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Overcoming the emotion experience/expression dichotomy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 May 2012

Fausto Caruana
Affiliation:
Department of Neuroscience, Section of Physiology, School of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma, Università di Parma, 43100 Parma, Italy. fausto.caruana@iit.itfausto.caruana@unipr.ithttp://www.unipr.it/arpa/mirror/english/staff/caruana.htm Brain Center for Social and Motor Cognition, Italian Institute of Technology, 43100 Parma, Italy. vittorio.gallese@unipr.ithttp://www.unipr.it/arpa/mirror/english/staff/gallese.htm
Vittorio Gallese
Affiliation:
Department of Neuroscience, Section of Physiology, School of Medicine and Surgery, University of Parma, Università di Parma, 43100 Parma, Italy. fausto.caruana@iit.itfausto.caruana@unipr.ithttp://www.unipr.it/arpa/mirror/english/staff/caruana.htm

Abstract

We challenge the classic experience/expression dichotomous account of emotions, according to which experiencing and expressing an emotion are two independent processes. By endorsing Dewey's and Mead's accounts of emotions, and capitalizing upon recent empirical findings, we propose that expression is part of the emotional experience. This proposal partly challenges the purely constructivist approach endorsed by the authors of the target article.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2012

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