Human emotions are responses to external stimuli, usually beliefs, memories, or thoughts. The acronym emotion is driven by Latin work Emovere that means excited. Emotions are unpredictable conditions that need instant awareness as well as attention.

Emotion can be either pleasant or unpleasant. The pleasant state refers to what makes you happy and satisfied. In contrast, unpleasant emotions are those that make you sad, depressed, and disappointed.

Characteristics of Human Emotions 

• There are some similarities in the characteristics of emotional responses, despite the mood or feelings linked to them.
• Emotions are driven by a biological drive that starts functioning depending on the interpretation of the situation you are experiencing. For instance: one gets happy after being rewarded because you perceive the situation beneficial.
• The human mind accompanies traits and psychological experiences that you are conscious of, you always know about the feelings emerging inside you.
• The aftermath of emotion varies from person to person. Two people can react oppositely in the same situation due to differences in perception.
• Emotional experiences always result in internal changes like an increase in blood pressure, sweating, or dry mouth.
• Emotions also cause external changes like changes in tone, voice, and facial expression.
• Normally, emotional reactions are short. If the response states remain for a long time, it eventually becomes a habit.
• Emotions are always triggered by only certain events that are beyond the human tolerance level. 
• Emotions can influence human behaviour. Thought can be changed and the perception linked with specific events.

Five Types of Basic Master Emotions

There are several types of emotions that influence humans on how to interact and live with others regardless of what circumstances are. Most of the time, it may seem that we are ruled by emotions. The reactions we make, choices we go for and perception we have, everything is more or less affected by the emotions that we experience in any situation. Psychologists have tried to determine the various types of Human emotions commonly experienced by a majority of us. Numerous theories have unfolded in order to categorize the emotions we experience.

In the 1970s, a famous psychologist Paul Eckman enlisted basic human emotions that he proposed were experienced by all humans of diverse races and cultures. Those emotions were happiness, sadness, fear, surprise, and anger.

Happiness

Happiness is the most needed feeling that we all wish for, sense and experience. It is a pleasing emotion that depicts that person is satisfied. There are heaps of events and things that can make one happy. The definition of happiness varies from one person to another. Someone’s happiness lies in getting food, and some seek happiness in relationships. It’s the sensation of enjoying life and lining the best out of it.

However, in the 1960s psychologists made a research on happiness that claimed that it’s a general state when someone experiences joyfulness or fulfilment of needs. Happy people usually emit a positive attitude and care for others. This emotion increases satisfaction level, assists people to establish long-lasting and healthy relationships. It also contributes to your health as happiness kills anxieties.

Sadness

Sadness is the primary emotion that portrays a state of disappointment, hopelessness, lack of socialization, grief, and loneliness. However, whenever a person experiences extreme sadness and low-esteem for a long period, it means depression, sadness is expressed by lethargy, quietness, or crying. Sadness emerges due to regrets, wrong decisions, despair, hopelessness, and lack of happiness. According to the studies, it’s pretty much depictable that if you remain sad for a long time, it directly affects your physical as well as mental health. In the worst cases, it can lead to early deaths. 

Fear

This emotion triggers when people experience unusual citations or feel danger and don’t know how to respond to it.  Fear can result in tensed muscles, stammering, elevation in blood pressure, dry mouth, widening of eyes, etc. though the way of experience and resting may not be similar. A few symptoms are universal. However, reactions like attempting to run away from problems or seeking help from others are also found.

Opposite to this, if someone experiences fear sensation often, it may reduce the fear element as they get used to the situation. Therefore, such situations don’t bother or are not perceived as threatening as before.

Anger 

Anger is one of the basic emotions that is characterized by feelings of frustration, rage, and hostility. Anger is an instinctive biological reaction when people experience dissatisfaction from someone or something in life. It can commonly be triggered due to family problems, financial issues, unmet goals, etc.

Anger is usually expressed through facial expressions as well as the tone of voice becomes rude. The natural aggressive reactions include shouting, throwing things, kicking, yelling, and hitting. However, uncontrolled anger could lead to unbearable consequences. In some cases, anger emotion is associated with alcoholism and drug abuse. 

Surprise 

Getting surprised is one of the basic emotions as it represents every feeling associated with sudden responses to unexpected events. The surprise emotion is often positive, and can also be negative or neutral. For instance, meeting an old friend after 15 years is a pleasant surprise, whereas being scared by someone out of nowhere when you are busy concentrating on something important is an unpleasant surprise. Surprises may trigger feelings like amazement, being shocked, or getting completely astonished. The emotion itself is quite brief and does not last very long. However, it may bring other feelings like fear, relief, anger, or even disgust, depending on the situation. 

Getting surprised can cause your eyebrows to be raised and make you scream, or direct your attention towards the surprising element. The emotion of surprise generates a fight or flight response in the body by increasing the levels of adrenaline hormone in the body. As a result, you either run away from the surprising factor or try to confront it.

Final Thoughts 

Emotions play a crucial role in how one can live their lives, influencing how to interact with others without affecting the decision they make. However, by understanding the various types of human emotions, you can carry out more comprehensive studies of how emotions are expressed and their impacts on human behaviours.