WHAT ARE THE 17 TYPES OF HUMAN FEELINGS? - ARTE

The types of feelings can be divided into negative (sadness, fear, hostility, frustration, anger, hopelessness, guilt, jealousy), positive (happiness, humor, joy, love, gratitude, hope) and neutral (compassion, surprise).

Feelings, from psychology, are considered the subjective experiences of emotions. These are the mental experiences of the states of the body that arise when the brain interprets the emotions that appear with external stimuli. Example: you see a tiger in the distance, you experience the emotion of fear and you feel horror.

Feelings originate in the neocortical region of the brain and are reactions to emotions. Furthermore, they are subjective, being influenced by personal experiences, memories and beliefs.

The fundamental difference between emotion and feeling, according to neuroscientist Antonio Damasio, is that emotions are involuntary responses, a more complex version of a reflex. For example, when you are in danger and the pulse is racing. The feeling is being aware of that emotion.

Feelings are part of the human being from birth. We are sensory beings and we can perceive the world through the different sense organs.

Many stimuli awaken feelings in us: we feel with what we think, with what we observe, with what we hear, with what we smell, with what we touch or with what we eat.

Feelings vs Emotions

There are 6 basic emotions in the human being: disgust, anger, fear, surprise, joy and sadness

First of all, we have to differentiate feelings from emotions. Although on many occasions these two terms are used interchangeably, we are going to see the definition of each of them:

The emotions are impulses that involve automatic reactions and constitute an innate set of systems adaptation to the medium by the individual.

Emotions generally have a shorter duration than feelings, and are what drive and motivate people to act. They are shorter but also more intense.

The feelings are blocks of integrated information, synthesis of data from previous experiences that the person has lived, desires, projects and value system itself.

Feelings can be understood as a subjective state of the person that occurs as a result of the emotions caused by something or someone. They are an affective mood and are usually long lasting. They constitute an internal guide to how the person directs her life and deals with the environment.

The functions of feelings: what are they for?

Studies coincide in pointing out four main functions of emotions:

They are the subjective and particular point of view of the subject

They serve to establish your connection with the world. Both people, knowledge, and the environment that the individual perceives go through the filter of feelings previously.

These are the ones that interpret whether something is known, wanted, desired or, on the contrary, rejected.

They serve to indicate to the person a physical or mental state

In a subjective and different way for each individual, they indicate the state in which we find ourselves at all levels (biological, mental, social, economic, etc.).

They indicate the values according to which the person acts

Through feelings, the person guides his behavior in one direction or another. They set the guidelines, the way forward. They facilitate an assessment of the reality on which we act in one way or another.

They are the basis of the connection that unites us with the rest of the people

They help us to express ourselves, communicate and understand ourselves with others.

First of all, feelings modulate how we find ourselves and therefore how we act.

In addition, this expression is perceived by the person with whom we are interacting, indicating what state we are in and acting as the basis of our communication.

Second, feelings allow us to develop empathy, help us understand the state in which the other is, and make it easier for us to put ourselves in their place so that we can understand and help them.

List of the 17 types of feelings in the human being

We can divide feelings into three types based on the reactions they provoke in the person who experiences them: negative, positive and neutral.

Negative feelings

They manifest themselves in the form of discomfort in the person and serve to indicate that something is wrong. Although the usual tendency is to want to reject these types of feelings, it is necessary to live with them, analyze them and extract learning.

This, among other things, helps us to evolve as people. Although sometimes, they can become generators of more serious conditions and lead to diseases such as depression or anxiety.

This occurs if negative feelings are stronger than positive ones repeatedly and habitually.

There is a long list of feelings that can be classified as negative. We are only going to name and define some of the most common:

1- sadness

This feeling appears in response to events that are considered unpleasant or undesirable. The person feels dejected, wants to cry and low self-esteem.

The main triggers of sadness are physical or psychological separation, loss or failure, disappointment or helpless situations.

2- anger

Anger is defined as a response of irritability or anger that appears when the person feels their rights violated.

The main triggers of anger are situations in which the individual feels hurt, cheated or betrayed. They are situations that block the person and prevent him from reaching his goal.

3- fear

This feeling is produced by the appearance of a danger or its possible appearance imminently. It serves as an alarm signal, a warning of the proximity of a danger to the integrity of the individual.

The fear that the person feels will be related to the resources or real or subjective capacities they have to face it.

That is, in cases in which the person believes that they do not have sufficient resources to face the situation, they will have a greater feeling of fear than if they know they are capable of surviving the event.

4- Hostility

It is defined as a feeling of resentment, acrimony, and outrage that is accompanied by implicit verbal and / or motor responses.

The main triggers are physical violence and indirect hostility. When the person perceives that another individual shows towards her or towards a loved one in her environment attitudes of irritability, resentment or suspicion.

5- Hopelessness

This feeling is characterized by a subjective belief in the person that they have little or no alternative to change an unpleasant situation. Or you feel unable to mobilize your own energy and use it to your advantage.

This feeling is very much taken into account in the cases of people with depression because, as numerous studies have shown, it correlates with self-harm ideas and attempts.

The main triggers are usually a decline or deterioration in physical and / or psychological state, social isolation and long-term stress.

6- frustration

This feeling appears when the expectations of a person are not satisfied by not being able to achieve what they intended.

The higher the expectations or desires to achieve it, the greater the feeling of frustration if it is not achieved. The main trigger is the failure of a wish or hope to achieve something.

7- hatred

It is defined as the antipathy or aversion towards something or someone. In addition, there appears a feeling of wishing evil for the hated subject or object.

The main triggers are the people or events that make the person's existence suffer or threaten.

8- Guilt

The feeling of guilt arises from the belief or feeling of having violated personal or social ethical norms, especially if someone has been harmed.

The main trigger is the fault (or the belief of having committed it) that a person makes and that results in remorse and a bad conscience.

9- Jealousy

It is defined as the feeling that a person experiences when they suspect that their loved one feels love or affection for another, or when they feel that another person prefers a third person instead of her.

Different situations that are real or perceived as threatening by the person can trigger these types of feelings.

Positive feelings

These feelings are what generate in the person a state of subjective well-being, in which the situation is valued as beneficial and involves pleasant and desirable sensations.

In addition, numerous studies have indicated the benefits of having positive feelings, highlighting among others:

Greater flexibility of thought
It favors creativity and a broader vision of the situation.

They work as a buffer for negative feelings because the two are incompatible. They protect the physical and mental health of the person, for example acting against stress and preventing its harmful consequences. And they favor social ties, they not only produce well-being in us but also in those around us.

Next we are going to name and define the most common positive feelings:

10- happiness

This feeling has a great impact on the person. It is the way in which life is valued in a positive way as a whole and in its different aspects such as family, partner or work.

A whole series of benefits derived from happiness have been demonstrated, such as increased empathy, creativity, learning or altruistic behaviors.

The main triggers are the attainment by the person of achievements or objectives that he intends and the congruence between what he wants and what he has.

11- humor

It refers to the perception of a stimulus as fun and can be accompanied by physical expressions such as smiling or laughing. It also gives the person a good predisposition to carry out a task.

Triggers can be very varied and diverse in nature, although a social situation or environment is usually involved.

12- joy

This feeling is characterized by producing a good state of mind and personal well-being, in addition the individual who is in this state tends to have a constructive and optimistic attitude.

The trigger is usually an event that the person perceives as favorable. It can also be accompanied by a physical sign such as a smile.

It can be a temporary state as a consequence of a specific event (passing an exam or getting a job), or a vital tendency or the habitual attitude with which a person directs his life.

13- love

This feeling is defined as the affection we feel for a person, animal, thing or idea. Triggers are the subjective perceptions or assessments we make of the other person.

Other factors such as loneliness or insecurity can lead to feeling love as a necessity.

14- gratitude

This feeling is what is experienced when a person values the favor or benefit that someone has granted him. It is accompanied by the desire to reciprocate the same treatment.

The main triggers can be the actions carried out by another person, or a feeling of general well-being that the person values and therefore is grateful to have.

15- Hope

This feeling is defined as the belief on the part of the person that he can achieve the objectives or goals that he has proposed. The individual believes that they have the capacity or the necessary resources to deal with a certain situation.

In addition, this feeling can act as a stimulus, providing motivation and energy that is directed precisely to achieving what is proposed.

Triggers can be very varied. On the one hand, the confidence that the person has in himself. And on the other hand, an adverse situation can predispose the person to feel hopeful in order to overcome it.

Neutral feelings

They are those that when they occur do not lead to pleasant or unpleasant reactions, but they will facilitate the appearance of later emotional states. Some of the main neutral feelings are:

16- Compassion

It is the feeling by which a person can feel pity for another who is suffering or who is in an unpleasant situation and is also willing to accompany her in that process.

Triggers can be varied, but generally it is linked to an unpleasant situation that someone in the environment is going through, although it does not necessarily have to be a loved one or a known person.

17- The surprise

It is defined as the reaction caused by something new, strange or unforeseen. The person's attention is directed to processing and analyzing the stimulus that caused the reaction.

The triggers are these stimuli that are not expected and that have appeared suddenly, or that occur in a context that is not the usual one.

References

Salovey, P. Mayer, J. (1990). Emotional Intelligence, Imagination, Cognition and Personality.
Gardner, H. (1983). Frames of mind. New York.
Frederickson, B (2009). Positivity. New York.
Siegel, D. (2007). The Mindful Brain. New York.
Frank, LK (1954). Feelings and emotions. New York.
Reymert, M. (1950). The phenomenological approach to the problem of feelings and emotions. New York.
Harlow, HF, Stagner, R. (1933). Psychology of feelings and emotions. II. Theory of emotions. Psychological Review, Vol 40 (2).

WHAT ARE THE 17 TYPES OF HUMAN FEELINGS? - ARTE - 2025