Lecturers:

Assist. Prof. Evgenia Hristova, PhD
Assoc. Prof. Penka Hristova, PhD
Asst. Prof Veselina Kadreva, PhD

Course Description:

Competencies:

1) знаят:

-the main theories of emotions;

-the basic methods for studying emotions;

-the ways emotion can shape cognition.

2) могат:

-to understand and predict how emotion may facilitate or deteriorate cognition and behavior;

-to measure emotions

Prerequisites:
Introductory courses in cognitive psychology and in experimental psychology.

Types:
Full-time Programmes

Types of Courses:
Lecture

Language of teaching:
English

Topics:

1. 1 Theories of Emotion: the importance of Physiological Arousal vs. the role of cognition
2. The Physiology of Emotion
3. Physiological signals and Emotions
4. Brain Structures and Emotions
5. Appraisal Theories
6. Network Theories
7. Affect Program Theories
8. Midterm test
9. The Psychological construction of emotion: Core affect theory and Barretts’ Conceptual Act Theory
10. The perception and categorization of emotional stimuli
11. Emotion and memory-narrowing
12. The effects of emotion on categorization
13. The influence of emotions on higher-level processes: reasoning
14. The influence of emotions on higher-level processes: judgment and decision making
15. Experimental designs - Assessment 2

Bibliography:

Core readings

Hermans, D. and Houwer, J. (2010) Cognition and Emotion: Reviews of Current Research

and Theories, Taylor & Francis Ltd

Additional readings

• Damasio, Antonio R. (1996) Descartes' error : emotion, reason and the human brain, New York: Papermag

• Damasio, Antonio (2000) The feeling of what happens : body, emotion and the making of consciousness, London: Vintage, 2000

• Ekman,P. and Davidson , R (1994)The nature of emotion : fundamental questions, New York: Oxford University Press

• Omdahl, Becky Lynn (1995) Cognitive appraisal, emotion, and empathy , Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum

Assessment:

50% course work

50% test