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Moderator : Dr V Sharbandhraj 
Presenter : Dr Vidyasagar
Plan of presentation 
Normal Emotions 
Normal physiology of emotions 
Assessment of Mood and Affect in the Clinical interview 
NORMAL EMOTIONAL REACTIONS 
ABNORMAL EMOTIONAL REACTIONS 
ABNORMAL EXRESSIONS OF EMOTION 
MORBID DISORDER OF EMOTION 
 MORBID DISORDER OF THE EXPRESSION OF EMOTION
Normal Emotions 
Feeling :positive or negetive reaction to some experience or event 
Emotion: it is a subjectively experienced feeling that is related to 
affect and mood, it has behaviooral,somatic and psychic components. 
Emotions are not a single response but a collection of responses and 
always varied and complex. 
According to Izard there are ten basic emotions they are 
Anger, Interest 
contempt joy 
Disgust sadness or Distress 
Fear shame 
guzilt surprise
Mood : is a pervasive and sustained emotion that colours the persons 
perception of the world 
 Descriptions of mood should include - intensity 
- duration 
- fluctuations 
-adjectival descriptions of the type 
Affect: short lived emotion 
- defined as the patients present emotional responsiveness 
-it is infers from the pt’s body language including facial expression 
-it may be or may not be congruent with mood
Normal Physiology of Emotions 
Expression & perception of Emotions 
Our emotions have great impact on others when we express them in 
a 
way that can be perceived by others 
Emotions are communicated nonverbally by different parts of the 
body for ex : face , gesture ,posture , tone of voice ,and general 
appearance especially the choice of clothes 
Research on facial Expression indicates that seven major groups of 
emotion that are discriminated by an observer(Argyle 1975)They are 
happiness,surprise,fear,sadness,anger,disgust,and interest
Physiology of Emotion 
 when we are excited, terrified or enraged we perceive some of the 
things happening in our bodies. 
Many of the bodily changes that occur in emotion are produced by the 
activity of ANS. 
During emotional state Sympathetic system causes the discharge of 
harmones adrenaline and nor adrenaline which leads to changes in 
Heart rate,BP,increased glucose levels esp. in fear and 
anger.parasympathetic is active when we are in calm and relaxed 
state. 
A number of structures in the core of brain are directly involved in 
regulating and coordinating the activity patterns characteristics of 
stronger emotions especially fear anger and pleasure. 
Core parts are Hypothalmus,limbic system.
When limbic system and hypothalamus are electrically stimulated in 
animals they have produced behavioural patterns very much like 
those 
in naturaly occouring emotions. This was postulated by heath (1964) 
Most of the Emotions occur when we are in aroused state,in this state 
there is increased activity of brain cells in cerebral 
cortex,limbicsystem 
and hypothalamus. 
When we are in high levels of arousal state anger, fear and other 
complex emotions are going to occur alternatively in low arousal 
state sadness and depression are going to occur.
Jasper categorisation of emotion 
According to the Object of Emotion : Eg.-Fear of snakes 
According to their source : Vital feelings. Eg. – Depressed patients 
commonly complain of headache. 
According to the Biological purpose. 
According to the feeling state : Eg. – state of arousal. 
According to the duration and intensity : Eg. – Feeling, Mood, Affect.
Assessment of Mood and Affect in the Clinical 
Interview : 
Mood is described by its quality, stability,reactivity,intensity, duration 
and congruence with thought content. 
Evaluation its quality --- How do you feel ? 
Evaluate its stability --- Do you always feel 
feel like this. 
Evaluate its reactivity--- Does your Mood 
ever change. 
Evaluate its intensity--- On a scale of 1- 10 
how do you rate . 
Evaluate its duration--- How long have u 
felt this
Evaluation of Affect 
It consist of Monitoring gestures, Bodily movements and Facial 
expressions. 
Range of Affect is characterized by the variety of emotional 
expressions noted in a session. 
Mobility of the Affect is the ease and speed with which one moves 
from one type of emotion to another. 
Intensity (Strength of the emotional expression ) normally varies 
according to the situation. 
Appropriateness --- Evaluate whether the affect is congruent with the 
thought content or not .
CLASSIFICATION OF EMOTIONAL 
DISORDERS 
NORMAL EMOTIONAL REACTIONS 
ABNORMAL EMOTIONAL REACTIONS 
ABNORMAL ABNORMALRESSIONS OF EMOTION 
MORBID DISORDER OF EMOTION 
 MORBID DISORDER OF THE EXPRESSION OF EMOTION
NORMAL EMOTIONAL REACTIONS 
 The term NORMAL EMOTIONAL REACTIONS will be used to describe 
emotional states that are result of events and that lie within cultural & social 
norms 
 Eg -grief reaction that follows the death of loved one or the response of a 
previously healthy person to a life threatening diagnosis 
 There is little attempt to distinguish these normal emotional reactions from 
abnormal reactions 
 One problem is that many of the symptoms complained of are present both 
in normal & abnormal emotional reactions 
 Eg : following bereavement it is expected that tearfulness, sleep disturbance 
,anorexia and poor concentration will occur most intensely in the initial days 
and will diminish over time .when the grief reaction is prolonged or becomes a 
depressive episode a similar constellation of symptoms is also present 
 A further aspect of the distinction that has not been examined is functional 
capacity ,which is present in abnormal states but absent or brief in normal 
reactions
Abnormal Emotional Reactions 
These are the states that are understandable in the context of stressful 
events but if they are associated with more prolonged impairment in 
functioning. 
The point at which this happens is determined by individual 
attributes such as genetic and personality predisposition and by 
external factors including social support and the duration and severity 
of stressors 
Diagnostically both the icd 10,dsm IV define these abnormal 
wmotional reactions as adjustement disorders with disturbence of 
mood (to include anxiety,depression,other emotions or disturbance of 
conduct)
Anxiety 
Anxiety : is an unpleasant affective state. 
it is a universal emotion. 
it is fear for no adequate reason. 
The pt with anxiety state may restless ,uncertain 
vulnerable,,trapped,breathless,chocked 
As well as feeling frightened and worried,hypochondrial ideas and 
even feelings of guilt are pften prominent 
Symptoms of anxiety occur pathologically in anxiety states without 
obvious external cause 
The anxiety is not attached to any specific provoking object,and so it 
is termed free floating anxiety
Sypmtoms of anxiety 
Somatic and autonomic symptoms of anxiety: - palpitations, 
difficulty in breathing, 
drymouth, 
Nausea 
sweating, 
frequency of 
micturation 
dizziness 
muscular tension 
tremor, 
cold skin 
 Psychological symptoms: 
Feeling of dread or fear ,panic , anxious anticipation , difficulty in 
concentration , inability to relax
In anxiety, if the physical symptoms occur suddenly,and in 
combination ,the result is overhelming fear,the term panic attack is 
used 
Free Floating Emotion: the patient describes himself as feeling 
generally anxious not anxious about anything particular but just 
anxious. This free floating anxiety has somatic and psychological 
concomitants. 
 Anxious foreboding is defined as fear that something terrible will 
happen although the person cannot identify what they are 
frightened of --- present in GAD, Depressive illness and panic disorder
Categories of anxiety disorders 
 Phobic states/phobic anxiety disorders 
 Other anxiety disoeders(panic disorder,GAD,mixed anxiety and 
depressive disorder) 
 Obsessive-compulsive disorder (with predominantly obsessional 
thoughts, predominantly compulsive acts or mixed obsessional 
thoughts &acts 
Phobic states/phobic anxiety disorders 
 Phobia: when the fear is restricted to one object ,idea or situation 
phobia is used. 
 Phobias are associated with physical symptoms of anxiety and with 
avoidence 
Since Phobias are secondary to morbid states most commonly 
depressive illness and other such as fear of contamination are 
regarded as obsessional symptoms.
Sub divisions of phobias 
Phobias of of external stimuli 
-agoraphobia 
-social phobia 
- animal phobia 
Phobias of of internal stimuli 
-illness phobias 
-obsessive phobias 
miscellaneous specific phobias 
 Agoraphobia –included fear of leaving home , being alone at home or 
in the street ,in crowds , of travelling by car , bus or train 
Social phobias –fear of performing, speaking , writing ,eating, 
urinating in public or in the presence of others 
Simple phobia-described as single but life disrupting fear ,such as 
animals ,heights , aeroplanes , insects
Illness phobia or noso phobia - fear of illness 
-Both hypochondriasis and nosophobia are fears of illness. 
- The difference is in the exact nature of the fear. 
- Nosophobia is the fear of developing a specific disease such as 
cancer or diabetes. 
- Hypochondriasis is the fear that existing physical symptoms may be 
the result of an undiagnosed disease 
Obsessive phobias-obsessions 
are repetitive , restricted unsuccessfully , regarded by the 
subject as senseless & irrational, but at the same time as coming from 
inside of him or herself- some authors describe them as obsessional 
fears
Panic disorder-also called episodic paroxysmal anxiety 
Panic disorder involves repeated and unexpected,unpredictable panic 
attacks. 
A panic attack is a feeling of intense fear or terror that lasts for a short 
period of time(5-30 min). 
It involves physical sensations like a racing heart, shortness of 
breath, chest pain, dizziness, shaking, sweating or nausea. 
Some people feel like they’re having a heart attack or suffocating, or 
fear that they are dying. 
However, a panic attack goes away on its own 
People who experience panic disorder fear more panic attacks and 
may worry that something bad will happen as a result of the panic 
attack 
They may avoid places, sensations, or activities that remind them of 
a panic attack.
GAD - People with generalized anxiety disorder experience ongoing 
worry or fear that isn't related to a particular event or situation. 
This anxiety is often focused on daily matters such as job 
responsibilities and health or somewhat trivial concerns like chores 
and appointments. 
Symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder include physical tension, 
fast heartbeat, irritability, insomnia, and difficulty concentrating. 
People with generalized anxiety disorder often feel helpless and 
unable to control their anxiety, which can potentially interfere with 
daily functioning.
OCD – IS AN ANXIETY DISORDER 
The frequent upsetting thoughts are called obsessions. To try to 
control 
them, a person will feel an overwhelming urge to repeat certain 
rituals 
or behaviors called compulsions. People with OCD can't control 
these 
obsessions and compulsions 
For example, if people are obsessed with germs or dirt, they may 
develop a compulsion to wash their hands over and over again. If they 
develop an obsession with intruders, they may lock and relock their 
doors many times before going to bed. Performing such rituals is not 
pleasurable. At best, it produces temporary relief from the anxiety 
created by obsessive thoughts
Depressed Mood: it is one of the commonly experienced 
abnormal reaction. Depression is a case in point in which the term is 
used to describe the appropriate sadness associated with bereavement
those with abnormal expressions of emotion are Generally 
aware of abnormality
Morbid expressions of emotion
Morbid disorders of emotion
Thank you 
References 
 Fish psychopathology 
 SIMS 
Internet