Does Negative Affect Always Narrow and Positive Affect Always Broaden the Mind? Considering the Influence of Motivational Intensity on Cognitive Scope

2013/08/01 by Eddie Harmon‐Jones, Philip A. Gable, Tom F. Price · 2 citations
Psychology · #Mental Health Research Topics #Behavioral Health and Interventions #Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction

paper · doi:10.1177/0963721413481353

openalex publication_date 2013/08/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/02

Abstract

Research over the last 5 decades has suggested that negative affective states narrow cognitive scope, whereas positive affective states broaden cognitive scope. An examination of this past research, however, reveals that only negative affects of high motivational intensity (e.g., fear, stress) and positive affects of low motivational intensity (e.g., gratitude, amusement) may have been examined. Consequently, over the last 5 years, research has examined positive and negative affects that are low (e.g., sadness) versus high (e.g., desire) in motivational intensity. This research has found that affects of low motivational intensity broaden cognitive scope whereas affects of high motivational intensity narrow cognitive scope, regardless of the positivity or negativity of the affective state.

Citations

• The Cognitive Neuroscience of Attention
• The role of positive emotions in positive psychology: The broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions.
• Forest before trees: The precedence of global features in visual perception
• Approach-Motivated Positive Affect Reduces Breadth of Attention
• Neural Activity Underlying the Effect of Approach-Motivated Positive Affect on Narrowed Attention
• The debate over dopamine’s role in reward: the case for incentive salience

Cited by

• The neuroscience of positive emotions and affect: Implications for cultivating happiness and wellbeing
• Eddie Harmon-Jones [wikipedia]