ASSIGNMENT SOLUTION GUIDE

2020-21(2020-21)

B.P.C.S-185
DEVELOPING EMOTIONAL COMPETENCE
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Assignment One
1. Explain emotional intelligence. Trace the historical development of emotional intelligence.
Ans – Emotional intelligence (EI) is a set of emotional and social skills that influence the way we perceive and
express ourselves. develop and maintain social relationships, cope with challenges, and use emotional information
in an effective and meaningful way. Several definitions of emotional intelligence have been proposed over the
years.

One of the most popular definitions is “Emotional intelligence is the capacity for recognising our own feelings and
those of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions well in ourselves and in our relationships”
(Goleman, 1998). This definition emphasises that knowledge about emotions can be used to make sense of our
internal and social worlds and arrive at decisions accordingly. Others like Reuven Bar-On (2002) have emphasised
the adaptive function by El by defining it as “an array of non-cognitive abilities, competencies and skills that
influence one’s ability to succeed in coping with environmental demands and pressures”.

Salovey & Mayer (1990) initially defined emotional intelligence as a sub-set of social intelligence - “ the ability to
monitor one’s own and others’ feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them and to use this information to
guide one’s thinking and actions”. Later, this definition was revised to make it more comprehensive. Mayer,
Salovey & Caruso (2004) define it as “the capacity to reason about emotions, and of emotions to enhance thinking.
It includes the abilities to accurately perceive emotions, to access and generate emotions so as to assist thought,
to understand emotions and emotional knowledge, and to reflectively regulate emotions so as to promote
emotional and intellectual growth.” This perspective emphasises the synthesis of emotions and intelligence and is
shared by other theoretical frameworks as well.
Just as intelligence is quantified and measured through Intelligence Quotient (IQ) emotional intelligence is
indicated by Emotional Quotient or EQ. Bradberry & Greaves (2009) consider EI as the ‘missing piece’ in
conceptualising a complete,
whole person; personality and intelligence comprising the other two key components. Over decades of research,
it has been established that El is a distinct ability that docs not share attributes with cither personality or
intelligence. Having certain personality traits does not automatically predispose one to have high or low emotional
intelligence. For example, while extroverts may feel energized by interacting with people and introverts share a
preference for solitude, it does not automatically imply that extroverts are more emotionally intelligent than
introverts. Similarly, having an ability to process information cognitively or intelligence, does not indivate one’s
level of El. In addition, while personality and intelligence are relatively stable and resistant to change after the age
of 18-20 years, El comprises a dynamic component that has the potential to evolve and grow over time, as well as
with targeted interventions.

Glossop and Mitchell (2005) highlighted this as: “Emotional intelligence is learned. Unlike IQ, which is essentially
fixed within narrow parameters at birth, EQ can be developed and enhanced. In other words, temperament is not
destiny. Empathy and the capacity to understand the emotions of others can be nurtured.” In fact, several studies
have shown that older participants tend to score higher on El measures and may indicate that EQ increases with
age and maturation (Bar-On, 2000).

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE

The concept of emotional intelligence has its roots in early psychologists’ conceptualisation of intelligence.
Thomdike in [920 proposed that intelligence is comprised of three distinct domains or classes: (i) Abstract, analytic
or verbal; (ii) Mechanical, performance and visuo-spatial; (iii) Social or practical. Thorndike, thus. expanded on the
traditional view of ‘intelligence’ as being purely cognitive by identifying several other kinds of intelligences.
Specifically, his social/practical intelligence component indicates emotional intelligence aspect. Howard Gardner
(1983) further identified eight different abilitics; musicalerhythmic, visual-spatial, verbal- linguistic, bodily-
kinesthetic, logical-mathematical, intrapersonal, interpersonal and naturalistic. Here, the intrapersonal and
interpersonal intelligences are related to aspectsof emotional intelligence, Another psychologist, Sternberg (1985)
talked about three types of intelligence such as analytical, creative and practical intelligence. In all these notions
of intelligence, we can see the building blocks of emotional intelligence - social intelligence, intrapersonal and
interpersonal intelligences, and practical intelligence can all be said to reflect emotional intelligence abilities.

Gardner’s description of personal intelligences intra and interpersonal focuses directly on feelings:

“The core capacity at work here ix access to ones own feeling life- one’s range of affects or emotions: the capacity
instantly to effect discriminations among these feelings and, eventually, to label them, to enmesh them in svinbolic
codes, to draw upon them as a means of understanding and guiding ones behaviour [nits most primitive form, the
intrapersonal intelligence amounts to little more than the capacity to distinguish a feeling of pleasure from one of
pain...At its most advanced level, intrapersonal knowledge allows one to detect and to symbolise complex and
highly differentiated sets of feelings.....to attain a deep knowledge of.... feeling life”.

Salovey & Mayer are widely credited with first using the term ‘emotional intelligence’ in 1990. However, they
themselves acknowledge that the term was used much earlier in passing in the 1960s in literary criticism and
psychiatry and eventually in a dissertation by Payne in 1986 (Mayer, Salovey & Caruso, 2004). The construct
remained largely unknown until it attained popularity when Daniel Goleman published his book on the subject in
1995 and argued that ‘people with the highest levels of intelligence (IQ) outperform those with average IQs just
20 percent of the time, while people with average IQs outperform those with high IQs 70 percent of the time’. His
assertion that El could predict job performance and success held intuitive appeal and since then, the concept has
become extremely mainstream and received international attention among several domains such as mentat
health, business, education etc.

2. Discuss the meaning of self actualization. Explain it’s importance in the development of emotional
intelligence.
Ans – Each individual has their own potential, strengths, talents and inner desires. The success and happiness of
the individual are influenced by an understanding of these and taking steps to realize this inner self with its full
potential. Maslow (1954) has used the term self-actualization as a higher order psychological need that people
strive towards once the lower order needs are satisfied for them. He has proposed a need hierarchy model to
explain the hierarchical structure of human needs. The model in the form of a pyramid structure presents the lower
order needs at the bottom proceeding to higher order needs towards the top.

The physiological needs at the bottom are the most basic needs that are required to be satisfied first before one
thinks of other needs. Similarly, one can think of self-esteem needs only when all the other lower level needs are
satisfied. Selfactualization is the highest need that depends on the satisfaction of all other needs below it and
going beyond it. It represents fulfilling all one’s desires, capacities, potentials etc. For this, one needs first to gain
a complete understanding of oneself, assessing oneself accurately, controlling one’s emotions, putting confidence
on oneself, having respect and regard for oneself, and an intense desire or drive to work towards achieving one’s
goals and realizing one’s potentials.

However, it may be pointed out here that Maslow’s theory has also been criticized on the ground that we do have
evidence for the fact that people may strive towards higher needs even in the absence of satisfaction of lower level
needs. Thus, we can see examples of famous painters/artists or writers who excelled despite their poverty and
deficiency in basic resources. So, it may not always be a hierarchical order of satisfaction of needs.

As Maslow (1954) puts it, “what a man can be, he must be. He must be true to his own nature. This need we may
call self-actualization…..it is the desire to become more and more what one is, to become everything that one is
capable of becoming.” Thus, self-actualization can be described as self-fulfillment, to fulfill the potentials what the
individual is capable of achieving.

Carl Rogers (1961) also talks about self-actualization in the context of a fully functioning person. Such a person
continuously works towards self-actualization, i.e., towards achieving their full potential.

This sense/meaning is reflected in the definition of self-actualization as given by Collins English Dictionary (2009,
page number) which describes self-actualization as “the process of establishing oneself as a whole person, able to
develop one’s abilities and to understand oneself.” Thus it is seeing and understanding oneself in a comprehensive
manner rather than a fragmented understanding.

Stein and Book (2006) refer to self-actualization as an ongoing, dynamic process of striving toward the maximum
development of your abilities and talents, of persistently trying to do your best and to improve yourself in general.

Mangal & Mangal (2015) define self-actualization ‘as a component of one’s EI representing his need, urge and
desire for developing and becoming what he is able or capable of becoming in tune of his own potential, talent
and creativity lying with him directed towards his self-satisfaction, real happiness and success in life.’
The Mother, the spiritual guru and founder ofAuroville and SriAurobindo Ashram in Puducherry, India (Sri
Aurobindo Ashram 2001) says that one must become aware of what is the highest in oneself, what is most true,
most universal and eternal in one’s consciousness. Here, the Mother is not limited to self-actualization, but goes
beyond it to a higher level of transcendence, i.e., going beyond oneself, becoming selfless, and engaged in the
service of mankind.

Importance
 Self-actualization reflects one’s drive to fulfill one’s potential
 It reflects one’s persistence to continue on the path of one’s goal or desires.
 It underlies one’s basic desire to understand oneself fully.
 It views oneself as a whole person, a fully functioning person, achieving what one is capable of achieving
or realizing.
 It emphasizes the individual’s innate tendency to be the best possible version of oneself that one can be.
 It indicates the highest level of self-growth by reaching one’s actual self with the realization of the
potentials within the individual.
 It involves awareness, acceptance, appreciation, regard, empathy, flexibility, and creativity that help the
individual in the process of connecting with one’s inner self and actualizing their potential.
 It gives rise to real success and happiness by being honest and authentic to one’s true self.
 It aims at realizing the highest in one’s consciousness, thus it goes beyond oneself and beyond self-
actualization and characterized by selflessness

Thus. we can see that self-actualization can contribute towards being emotionally intelligent that will make the
individual self-aware and self-sufficient and also foster healthy relationships with self and others. It will thus lead
to effective intrapersonal and interpersonal management skills.

3. Elaborate the various emotional competencies with suitable examples

Ans – The domain of emotional competence can be divided into two broad areas: Personal Competence and Social
Competence. Personal competence is based on an individual’s recognition of his/her own emotions, ability to
appropriately express emotions and the ability to maintain emotional control and adapt. It forms the basis for
social competence. The components that fall in the area of personal competence are: (1) Self-awareness, (2)
Motivation, and (3) Self-regulation. Social competence refers to an individual’s ability to appropriately recognize
emotions in others and respond in an appropriate manner. The components that fall in the area of social
competence are: (4) Social awareness and empathy, and (5) Social skills. This description is based upon the
categorization given by The Consortium for Research on Emotional Intelligence in Organizations EI Framework.

1) Self-awareness
Self-awareness in the context of emotional competence implies an awareness of one’s emotional state, including
the possibility of acknowledging experience of multiple emotions simultaneously. At more mature levels,
emotional self awareness also implies acknowledging that one might not be consciously aware of one’s feelings
because of unconscious dynamics or selective inattention (Saarni, 2000). Self awareness is the basic competence
that serves as the root for other competencies to develop. Three sub-components of self-awareness and the
behavioural descriptions of each of these sub-components is described as below in Table

Sr. No. Sub-Component Behavioural Description (People with this competence ….)
 1. Emotional  Know which emotions they are feeling and why
Awareness:  Realize the links between their feelings and what they think, do, and
Recognizing one’s say
emotions and their  Recognize how their feelings affect their performance
effect on self  Have a guiding awareness of their values and goals
2. Accurate Self  Are aware of their strengths and weaknesses
Assessment:  Are reflective in learning from experiences
Knowing one’s  Are open to candid feedback, new perspectives, continuous learning,
strengths and limits and self- development
 Are able to show a sense of humor and perspective about themselves
3. Self Confidence:  Present themselves with self-assurance
Being sure of self-  Can voice views that are unpopular and be assertive for what is right
worth and  Are decisive, able to make sound decisions despite uncertainties and
capabilities pressures

2) Self-regulation
Self-regulation implies being able to manage and regulate one’s emotional experience as well as expression, so
that one is able to maintain and enhance one’s functionality and effectiveness in relationships or at work. Self-
regulation is a crucial competence for ensuring smooth functioning in social contexts and for performance
effectiveness at work. Five sub-components of self-regulation and their behavioural descriptions are described in
the following Table:

Sr. No. Sub-Component Behavioural Description (People with this competence ….)
1. Self-control: Managing  Manage their impulsive feelings and distressing emotions well
disruptive emotions and  Stay composed, positive, and unflappable even in trying moments
impulses  Think clearly and stay focused under pressure
2. Trustworthiness:  Act ethically and are above reproach
Maintaining standards of  Build trust through their reliability and authenticity
honesty and integrity  Admit their own mistakes and confront unethical actions in others
 Take tough, principled stands even if they are unpopular
3. Conscientiousness: Taking  Meet commitments and keep promises
responsibility for personal  Hold themselves accountable for meeting their objectives
performance  Are organized and careful in their work
4. Adaptability: Flexibility in  Smoothly handle multiple demands, shifting priorities, and rapid
handling change change
 Adapt their responses and tactics to fit fluid circumstances
 Are flexible in how they see events
5. Innovativeness: Being  Seek out fresh ideas from a wide variety of sources
open to and comfortable  Entertain original solutions to problems
with novel ideas and new  Generate new ideas
information  Take fresh perspectives and risks in their thinking

3) Self-motivation
Self-motivation in the context of emotional competence implies keeping oneself motivated and driven towards the
goal by effectively managing the experience and expression of emotions. Sustaining motivation by regulating
emotions in the face of failure or even success is a crucial skill of emotional competence. Four subcomponents of
self-motivation and their behavioural descriptions are described in the following Table:
 Sr. No. Sub-Component Behavioural Description (People with this competence ….)
1. Achievement drive:  Are results-oriented, with a high drive to meet their objectives and
Striving to improve or standards
meet a standard of  Set challenging goals and take calculated risks
excellence.  Pursue information to reduce uncertainty and find ways to do better
 Learn how to improve their performance
2. Commitment: Aligning  Readily make personal or group sacrifices to meet a larger organizational
with the goals of the goal
group or organization  Find a sense of purpose in the larger mission
 Use the group’s core values in making decisions and clarifying choices
 Actively seek out opportunities to fulfill the group’s mission
3. Initiative: Readiness to  Are ready to seize opportunities
act on opportunities  Pursue goals beyond what is required or expected of them
 Cut through red tape and bend the rules when necessary to get the job done
 Mobilize others through unusual, enterprising efforts
4. Optimism: Persistence  Persist in seeking goals despite obstacles and setbacks
in pursuing goals  Operate from hope of success rather than fear of failure
despite obstacles and  See setbacks as due to manageable circumstance rather than a personal flaw
setbacks.

4) Social Awareness
Social awareness as a component of emotional competence implies awareness of feelings and emotions of other
individuals and groups. It is a crucial component for developing effective and empathetic relationships and work
jointly towards attainment of group goals. Five sub-components of social awareness and their behavioural
descriptions are described in the following Table:

Sr. No. Sub-Component Behavioural Description (People with this competence ….)
1. Empathy: Sensing  Are attentive to emotional cues and listen well
other’s feeling and  Show sensitivity and understand others’ perspectives
perspective and taking  Help out based on understanding others’ needs and feelings
active interest in their  Anticipating, recognizing, and meeting others’ needs.
concerns
2. Service orientation:  Understand others’ needs and match them to how they can be helped
Anticipating,  Seek ways to increase others’ satisfaction level with the service being
recognizing, and provided
meeting others’ needs.  Gladly offer appropriate assistance
 Grasp others’ perspective, acting as a trusted advisor
3. Developing others:  Acknowledge and reward people’s strengths, accomplishments, and
Sensing what others development
need in order to  Offer useful feedback and identify people’s needs for development
develop, and  Mentor, give timely coaching, and offer assignments that challenge and
bolstering their grow an individual’s skills.
abilities.
4. Leveraging diversity:  Respect and relate well to people from varied backgrounds
Cultivating  Understand diverse worldviews and are sensitive to group differences
opportunities through  See diversity as opportunity, creating an environment where diverse people
diverse people. can thrive
 Challenge bias and intolerance
 5. Political awareness:  Accurately read key power relationships
Reading emotional  Detect crucial social networks
currents and power  Understand the forces that shape views and actions of clients, customers, or
relationships within competitors
the group  Accurately read situations and organizational and external realities

5) Social Skills
Social skills denote an ability to interact with others in a socially acceptable manner, at the same time ensuring
personal, mutual or others’ benefit as an outcome of the interaction. Eight sub-components of social skill and their
behavioural descriptions are described in the following Table No:

Sr. No Sub-Component Behavioural Description (People with this competence ….)

1. Influence: Wielding  Are skilled at persuasion
effective tactics for  Fine-tune presentations to appeal to the listener
persuasion.  Use complex strategies like indirect influence to build consensus and support
 Orchestrate dramatic events to effectively make a point
2. Communication:  Are effective in give-and-take, registering emotional cues in attuning their
Sending clear message
andconvincing  Deal with difficult issues straight forwardly
messages  Listen well, seek mutual understanding, and welcome sharing of
information fully
 Are effective in give-and-take, registering emotional cues in attuning their
message
 Deal with difficult issues straight forwardly
 Listen well, seek mutual understanding, and welcome sharing of
information fully
3. Leadership: Inspiring  Articulate and arouse enthusiasm for a shared vision and mission
and guiding groups  Step forward to lead as needed, regardless of position
and people  Guide the performance of others while holding them accountable
 Lead by example
4. Change catalyst:  Recognize the need for change and remove barriers
Initiating or managing  Challenge the status quo to acknowledge the need for change
change  Champion the change and enlist others in its pursuit
 Model the change expected of others
5. Conflict management:  Handle difficult people and tense situations with diplomacy and tact
Negotiating and  Spot potential conflict, bring disagreements into the open, and help
resolving deescalate
disagreements  Encourage debate and open discussion
 Orchestrate win-win solutions
6. Building bonds:  Cultivate and maintain extensive informal networks
Nurturing  Seek out relationships that are mutually beneficial
instrumental  Build rapport and keep others in the loop
relationships  Make and maintain personal friendships among work associates
7. Collaboration and  Recognize the need for change and remove barriers
cooperation: Working  Challenge the status quo to acknowledge the need for change
with others toward  Champion the change and enlist others in its pursuit
shared goals  Model the change expected of others
8. Team capabilities:  Model team qualities like respect, helpfulness, and cooperation
Creating group
 synergy in pursuing  Draw all members into active and enthusiastic participation
collective goals  Build team identity, esprit de corps, and commitment
 Protect the group and its reputation
 Share credit

Assignment Two
4. Differentiate among emotions, feelings and moods. Describe the five components of emotions.
Ans – Difference between Emotions and Mood
Emotions Mood
Emotions have a cause that is clear. For example, a “Moods are free floating and diffuse affective states”
person may be amazed while looking at a beautiful (Nolen- Hoeksema et al, 2009, pg 465). For example,
monument an individual may feel cheerful on a day and may feel
irritated the next day.
They are brief and may last for few seconds or minutes Moods are comparatively long lasting
Emotions are a multicomponent episode Moods are mainly related to the experience that is
subjective
Emotions can fit in certain categories that are discreet, Moods may vary with regard to pleasantness and
like anger, joy and so on arousal

Difference between Emotions and Feelings

Emotions
Emotions are comparatively more complex. It is
basically an affective process that is simple in nature.
Any emotional experience is preceded and
accompanied by feelings. For example, feeling of
pleasure will lead or will be accompanied with the
emotion of happiness/ joy.
Emotion is an affective process that is much more
active.
Emotion is both subjective and objective.
Emotions are of different types, for example, anger,
joy, jealous and so forth
Physiological changes are experienced
Feelings
It is basically an affective process that is simple in
nature.
In feeling, emotional experience may or may not occur.
For example, an individual may experience feelings of
pleasure or pain without experiencing any emotions.
Feeling is process that is comparatively less active.
Feeling is subjective in nature.
Feelings are mainly categorised in to pleasure and
pain.
Physiological changes may not be noticed.

Emotions can be viewed as having five components.

1) Affective: also referred to as a conscious, subjective feeling. Individuals monitor their internal, felt states
and recognise what they are feeling.
2) Cognitive: involves describing or assigning meaning to the emotion. Thus, thinking about a feeling is very
different from the actual feeling. Individuals try to understand the reason behind why something is
happening and try to judge how an event might impact them.
3) Physiologic: bodily reactions such as palms sweating upon feeling anxious.
4) Motivational: Going toward or away from an action or person. This component is also referred to as action
tendencies, which refers to specific actions that the individual takes that may be voluntary or involuntary.
For example, moving one’s hand away from a hot pan is an involuntary action, while going on an early
morning run despite feeling tired is a voluntary action. Each emotion may be associated with a particular
action tendency.
 5) Expressive: Displaying emotions through facial expressions such as smiling, crying, frowning or body
movements such as throwing a vase when angry to communicate emotions to others.

5. Explain the strategies to develop self control.

Ans – Self-control is a very fundamental and crucial skill to learn to achieve a balanced state of mind. It also helps
one to take an informed decision. That is, equipped with the awareness of one’s emotions, one can take stock of
the situation and take desirable steps as per the requirements of the situation. Self-control as a part of self-
regulation involves the ability to deliberately regulate one’s emotions, thoughts and actions. It encompasses skills
such as emotion regulation, control, and perseverance.

One of the strategies for self-regulation is self-distancing. It can help in controlling one’s emotions. Self-distancing
refers to the mental distance or psychological distance deliberately created by an individual between the self and
a stimulus by having the individual think about their thoughts, feelings or actions from an outsider’s perspective
(Kross & Ayduk, 2011). Taking a distanced perspective helps adults focus on ‘why’ they are feeling what they are
feeling instead of focusing on the negative emotions themselves and results in better coping when recalling these
past negative emotions (Nigg, 2017). Three types of distancing conditions can be reated by using visual imagery
or language or media characters: (i) visualizing the event/past negative emotions through their own eyes or using
first person speech (non- distanced); (ii) visualizing or telling from an outsider’s perspective using third-person
speech (self-distanced); and (iii) using a media character like superman, batman, barbie etc. (exemplar). The first
two conditions, non-distanced and selfdistanced conditions are used in case of adults whereas all the three can be
used in case of children, thus allowing them a greater degree of distance evidenced through the imagined
character. Various studies (Kross & Ayduk, 2017; Kross & Ayduk, 2011; Nook, Schleider, & Somerville, 2017; and
Dolcos & Albarracin, 2014) have reported higher task performance, better executive function, perseverance and
improved ability to delay in gratification when taking a selfdistanced perspective through either a third-person or
exemplar condition than in the no distance condition, i.e., self-immersed condition.

6. What are the key points in assertiveness?

Ans – Key points in assertiveness are
 Assertiveness is an important interpersonal skill related to emotional intelligence.
 It consists of five C’s – Clear, Concise, Confidence, Courage and Controlled. The message is conveyed in a
concise manner and clearly with courage, confidence and in a calm controlled manner.
 It respects the need of oneself as well as the need of others. It exemplifies the principle of ‘Live and Let
Live’. Thus, both are happy and without stress.
 Assertive people can fight for their rights and at the same time able to care for others also so as not to
hurt their feelings or beliefs.
 They are able to express themselves without any anxiety, nervousness or boasting.
 They exhibit appropriate control over their impulses and emotions.

7. Can EI be learned? In this context, discuss the relationship between IQ and EQ.
Ans – Given the importance of EI in our success and well-being, it is pertinent to ask ‘can emotional intelligence be
increased?’ It may be noted that unlike intelligence quotient (IQ), EI can be gained and improved at any point in
life (Goleman, 2014). This gives us a great scope to make our life successful and happy. One can follow a three-
fold approach in the direction of learning of one’s emotional intelligence. First is assessment of one’s EI level.
Unless one knows the level of EI, how will one improve? Second is finding out which aspects of EI needs more
attention out of self-awareness, self-regulation, empathy, motivation or social skills. The assessment will provide
you information on specific components. And third is receiving proper feedback and training in the area that needs
to be addressed.

As we know, intelligence is assessed through intelligence quotient (IQ) whereas emotional intelligence is expressed
in terms of Emotional Quotient (EQ). Let us remember that IQ is not equal to EQ. They are different. While IQ
includes the cognitive abilities – thinking, reasoning, language, logical, analytical, decision, judgement, problem
solving; EQ combines these skills with the emotional skills and the emotional language – empathy, self-control,
accurate self-assessment, interpersonal skills, sensitive to the needs and requirements of the situation,
thoughtfulness, assertiveness and optimism. These skills can be learned at any stage of life.

8. How can cognitive restructuring be used to develop emotional competence?

Ans – Cognitive restructuring refers to becoming aware of one’s thoughts and changing the way you think about
a situation. Changing the perspective caN open up new possibilities and get you through the problem. One needs
to avoid various cognitive distortions, i.e., irrational or maladaptive thoughts. These include among others
overthinking or ruminating about the problem; negative predictions about a situation; negativity bias – seeing
only the negative things; all or none thinking – if I don’t get into a particular college, I am not worthy; should and
musts – I should get all A’s in my exam; catastrophizing – thinking of any unpleasant or negative event as a
catastrophe.

9. What is universality of emotional expression?

Ans – Universality of emotional expressions has been noted by scholars and researchers since long. Darwin claimed
in his book ‘The expression of the emotions in man and animals’ published in 1872 that facial expressions of
emotion are universal, not learned differently in each culture. More recently Paul Ekman and his colleagues have
experimentally established the universal existence of 7 basic emotions. In the experimental protocol used by Ekman
and later by many other psychologists, the test subjects were provided with photos of faces expressing certain
emotions and were asked to identify the emotion from the given list of emotions. These universal emotions and
their physical symbolizations are listed in the Table below

Emotion Symbolised by…

1. Joy or happiness Raising of the mouth corners (an obvious smile) and tightening of the eyelids
2. Surprise Eyebrows arching, eyes opening wide and exposing more white, with the jaw
dropping slightly
3. Sadness Lowering of the mouth corners, the eyebrows descending to the inner corners
and the eyelids drooping
4. Anger Eyebrows lowering, lips pressing firmly and eyes bulging
5. Disgust The upper lip raising, nose bridge wrinkling and cheeks raising
6. Fear The upper eyelids raising, eyes opening and the lips stretching horizontally
7. Contempt half of the upper lip tightening up using the risorius muscle and often the head
is tilted slightly back.

10. Explain problem-focused and emotion focused coping.

Ans – Coping strategies used by the individuals can be emotion-focused or problem-focused coping (Lazarus &
Folkman, 1984). Emotion-focused coping aims at addressing the emotional responses of the individual especially
when the situation is not under one’s control. It employs methods such as distracting oneself from the problem
situation, emotional disclosure (Pennebaker, 1995), journaling (Cheng, Tsui & Lam, 2015), cognitive reappraisal
(Lazarus & Alfert, 1964), meditation and prayer, and use of substances and alcohol. Such coping aims at managing
the expressed emotions only and does not address the root cause of the problem or stressful situation. Whereas,
problem focused coping involves addressing the problem itself and usually occurs in people having internal locus
of control. It addresses the cause of the problem and uses problem solving and time management strategies.
Although emotion-focused strategies are often less effective than using problem-focused methods in relation to
health outcomes (Penley, Tomaka & Weibe, 2012), use of the strategies depend on the control over the situations
and the stressors, nature of the problem and the situational context. When individuals have control over the
sources of stress, problem –focused coping is more effective.

11. Describe the stages in the development of self control.

Ans – Mangal and Mangal (2015) have indicated three stages in the development of self-control
1) Awareness about the present emotional state
The first step required in the development of self-control is to be aware about one’s emotional state. One needs
to focus attention on the emotions one is experiencing at the moment, for instance, what are these emotions,
nature of these emotions, positive or negative emotions, intensity of the emotions, duration and pattern of the
emotions. Many a times by the time we become aware of our emotions, the action has already been done. This
may lead to ineffective actions and decisions. Thus, to be connected with one’s emotions, one needs to be mindful
about the present moment experiences and emotions.

This emotional self awareness can be developed through different ways: (a) knowing about emotions, their nature,
types and how they impact; (b) paying attention to the physical manifestations of the emotions; physiological
changes like rapid heart beat, fast breathing, sweating, increased blood pressure, facial changes, laughing,
smiling, feeling relaxed etc.; (c) meditation practices will help focus your attention inward on your inner self and
understand yourself; (d) scanning the body for physical changes and the thought process to find out what thoughts
are going on; (e) scanning others also with regard to changes in their body language and behavior due to our own
emotional state.
2) Determining underlying causes responsible for the present emotional state
When we focus on the emotional state we are experiencing, the next step is to find out why we are experiencing
these. It is like going backward or retracing the steps back to find out what caused the emotions.
3) Adopting measures for getting control of the emotional state
Once we know the reasons for our emotions, we are in a better position to control these. There are several ways
that help us in emotional self-control: (a) take an immediate pause within yourself and outside yourself also, e.g.,
deep breathing, relaxation techniques, doing yoga and exercise, listening to music, talking to friends/family; (b)
adopting an internal locus of control and not blaming the external factors as responsible for the emotional state
of the ndividual; (c) having a positive attitude, hope and optimism; (d) planning beforehand that helps you to
anticipate the likely impact of your emotions and modify your behavior accordingly.

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