This authoritative handbook reviews the breadth of current knowledge about positive emotions: their nature, functions, and consequences for individuals and society. Specific emotions are analyzed in depth, including happiness, pride, romantic love, compassion, gratitude, awe, challenge, and hope. Major theoretical perspectives are presented and cutting-edge research methods explained. The volume addresses neurobiological and physiological aspects of positive emotions as well as their social and intrapersonal contexts. Implications for physical health, coping, and psychopathology are explored, as are connections to organizational functioning and consumer behavior.

    Foreword, Barbara L. Fredrickson
    Introduction, Michele M. Tugade, Michelle N. Shiota, and Leslie D. Kirby
    I. Theoretical Foundations
    1. The Differentiation of Positive Emotional Experience as Viewed through the Lens of Appraisal Theory, Craig A. Smith, Eddie M. W. Tong, and Phoebe C. Ellsworth
    2. Infusing Positive Emotions into Life: The Broaden-and-Build Theory and a Dual-Process Model of Resilience, Michele M. Tugade, Hillary C. Devlin, and Barbara L. Fredrickson
    3. The Evolutionary Perspective in Positive Emotion Research, Michelle N. Shiota
    4. What Is a Positive Emotion?: The Psychological Construction of Pleasant Fear and Unpleasant Happiness, Paul Condon, Christine D. Wilson-Mendenhall, and Lisa Feldman Barrett
    5. Personality and Positive Emotion, Kimberly M. Livingstone and Sanjay Srivastava
    II. The Biology of Positive Emotion
    6. Approach Motivation and Its Relationship to Positive and Negative Emotions, Eddie Harmon-Jones, Tom F. Price, Phillip Gable, and Carly K. Peterson
    7. Animal Neuroscience of Positive Emotion, Jeffrey S. Burgdorf, Jaak Panksepp, and Joseph R. Moskal
    8. Autonomic Nervous System Aspects of Positive Emotions, Sylvia D. Kreibig
    9. Spontaneous Human Laughter, Michael J. Owren and R. Toby Amoss
    10. Nonverbal Expressions of Positive Emotions, Disa A. Sauter, Nicole M. McDonald, Devon N. Gangi, and Daniel S. Messinger
    III. Social Perspectives and Individual Differences
    11. Positive Emotions, Social Cognition, and Intertemporal Choice, Piercarlo Valdesolo and David DeSteno
    12. Positive Emotions in Close Relationships, Claire I. Yee, Gian C. Gonzaga, and Shelly L. Gable
    13. Traversing Affective Boundaries: Examining Cultural Norms for Positive Emotions, Chelsea Mitamura, Janxin Leu, Belinda Campos, Chelsea Boccagno, and Michele M. Tugade
    14. Vive la Différence: The Ability to Differentiate Positive Emotional Experience and Well-Being, Leslie D. Kirby, Michele M. Tugade, Jannay Morrow, Anthony H. Ahrens, and Craig A. Smith
    15. Positive Emotions across the Adult Life Span, Joseph A. Mikels, Andrew E. Reed, Lauren N. Hardy, and Corinna E. Löckenhoff
    IV. Select Positive Emotions
    16. Finding Happiness: Tailoring Positive Activities for Optimal Well-Being Benefits, S. Katherine Nelson and Sonja Lyubomirsky
    17. Pride: The Fundamental Emotion of Success, Power, and Status, Jessica L. Tracy, Aaron C. Weidman, Joey T. Cheng, and Jason P. Martens
    18. Romantic Love, Lisa M. Diamond
    19. Compassion, Jennifer E. Stellar and Dacher Keltner
    20. Gratitude, Anthony H. Ahrens and Courtney N. Forbes
    21. Transcending the Self: Awe, Elevation, and Inspiration, Michelle N. Shiota, Todd M. Thrash, Alexander F. Danvers, and John T. Dombrowski
    22. The Challenge of Challenge: Pursuing Determination as an Emotion, Leslie D. Kirby, Jannay Morrow, and Jennifer Yih
    23. Hope Theory, Jennifer S. Cheavens and Lorie A. Ritschel
    V. Outcomes of Positive Emotions
    24. Health Psychology: The Importance of Positive Affect, Judith Tedlie Moskowitz and Laura R. Saslow
    25. Positive Emotion Disturbance across Clinical Disorders, June Gruber, Sunny J. Dutra, Aleena C. Hay, and Hillary C. Devlin
    26. Positive Emotions in Organizations, Stéphane Côté
    27. Positive Emotions in Marketing and Social Influence, Samantha L. Neufeld and Vladas Griskevicius
    Conclusions and Future Directions, Leslie D. Kirby, Michele M. Tugade, and Michelle N. Shiota

    Biography

    Michele M. Tugade, PhD, is Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at Vassar College, where she directs the Emotions and Psychophysiology Laboratory. Her research focuses on the function of positive emotions in the coping process, the mechanisms that promote resilience in the face of stress and adversity, and emotion-related processes associated with health and well-being. Dr. Tugade received a Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award from the National Institute of Mental Health and is an elected member of the International Society for Research on Emotions.
     
    Michelle N. Shiota, PhD, is Associate Professor of Psychology at Arizona State University, where she directs the Shiota Psychophysiology Lab for Affective Testing. Her research and publications focus on positive emotion, positive reappraisal, aging and emotion, and emotion in close relationships. Dr. Shiota is an associate editor of the American Psychological Association journal Emotion and coauthor of the textbook Emotion. She is an elected member of the Society for Experimental Social Psychology.

    Leslie D. Kirby, PhD, is Research Assistant Professor and Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Vanderbilt University, where she codirects the Discrete Emotions and Appraisal Lab. Her research focuses on human emotions from the perspective of appraisal theory, with a particular interest in the differential motivational functions served by various positive emotions. Dr. Kirby received a Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award from the National Institute of Mental Health and is an elected member of the International Society for Research on Emotions.

     

    "Just what the doctor ordered! The Handbook of Positive Emotions showcases exciting developments in the study of positive emotions and highlights key themes of interest to affective scientists, instructors, and clinicians alike."--James J. Gross, PhD, Department of Psychology, Stanford University

    "Handbook of Positive Emotions draws together a richly diverse set of scholarly perspectives on the contemporary science of pleasant affective states. Readers will encounter herein leading-edge theory and research that promises to challenge them to appreciate positive emotions with greater nuance and greater attunement to context and supporting values….After reading through the chapters, readers will come away with the feeling that they have examined a particular theoretical debate from nearly every possible angle. Each contributor offers the gift of making complex concepts accessible."--from the Foreword by Barbara L. Fredrickson, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

    "It has taken a long time for psychologists to understand the importance of positive emotions and to address them systematically. This state-of-the-art volume offers a well-chosen selection of theories, research, and applications. It includes discussions of specific emotions and addresses social processes and interindividual differences. Demonstrating how mature the study of positive emotions has become, this book should play an important role in consolidating future research efforts in the field. It is relevant for all students of emotion science, from undergraduates to seasoned researchers."--Arvid Kappas, PhD, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Jacobs University Bremen, Germany
    -This handbook provides a rich and valuable summary of the current knowledge about positive emotions, the diverse theoretical orientations used to understand them, and the neurobiological, physiological, and psychological methodologies employed to study them….Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty and professionals.--Choice Reviews, 11/1/2014