Question

You are walking down a deserted alley late at night; and you hear a sudden noise to your left. Your sympathetic nervous system prepares your body for fight or flight, and you experience fear. Just before you turn to run, however, you see a cat race away from the trash can he was digging in. "Oh, that was the noise," you think. Instead of experiencing fear, you laugh wildly at what you had imagined was coming after you in the alley. This set of events is best described by which theory of emotion?

a. the James-Lange theory

b. Schacter's cognitive theory

c. attribution theory

d. the common sense theory

Answer 1

The set of events described in the question is best explained by Schacter's cognitive theory of emotion. So, the correct answer is option b.

Step-by-step explanation:

The set of events described in the question is best explained by Schacter's cognitive theory of emotion.

According to Schacter's two-factor theory, emotions are composed of two factors: physiological arousal and cognitive appraisal. In this situation, the initial physiological arousal from the sympathetic nervous system prepares the body for fight or flight. However, once the cat is seen and the situation is appraised as non-threatening, the physiological arousal is reinterpreted and labeled as excitement or amusement, resulting in laughter instead of fear.

This theory emphasizes the role of cognitive labeling and interpretation in shaping emotional experiences.

So, the correct answer is option b.