
Abstract
Diagnosing emotion disturbances should be informed by current knowledge about normal emotion processes. I identify four major functions of emotion as well as sources for potential dysfunctions and suggest that emotions should only be diagnosed as pathological when they are clearly dysfunctional, which requires considering eliciting events, realistic person-specific appraisal patterns, and adaptive responses or action tendencies. Evidence from actuarial research on the reported length of naturally occurring emotion episodes (including potential determinants) illustrates appropriateness criteria for the clinical evaluation of emotion duration—an essential element in the DSM-5 symptom catalogue for major depression episodes, especially in bereavement. The need for more actuarial evidence on normal emotion responses and its consideration by the clinical community is highlighted.
Item Type: | Journal article |
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Faculties: | Psychology and Education Science > Department Psychology |
Subjects: | 100 Philosophy and Psychology > 150 Psychology |
URN: | urn:nbn:de:bvb:19-epub-58712-0 |
Alliance/National Licence: | This publication is with permission of the rights owner freely accessible due to an Alliance licence and a national licence (funded by the DFG, German Research Foundation) respectively. |
Language: | English |
Item ID: | 58712 |
Date Deposited: | 26. Oct 2018, 09:21 |
Last Modified: | 04. Nov 2020, 13:37 |