Reflecting on an Emotionally Memorable Year
The year that was 2020 is finally behind us. And yet the memories of this trying year will be lasting, not least of which because it was such an emotionally turbulent experience. Somewhat fittingly, the collection of invited articles in this issue focus on emotion and memory.
In the first invited article, Fabrice Teroni from the University of Geneva provides a philosophical, bidirectional perspective on emotion and memory. Focusing on the role of memory in the nature and causation of emotions, he considers whether certain emotions are reliant on memory, if emotions are privileged in being linked with memory, and whether this privilege is specific to particular types of memory. In the process, he discusses how emotions affect what is remembered, how emotions elicit specific memories, and the nature of affective memories.
Next, Robyn Fivush of Emory University gives a developmental account of how emotional memories provide the basis for our emerging self-concept. By interweaving recent research from child development with observational anecdotes of parent-child conversations, Fivush describes the powerful role of emotional narratives for how children experience, relive, and are socialized about emotions. While much of the existing research on this topic is limited to white, middle-class samples, recent findings indicate important similarities, as well as differences, in the development of these processes.
The collection concludes with a contribution by Kevin LaBar, cognitive neuroscientist at Duke University. LaBar synthesizes research findings from the animal and human neuroscience literature to provide an overview of how emotions are consolidated and retrieved in the brain. Recent meta-anlyses of this research helps to highlight the interconnectedness of emotional memories in the brain, as well as important further topics for research, such as the need for interactive paradigms and for considering aspects of emotion beyond valence and arousal.
ISRE Interview
Co-editor Cain Todd had the opportunity to chat with Michael Brady for our interview. Brady is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Glasgow. He describes how his early educational experience being taught by Catholic brothers, stumbling across his father’s philosophy textbooks, and a failed stint studying geology and geography led him to study the philosophy of emotion, particularly concerning the connnections with suffering and virtue. Brady provides an interdisciplinary perspective on the importance of pain and suffering, and reflects on his recent interest in how individuals can overcome traumatic experiences. Aside from his academic pursuits, Brady is actively involved in the Manchester-based theater and performance company, Quarantine, serving as their Philosopher-in-Residence. In this role, he uses his expertise on the philosophy of emotion to discuss aspects relating to the acting, direction, and production of their performances. Brady is also an avid football (soccer) fan, which helps deepen his appreciation for misery and suffering.
ISRE Spotlight
The spotlight feature highlights the research by Luca Barlassina, a Philosopher at The University of Sheffield. Barlassina’s article considers whether valence can be viewed as a natural kind. By examining the problems confronting two philosophical views, ‘evaluatism’ and ‘imperativism’, he proposes an alternative account of valence: reflexive imperativism. In this view, valence is the aspect of the emotional experience that drives the individual to seek more or less of the experience, which directs the individual’s actions in the world accordingly. While Barlassina admits that further questions remain to be addressed given his perspective, his thoughtful arguments and examples provide the space for further insights on this fascinating topic.
Announcements
In addition to the excellent contributions in this issue, there are also some important announcements and points of mention.
First, make sure to note the updates to the ISRE website, highlighted by ISRE President Ursula Hess. There are a number of new features that come with an ISRE membership accessible via the new website. Additionally, while the 2021 ISRE Meeting was postponed, planning for the 2022 ISRE Meeting is underway.
Second, we want to note the excellent work being done by the Early Career Researchers Section. This group is helping to provide the experiences and support essential for cultivating the next generation of emotion researchers.
Finally, we wish to convey our own optimism that 2021 will bring with it more issues of Emotion Researcher. We were both forced to manage the obstacles of the pandemic, adapting to unforeseen and unexperienced challenges. While the new year may not wash the slate clean of difficulties, we are more resilient than before and there appears to be light on the horizon.
Wishing everyone a safe and productive start to a new year,
Warmly, Eric & Cain
Cain Todd is Senior Lecturer in Philosophy at Lancaster University (UK). His research covers a wide range of issues centring on emotions and evaluative experience, most recently the phenomenology and objectivity of emotional experience and the role of attention and imagination therein. His co-edited collection Emotion and Value (OUP) was published in 2010, and his new monograph Aesthetics and Emotion (Bloomsbury) will appear in 2021.
Eric Walle is an Associate Professor of Psychological Sciences at the University of California, Merced. His theoretical writings emphasize the functions of emotions, particularly in interpersonal contexts. His empirical work examines emotional development, principally in infancy and early childhood, as well as how individuals perceive and respond to emotional communication.
