in the Study of Emotion

Abstract

The study ofemotions is complicated by a number offactors, including the biological bases ofemotional experience and expression. Although biochemical changes have long been thought to be part of the e~'ocation of emotions, research has not consistently included this level of measurement, and theories of emotion have not systematically specified the role ofthese biochemical bases. In this paper, we briefly review relevant biochemical principles and m'easures that cllll be integrated into research and theory on emotions. Applications ofthese pr.inciples in extant studies of emotion are 'also discussed.Emotion is marked by a set of processes. Some are appraisals of the external environment, others are memory trace and learned associations, some are specieswide reactions to particular stimuli, and still others are internal physiological and endocrinological changes. The rules governing the timing and mix of these processes have been and still are under debate; they are the subject ofany number of theories and discussions. There is nothing inherently abstruse about these processes or about biochemical measurement of them, yet few psychologists have the facilities to command, an assay lab or the time or opportunity to master techniques of a sister field. We believe, however, that an amalgam of these biochemical theories and methods can enlighten the psychological study of emotions.. The study of emotion has been marked by a number of debates and dis-

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