Cognitive Level of Analysis: Emotions, Theories, and Biology

This essay provides a comprehensive analysis of the cognitive level of analysis, focusing on the intricate relationship between emotions and cognitive processes. It begins by defining cognition and its key components, such as perception, attention, memory, language, and thinking. The essay then delves into the interplay of emotions and cognitive behavior, exploring the impact of emotions on memory, perception, and reasoning. It examines various theories of emotion, including physiological, neurological, and cognitive perspectives, with a detailed discussion of the Affective Event Theory (AET) and its application in the workplace. The essay also analyzes the biological factors influencing emotions, such as the limbic system, neurochemicals, and the autonomic nervous system, as well as the Le Doux and Lazarus theories. The document concludes by emphasizing the vital roles of both cognitive and biological factors in shaping emotional responses and understanding human behavior. The essay provides a rich exploration of the cognitive processes that underlie our emotional experiences.

Cognitive Level of Analysis 0
Title: Cognitive Level of Analysis
Assignment Name:
Student Name:
Course Name and Number:
Professor:
Date:

Cognitive Level of Analysis 1
Contents
Introduction.................................................................................................................................2
Emotions and Cognitive Behaviour............................................................................................2
Affective Event Theory...............................................................................................................4
Application of AET Theory........................................................................................................5
Biological Factors of Emotion....................................................................................................6
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................7
References...................................................................................................................................8

Cognitive Level of Analysis 2
Introduction
Cognition can be defined as a mental process of learning and understanding through
experiences and senses. It is related to thinking and mental processes. The cognitive analysis
is about how the human mind works. We live in a surrounding with which we interact and
receive information. But it is important to understand how we process that information. The
cognitive analysis is the study of how the human mind processes and it includes the
following:
 Perception: It is what do you understand about the surroundings and how do
you analyse the information that you acquire from the surroundings.
 Attention: It is about taking in the information and processing it actively, by
giving importance to the details of the information processed in the
surroundings.
 Memory: It is about taking in and processing the information in the mind and
then retrieving the observed information when required.
 Language: It is the usage of symbols and signs to process the information
available in the surroundings. It is the usage of words to communicate and
describe what one feels and thinks.
 Thinking: It is a process which involves decision making and problem-solving.
It is a mental activity.
Cognitive abilities are the mental skills related to the brain that we need to perform
tasks and other activities. It includes mechanisms like problem-solving, processing
information, retains the information in the mind and retrieving it when required.
Emotions and Cognitive Behaviour
Cognitive psychology is pure science in which behaviour can be explained in terms of
how the mind functions. It is the study of the mind as an information processor. The cognitive
analysis is based on emotions, behaviour and social factors (Bach, J., 2012). Emotions have a
strong and intense effect on an individual. They are an outcome of the mental, psychological
and physiological state of the human being. They are specific in nature and are dependent on a
particular situation. They help in guiding human behaviour in society. Emotions also affect

Cognitive Level of Analysis 3
the way in which an individual processes memory, perception, and reasoning. The cognitive
processes are: observing, categorizing, and generalizing the environment (B, 2018).
Emotions are based on the temperament, mood, and personality of an individual.
Emotions have a huge role in how we interact with our surroundings. Emotions are defined as
complex feelings that affect the physical and psychological behaviour of an individual that
impacts the way in which it deals with the surroundings. It is associated with a positive or
negative feeling about an event that results in physiological changes in human beings (Ahmad
et al., 2014). This is also discussed further under the Affective Event Theory. The theories of
emotions can be broadly categorized into three main categories:
 Physiological
 Neurological and
 Cognitive
The physiological theory suggests that physical characteristics are responsible for human
behaviour. The neurological theory suggests that the brain is responsible for framing human
emotions. The cognitive theory suggests that mental activities and mental processes frame
human emotions (Lewinski, 2016).
The six theories of emotions are as follows:
 The evolutionary theory of emotion: This theory was proposed by Charles
Darwin, who said that an emotion evolves because they were adaptive based
on the situation and helped human beings to survive. They motivate humans to
respond to a particular situation which improves their chances of survival. It
also includes the interpretation of other emotions to respond accordingly.
 The James Lane theory of emotion: It is a physiological theory of emotion. It
suggests that emotions arise because of the physical response of human beings
to a particular environment. The emotions occur due to the response to the
surroundings which are physical in nature.
 The Cannon-Bard theory of emotion: This theory suggests that the emotions
that arise from the physiological reactions may not always be felt that way. It
may be due to different reasons.

Cognitive Level of Analysis 4
 Schachter-Singer theory: It is also called a two-factor theory of emotion. It
says that a stimulus leads to a physical response which is then interpreted and
decided whether it is an emotion or not.
 Cognitive Appraisal Theory: Cognition is related to thinking and processing,
therefore, this theory suggests that thinking occurs first before experiencing an
emotion. This theory is also called a Lazarus theory of emotion.
 Le Doux theory: This theory suggests that emotional responses occur instantly
and an individual feel before he thinks.
Affective Event Theory
This theory was developed by organizational psychologists Howard M. Weiss and
Russell Cropanzano to explain how emotions and moods of an employee affect their
performance at work and their level of job satisfaction. The theory discusses how the
employee’s internal factors like cognitions, emotions, mental state, thinking and their
reactions to the environment at the workplace affect their performance at work, their
commitment towards the organization and the level of satisfaction that they receive from their
work (Mun, 2019).
It also emphasizes that positive and negative emotion affects the productivity of the
employee and reduce or enhance their performance at work. They have a psychological
impact on employees who are seeking job satisfaction. This has an internal as well as external
effect on the employee's behaviour towards his work and the organization. However, their
emotions play an important role in deciding how they will perform and whether they will quit
their job or continue with it (Giacomo, 2013). The reward-based performance system also has
an important role to play when employees think of quitting their jobs. For example, stress
related to work is also a reason for an employee to underperform or quit their jobs. The tasks
at the workplace that are challenging and are reward based are said to have positive outcomes
on the performance of the employee. Whereas the tasks that are boring and stress-inducing
tend to have a negative effect on the employees' satisfaction level and job performance.
The Five-Factor model of personality (FFM) is a theory that supports the Affective
Event theory. It recognizes the differences between the individual’s dispositions (Lynam and
Miller, 2014). These are based on five factors namely: conscientiousness, agreeableness,

Cognitive Level of Analysis 5
neuroticism, openness to experience and extraversion. This tells how employees respond to
the events that they experience at work.
The Affective Event Theory makes two assumptions about the workplace. The first
assumption is that job satisfaction is different from the effect. It also states that effect has a
role in the level of job satisfaction and also helps in deciding the job performance of the
employee. The second assumption is that the events in the workplace happen over a certain
period of time, therefore, the effect to those events also varies with the time. There are events
which cause positive affect and some cause negative event and the reaction to such events
depend upon individuals and it keeps on changing with the time (Yaniv, 2011).
The Affective Event Theory can be summed up in the following way:
Work environment: characteristics of the job, job requirements, and emotions
attached to the work.
Work events: uplifts and hassles.
Personal dispositions: personality traits and mood.
Emotional reactions: positive and negative.
Outcome: job satisfaction and job performance.
Application of AET Theory
The Affective Event Theory can be applied in the workplace where there is a case of
bullying of the employee. In this case, the event will have an effect on the job satisfaction of
the employee; the tendency to quit the job as well as it will develop a negative emotion of fear
and anger (Johnson, Griffith and Buckley, 2015). This theory proves at this stage that the
emotional experiences shape the attitude of the employee towards his workplace.
Therefore, the Affective Event Theory holds true in the cases of organizational setup
where the events occurring at different time period have an effect on the emotional responses
and experiences of the employee (Chhetri, 2014). It also helps in identifying that whether the
employee who is experiencing a good and positive feeling at the workplace and is satisfied
with his job may suddenly quit his job, which is not expected from such an employee at any
stage (Lindebaum and Jordan, 2012).

Cognitive Level of Analysis 6
Therefore, this theory is also helpful in finding ways of enhancing the employee’s
behaviour in terms of his performance and satisfaction from his work (Pugh and Groth, 2019).
Biological Factors of Emotion
When we talk about the biological factors that affect the emotions of a human being
then we basically talk about the human brain where the event sends a stimulus and directs an
individual to respond in a certain manner (de Rooij, Broekens and Lamers, 2013). The
biological factors that have an influence on the emotions are as follows:
The limbic system: It defines the emotional experience of a human being as pleasant
and unpleasant state of the mind. Neurochemicals are responsible for the emotions.
Autonomic nervous system: The ANS regulates the pulse rate, the blood pressure,
the breathing and the stimulus to a particular event related to emotions.
The reticular activating system: This system first arouses the cortex and then keeps
the brain in the active mode so that the senses receive the information and then process the
emotions.
Therefore, it can be said that cognitive as well as biological factors interact and
produce emotional responses for the particular event (Oatley and Johnson-Laird, 2014). This
can be explained with the help of the following theory:
Le Doux theory: This theory suggests that emotional responses occur instantly and an
individual feel before he thinks. It states that some of the human reactions and emotions arise
even without being acknowledged by the individual. It can be explained through an example
that if a person sees a rat, he will jump in reaction even without knowing whether the rat is
harmful or not.
Lazarus theory of appraisal: This theory states that how we experience our emotions
depend on how we perceive the events happening around us. It states that the emotions are
derived from the evaluations of the appraisals of the events that cause a particular emotion to
take place in different individual (Shargel, 2016). It can take place even in the absence of
physiological factors. He emphasized that the appraisal precedes cognitive labelling. He said
that the processing of the stimulus may not take place in the form of conceptual processing.

Cognitive Level of Analysis 7
Two-factor theory: This theory is also called as Schachter-Singer theory. It states
that the way we experience emotions depends on the physiological arousal and the mental
interpretation of the arousal. When the brain is not able to decipher why it is feeling a
particular emotion, it requires an external stimulus to label that particular emotion. It can be
explained with the help of the example: that when a person sees the snake it causes arousal, as
a result, the physiological reaction occurs like the increased heartbeat and sweating, the
cognitive processing gives the stimulus that the person is scared the emotion that is being
formed is that of fear (Zainiati, 2017).
Conclusion
The cognitive and biological factors play a vital role in determining the emotions in
response to a particular event. It is also seen that the response in terms of emotions to a
particular event varies with the time period in which the event takes place. The theories that
are discussed above show the importance of the events and the cognition processing in
determining the type of response to a particular situation. These theories also help us in
understanding how the brain works and how it responds to the external stimulus in
determining how emotions can be processed and formed.
Therefore, cognition helps in determining how we perceive a given situation and how
well react mentally and physiologically in response to a particular event. It can be seen that
both biological and cognitive factors play an important role in determining and understanding
the emotions. To summarize the whole cognitive process it can be done in the following way:
to translate the sensory input, reducing the sensory information, and then elaborating the
sensory information that is being received, it is about storing the information in the brain and
then using the information in form of emotion as required.
Thus, the theories which are discussed above highlight that both the biological as well
as the cognitive factors are important in the formation of human emotions and the response to
the surroundings.

Cognitive Level of Analysis 8
References
Ahmad, S., Adnan, A., Khan, G. and Mehmood, N. (2014). Emotions, Age, and Gender
Based Cognitive Skills Calculations. International Journal of Computer Theory and
Engineering, 7(1), pp.76-80.
B, E. (2018). Developmental Patterns of Cognitive Abilities. International Journal of School
and Cognitive Psychology, 05(01).
Bach, J. (2012). A Framework for Emergent Emotions, Based on Motivation and Cognitive
Modulators. International Journal of Synthetic Emotions, 3(1), pp.43-63.
Chhetri, P. (2014). The Role of Cognitive and Affective Trust in the Relationship Between
Organizational Justice and Organizational Citizenship Behavior: a Conceptual
Framework. Verslas: teorija ir praktika, 15(2), pp.170-178.
de Rooij, A., Broekens, J. and Lamers, M. (2013). Abstract Expressions of
Affect. International Journal of Synthetic Emotions, 4(1), pp.1-31.
Giacomo, R. (2013). Understanding actions, intentions, and emotions of others. Frontiers in
Human Neuroscience, 7.
Johnson, G., Griffith, J. and Buckley, M. (2015). A new model of impression management:
Emotions in the ‘black box’ of organizational persuasion. Journal of Occupational and
Organizational Psychology, 89(1), pp.111-140.
Lewinski, P. (2016). Commentary: Rethinking the Development of “Nonbasic” Emotions: A
Critical Review of Existing Theories. Frontiers in Psychology, 6.
Lindebaum, D. and Jordan, P. (2012). Positive emotions, negative emotions, or utility of
discrete emotions?. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 33(7), pp.1027-1030.
Lynam, D. and Miller, J. (2014). Psychopathy from a Basic Trait Perspective: The Utility of a
Five-Factor Model Approach. Journal of Personality, 83(6), pp.611-626.
Mun, C. (2019). Knowing Emotions: Truthfulness and Recognition in Affective
Experience. The Philosophical Quarterly.

Cognitive Level of Analysis 9
Oatley, K. and Johnson-Laird, P. (2014). Cognitive approaches to emotions. Trends in
Cognitive Sciences, 18(3), pp.134-140.
Pugh, S. and Groth, M. (2019). Why emotions matter to the practice of
management. Organizational Dynamics.
Shargel, D. (2016). Appraisals, Emotions, and Inherited Intentional Objects. Emotion Review,
9(1), pp.46-54.
Yaniv, E. (2011). Organizational Attention: A Metaphor For A Core Cognitive
Process. International Journal of Organization Theory & Behavior, 14(3), pp.329-353.
Zainiati, H. (2017). Understanding the Cognition Process of the Students using the Internet as
a Learning Resource. Jurnal Pendidikan Islam, 3(1), p.57.