Oh my: a psychological approach to awe – Science Weekly podcast

Nicola Davis asks what ’s behind one of humanity’s most powerful and possibly evolutionarily important emotionsWhen it comes to emotions, words such as joy, anger and disgust immediately spring to mind. But in recent years, psychologists have been turning their attention to a lesser-studied emotion: awe. Whether it ’s a breathtaking landscape or a glorious sunset, this research is painting awe, and the effects it has on us, as potentially one of the most important in our emotional repertoire. But what might be going on psychologically? How might these effects have helped our ancestors? And could we all do wi th more awe?To help answer all this and more,Nicola Davis talks to University of California, Berkeley ’s ProfessorDacher Keltner, who, in 2003, co-authored one of the field ’smost important theoretical papers. And to see how this theory is backed up by the experimental evidence, we hear from the University of Houston ’sDr Melanie Rudd, whose work has found links between time perception, wellbeing and awe.Continue reading...

Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - December 14, 2018 Category: Science Authors: Presented by Nicola Davis and produced by Max Sanderson Tags: Science Psychology Evolution Biology Source Type: news