Evolutionary Explanations Of Human Emotions

From an evolutionary perspective of psychology, human emotions likely served a practical purpose essential for survival, thus being adapted through the generations by the process of natural selection. Essentially, emotions solve adaptive problems. Not surprisingly, most problems from an evolutionary perspective predominantly concern either survival or reproduction, although different emotions have distinct solutions to a variety of situations. For example, the emotion of fear may have the evolutionary advantage of initiating activities of the body in order to quickly get away from danger.
Aside from improving chances for survival, it also increases the opportunity for sexual reproduction. Happiness, on the other hand, is seen as an attractive feature, which may bring about more opportunities for sexual reproduction as well. In addition to solving problems, emotion may evolve in response to one’s environment. For instance, feelings of anxiety or anticipation might have evolved as a way to explore a new environment while protecting oneself from unexpected dangers. …show more content…
Charles Darwin, for example, theorized that emotions had an adaptive value. In studying facial expressions, he found that people often make snap judgments about others based on a person’s facial expression. For instance, facial expressions that are perceived as being either hostile or angry make a person unapproachable or dangerous. Alternatively, expressions that come across as being happy or nice, like when a person is smiling, make a person more approachable and safe. As Cloninger (2013) explains, “emotions are essential for social behavior. We are prewired to understand facial expressions of emotion, with universally understood innate expressions of fear, happiness, anger, and other emotions” (Cloninger, 2013, p.