Understanding Psychology (10th Ed)

 THE SCHACHTER-SINGER THEORY: EMOTIONS AS LABELS 
Suppose that as you are being followed down that dark street on New Year’s Eve, 
you notice a man being followed by another shady fi gure on the other side of the 
street. Now assume that instead of reacting with fear, the man begins to laugh and 
Cannon-Bard theory of emotion
The belief that both physiological 
arousal and emotional experience are 
produced simultaneously by the same 
nerve stimulus.
FIGURE 2
A comparison of three models of emotion.
Activation of visceral
bodily changes
James-Lange
theory
Cannon-Bard
theory
Perceiving an emotion-inducing event or situation
(such as a stranger following you)
Brain interprets
visceral changes as
emotional experience
Activation of
thalamus
Activation of bodily
changes in response
to brain
Message to cortex
regarding emotional
experience
Activation of general
physiological arousal
Observation of
environmental cues
Schachter-Singer
theory 
Determination of
label to place on
arousal, identifying
emotional experience
Study Alert
Use Figure 2 to distinguish 
the three classic theories of 
emotion (James-Lange, 
Cannon-Bard, and 
Schachter-Singer).
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act gleeful. Would the reactions of this other individual be suffi cient to lay your fears 
to rest? Might you, in fact, decide there is nothing to fear and get into the spirit of 
the evening by beginning to feel happiness and glee yourself?
According to an explanation that focuses on the role of cognition, the  Schachter-