The complexity of emotions in competitive decision-making has one other major dimension within the Emotive Energy Behavioral Diagram, the Emotional Bowl. All of us readily recognize the existence of positive and negative emotions (the 1st dimension of the EEBD represented by the Hedonic Scale). We also quickly acknowledge an intensity factor (the EEBD's 2nd dimension shown through the Action Curve and the Efficiency Space). But we also recognize emotional variety. Fear and anger are negative and may erupt with equal intensity, but they are not the same. Love and admiration are both positive, but they, too, seem to be different regardless of their intensity. For the EEBD to be complete, it needs to reflect the different types of emotions within the positive and negative realms. Further, it must account for the varying intensities ascribed to each type.

Perhaps the best support for the intensity and variety dimensions of emotions are the ideas of Harold Schlosberg and Robert Plutchik. (Krech, et al., 1982, p. 458-460) Both of these researchers recognized a conic or bowl shape to the range of emotional expression they studied (see Figure 10). Schlossberg preferred the conic approach, and acknowledged polar aspects of emotions - pleasant versus unpleasant, attention versus rejection. In the left half of Figure 10, Schlosberg's "pleasant/unpleasant" line directly corresponds to the Hedonic Scale. Also, the conic profile has the distinctive "V" shape of Figure 5 while its inverted apex marked "sleep" also corresponds well to the the point of indifference (or sleep) of Figure 5. Yet, perhaps its key feature is the line marked "activation level." Schlosberg clearly recognized variations of our energized state.

Plutchik also adheres to a positive/negative split of emotions with good (approach) versus bad (avoid) bi-sections. (Plutchik, 1980, p. 156) Plutchik's halved grapefruit model (or "orange" as he prefers) diagramed in Figure 10 also maps well to the diagram of Figure 7. Both have the same "U" profile with the point of least emotion (indifference) at the bottom, and Plutchik more clearly shows that some emotions are stronger variants of others. "Terror" is a stronger variant of "fear" which, in turn, is a stronger variant of "apprehension." Similarly, "grief" is a heightened sadness while sadness is a strengthened variant of pensiveness. This approach corresponds well with increasing power as we move away from indifference along the Hedonic Scale/Action Curve (or move outward from the bottom of the citrus fruit). The closer we get to our highest or lowest values, the stronger and clearer our emotions become. The closer we get to indifference, the weaker and less discernible our emotions seem, hence the lack of names around the bottom portion of Plutchik's citrus diagram as well as the layman's belief that brain activities at this level are "unemotional." Nevertheless, unemotional brain activities (at least in mammals) may not normally occur. As Elizabeth Duffy put it:

"... between emotion and nonemotion, ... no clear differentiation can be made since activation occurs in a continuum, from a very low degree to a very high degree." (Duffy, 1962, p.12)

What we traditionally classify as emotions are simply dramatic energy shifts within our body accompanied by outward signals - a smile, a frown, tears, or trembling. Using light as an analogy (as Plutchik likes to do), many stars in the heavens are so far away as to be visible with only the most powerful telescopes. Their light is exceedingly dim, and at best, they have been given a catalog number instead of a name. On the other hand, the three bright stars in the "belt" of the constellation Orion are easily seen on cold, clear nights in January in the northern hemisphere. They are so obvious that they were given names long ago - Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka. Though all of the stars give off light, only the bright ones get names. And so it is with emotions. Only the stronger and obvious ones (either visibly or audibly) get names even though the subtle emotions are made of the same "stuff" - that "stuff" being energy (emotive energy).

Figure 10. (diagram from Krech, et al., 1982, p. 459)

One other point before leaving Plutchik's citrus model is its three-dimensional quality. The need for three dimensions comes from having multiple values of equal strength. For instance, fear of an earthquake might be just as emotionally intense as a jealous rage, and for some, both may be just as low (negative) on the Hedonic Scale. Plotting them two-dimensionally on the EEBD would result in the exact same plot. Yet, we readily admit that the two are distinctly different. Since we acknowledge that rage is different from fear, another dimension must exist to represent these different yet sometimes equally powerful emotions. The three dimensional structure of the EEBD incorporating Plutchik's ideas enables this representation.

But rather than Plutchik's three-dimensional solid, I have scraped out the insides of his citrus fruit to create a "bowl" shaped area outlined by the Action Curve. (See Figure 11 below.) This bowl, wherein all emotional expression can be plotted, will be termed the "Emotional Bowl."

Figure 11. (modified from Plutchik, 1980, p. 157)

One important qualification of the emotional bowl must be made. As presented herein, it definitely represents emotions of humans. Much of the emotional bowl is probably experienced by advanced primates. To a lesser extent, other mammals may experience some of the range expressed by the bowl. However, reptiles and lower forms of life are not likely to have much (if any) range of emotional expression even though the exhibit some fundamental emotions such as fear and rage. According to Paul Maclean's Triune Brain Theory, the rudimentary and coarse behavior of lower creatures is a reflection of our evolutionary past. The reptilian brain is sufficiently advanced enough to maintain essential internal and external behaviors but little else. The evolutionary advancement which created the paleomammilian brain (essentially the addition of the limbic system) enlarged the range and variety of behaviors and emotions of mammals. In particular, it is the limbic system which enables the intensity factor essential to Plutchik's model:

"... the limbic system has the capacity to turn up or down the 'volume' (intensity) of feelings that guide behavior required for self-preservation and preservation of the species." (MacLean, 1990. pg. 23)

One last area of the emotional bowl which needs exploration is depression. Though Plutchik did not provide a direct reference to it in either his model or his table of Primary Emotion Dimensions, it showed up in his other diagrams and was associated with the dimension of "reintegration" which also included grief, sadness, and dejection. (Plutchik, 1980, p. 217) MacLean has emotional dimensions but only six: feelings of desire, feelings of fear, feelings of anger, feelings of dejection, feelings of joy (gratulant), and feelings of affection. (MacLean, 1990. pg. 438) "Dejection" would be the dimension common to both models and which would be associated with depression.

I highlight this area not only for its importance to clinical psychology and psychiatry but also for a new model recently published by Gregg Henriques, the Henriques-Beck Behavioral Shutdown Model (BSM). Henriques reduces behavior to an energy investment strategy whereby any organism must get a net gain for its energy expenditures:

"... the BSM suggests that depression is actually an evolved defensive strategy. ... behavior can be thought of as the process of expending energy or working in order to control and structure the environment in a way that allows for survival (and giving) rise to a cost benefit ratio of behavioral investment, a ratio much like that in economics. ... Broadly speaking, behavioral shutdown should result if an organism is getting a poor return (i.e., high costs, little benefit) from its behavioral investment. ... This understanding gives rise to the Behavioral Shutdown Model which suggests that depression may represent an evolved tendency to decrease behavioral expenditure in response to chronic danger, stress, or consistent failure to achieve one's goals." (Henriques, 2001. pg. 2-3)

"Behavioral shutdown should be a matter of degree, thus the BSM also accounts for why depressive symptoms exist on a continuum that ranges from chronic, severe depressions to minor depressions to low mood." (Henriques, 2001. pg. 4)

If we polish the diagram up a bit, the original Emotive Energy Behavioral Diagram comes into view (Figure 11). Though it may have seemed foreign beforehand, hopefully, it has become more familiar and acceptable. The Hedonic Scale is the dark line at the bottom. Again, many people refer to it as "my list of priorities" or "my likes and dislikes." The Action Curve, on top, represents the power limit of any value on the Hedonic Scale. It indicates the maximum resources someone is willing to expend in order to seek a goal or avoid a hazard. The higher a value is placed on the Hedonic Scale, the more TEM resources are available for seeking it as marked by the Action Curve. On the other hand, the lower a value is placed on the Hedonic Scale, the more resources we make available for avoiding the threat. The Action Curve also circumscribes a bowl/saddle shaped region where all of our emotions are mapped. Though any two emotions may share the same value and power, they still may differ in expression. Love and happiness may both command high points as values with equal empowerments upon the Action Curve, but the feelings are different. The Emotional Bowl provides the three-dimensional quality necessary to show this. Finally, the Efficiency Space, the grey area inbetween the Hedonic Scale and the Action Curve, is the heart of what we call "shopping" or "bargain hunting" or "making a deal." It reflects our attempt to seek goals or avoid hazards in the most efficient manner in order to conserve resources. It also reflects how decisions are performed. The idea/value of highest power takes control of behavior, but it takes control with as little energy as possible, thus, catering to the Law of Life Efficiency.

Figure 11.

Hedonic Tone:

Up until now, I have been identifying various parts of the Emotive Energy Behavioral Diagram, but the next step is to understand how they all function together. Going back to Bill Powers' Perceptual Control Theory (PCT), he describes all behavior as based upon control systems architecture. Using an automobile analogy, Powers describes how PCT accounts for us keeping an automobile from running off the road into a ditch or some other obstacle:

"It's not hard to figure out how steering effort should change as the scene in the windshield changes. If you see yourself too far to the right, your steering effort changes toward the left. ... Just the opposite relationship holds if the car is too far to the left; the steering effort changes ... by an amount that depends on how far (off) the car appears to be. ... whichever way the car is seen to be deviated relative to the road, the steering effort must change in the opposite direction." (Powers, 1998, p.4)

This feeling can be likened to a needle on an emotional gauge which helps us monitor how we are adapting to life. The needle for our emotional gauge will be termed our "hedonic tone." As we experience life, hedonic tone moves back and forth on the Hedonic Scale reflecting our emotional state at any given moment. It will move to the positive region of the Hedonic Scale when we feel good. It will drop to the negative region as we feel stress. By monitoring it, we can judge our interactions with the environment and make adjustments as necessary. Again, hedonic tone, though described as a needle on a gauge, is actually a sensation of changes in visceral blood flow and muscle tone. Nevertheless, it is the "reference signal" by which we determine our present internal/external circumstance. All of our behaviors are designed to help guide this sensation into a range which we denote as "feeling good."

Over the eons, natural selection has correlated "feeling good" with seeking whatever benefits our survival. "Feeling bad" has been correlated to anything dangerous to us. Good feelings came with the balanced distribution of energy resources to all bodily systems - the epitome of health and well-being. Bad feelings came when the body became defensive and diverted internal resources to thwart environmental hazards. This specialized imbalance jeopardized some bodily systems placing them in stress. Our ancestors learned to recognize this physical change inside their bodies. They learned to seek the balanced and safe feeling of well-being and to avoid the imbalanced and defensive feeling of stress. It is this sense of the internal distribution of energy that is the hedonic tone.

But unlike dials and gauges in a vehicle, the hedonic tone is unseen and unheard. The hedonic tone is felt - sometimes a sinking feeling, sometimes a feeling of warmth or an expansive feeling of energy. It can even be a tingling sensation coming down the side of the head and the body, or it can be a chill going up the spine. Emotive tone has many faces placed upon it by the Emotional Bowl, but whatever the expression, we sense it as being either good or bad. We instinctively know if the hedonic tone tells us to seek or avoid. Sometimes when logic fails us and we "can't put a finger" on something, we turn to our sixth sense, to our hunches and intuition, in order to guide us in making decisions. Even at these times, it is really the hedonic tone upon which we rely.

For the sake of simplicity I portrayed the hedonic tone as a singular entity which, in reality, is multi-faceted. As stated before, the hedonic tone has two primary expressions: positive and negative. Since the two operate somewhat independently, two secondary expressions also occur: low emotion and mixed emotion. If both emotive subsystems become quiet, a low emotional state ensues and is denoted as "unemotional." Mixed emotions may also come when realizing that a good friend is moving away. Happiness for the friend's future will intermingle with sadness for the loss of a close companionship. (This mixed emotion is sometimes called "bittersweet.") Another mixed emotion may be all negative as when fear and anger entangle during a fight. Or it may be all positive as when love and inspiration co-mingle. When emotions are mixed, the hedonic tone becomes multifaceted and will reflect all aspects together.

In fact, there may be even more hedonic tones than there are sections of Plutchik's citrus fruit. Back to the analogy of the Emotive Energy Behavioral Diagram (EEBD) being like a steel drum or pan, the hedonic tone can be thought of like the notes on a pan. Just as multiple notes can be played together and in any sequence, multiple emotions can also be invigorated together. And though the richness and fullness of music requires all of the chords and harmonies be played together, a single melody can still be picked out, one note at a time. So, too, can a single emotion be highlighted even though others may also be active. For now, the emotional "chords and melodies" can wait. During this initial discussion, I will tend to play the "emotional pan" with one mallet and pick out melodies only. The hedonic tone will be treated as a single entity.

One last and crucial factor to point out here is that hedonic tone (emotion) occurs AFTER a decision is made. The decision has already been made in the brain before the visceral and extremity changes take place. It is BECAUSE of a decision process that the SNS and PNS are altered and emotions happen. Emotions are the smoke from the fires of the brain. This may run counter to the beliefs of many, but it can be explained easily through Bernard Baars' Global Workspace Theory of consciousness ...

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