Read the passage carefully and answer the questions that follow:

It is clear from affective neuroscience research that emotions are connected to our evolutionary motivation system. Feelings signal how we are reading the environment, and they are designed to mobilise and drive an adaptive behavioural response.

Positive emotions (such as excitement, joy, attraction, pride, and amusement) are labelled “positive” because they feel good or pleasurable by design. They arise in situations when we perceive important physical, psychological, or social (attachment) needs are within reach, and they motivate approach behaviors. Let’s say you walk into a social gathering and see a delicious spread of appetisers, a charismatic person talking in the corner, or a warm and admiring crowd. Pleasurable feelings arise as you make these assessments, and they propel you forward to eat, lean in, open up, engage, and pursue. Positive feelings, because they are rewarding, also reinforce the behaviour.

Negative or threat-related emotions (such as fear, anxiety, guilt, shame, disgust, hurt, anger, jealousy, and sadness) are labelled “negative” because they feel uncomfortable or painful by design—they are part of the body’s alarm system. They arise when our brain perceives a threat to our fundamental goals or needs or the well-being of loved ones. Negative feelings also mobilise the body for action, but they motivate avoidance behaviour: efforts aimed at escaping, reducing, fighting, or controlling the threat and the associated feelings.

Let’s say when you walk into that gathering you smell something gross (spoilt food!), you smile at the charismatic person and they ignore you (rejection!), you see your group of friends and they look at you with frowns and begin whispering (judgement by the tribe! I am unworthy!). Disgust, hurt, anxiety, and shame arise as your brain quickly makes these threat assessments (which may or may not be accurate). These feelings drive us to put the sandwich down, steer away from the attractive person, perhaps leave the party altogether, and resolve to avoid this group of friends next time. When you move away, the uncomfortable feelings diminish, bringing temporary relief (reward!) which reinforces the avoidance behaviour.

It’s important to notice something here: feelings are NOT designed to have us slow down and really feel them. We may not even be consciously aware of our emotional state. Our brain just needs to register a feeling just long enough to orient us to what’s important in the environment and to activate various physical and behavioural systems to fuel a move toward or away.