My new guru is:
Dr. Paul Ekman
he is the foremost authority on facial expressions and how they relate to emotions.
His work is what they have based the new tv show with Tim Roth "Lie to me" on.
I am currently reading one of his books:
it is absolutely fascinating. I would love to become an expert in this area.
Emotions are what "make life livable," writes psychologist Ekman in this unique hands-on volume that flirts shrewdly with psychology and anthropology. His 40-odd years of research have led him to the conclusion (originally presented by Charles Darwin) that emotions, and their 10,000 facial expressions, are largely universal. While an American smile may look much like a grin expressed by a Fore tribesman of Papua New Guinea, what actually triggers the toothy twinkle is culturally, socially and even individually determined. Emotions theselves can't be turned off, but they can be controlled, and Ekman draws upon the Buddhist concept of mindfulness to explain how, by tuning in to one's own emotional triggers, one can develop a heightened "attentiveness," thereby side-stepping future blowouts. Ekman addresses in detail the "cascade of changes" that occur physiologically in an individual in the throes of one of five salient emotional categories (sadness, anger, fear, disgust and enjoyment). In his engaging style, he asks his readers to conjure these emotions by studying photographs, meditating upon their own experiences and, if that fails, to contort their faces into specific expressions, for Ekman has found that physical manifestations actually generate corresponding emotional responses in the brain. It is Ekman's hope that once these expressions have been identified, his readers will benefit from an increased sensitivity, and will possess the skills necessary for approaching others gripped with apparent emotion. 100 b&w photos
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
One of the most interesting things I've read so far int he book is that...when we are set off by an emotional trigger, we go into what is called a refractory state (you might also replace the word refractory with reactionary for better understanding.) During a refractory period a person can ONLY process information which supports the emotion they are feeling (i.e. logic and reason do not apply). the refractory period may last just a few seconds or can be prolonged, lasting several hours depending on how sever the emotional trigger is for that person. Only after a refractory period can a person look back at the situation and process information that supports that perhaps the message they go was not the message they were intended to receive...as in the case when a person over reacts and later regrets having done so.
I think that I need to get tuned in to some of my emotional triggers and really examine them. I have a feeling I tend to stay in a refractory period for too long...and that might be part of why I have a difficult time letting things go.
