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Cited by 488

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 11 of the 11 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

Basic emotions, rationality, and folk theory

Johnson-laird, P. N., Oatley, Keith·1992·Cognition and Emotion

Abstract

Answering the question of whether there are basic emotions requires considering the functions of emotions. We propose that just a few emotions are basic and that they have functions in managing action. When no fully rational solution is available for a problem of action, a basic emotion functions to prompt us in a direction that is better than a random choice. We contrast this kind of theory with a componential approach which we argue is either a version of the theory of basic emotions or else leads to the doctrine that emotions are mistaken tenets of folk psychology. We defend the psychological reality of the folk theory of emotions, and we argue that universal basic emotions make it possible to understand people from distant cultures, and to translate emotional terminology from one language to another. Finally, we show how theories of basic emotions can be tested, and indicate the kinds of empirical result that can bear on the issue.

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Metadata

Authors
Johnson-laird, P. N., & Oatley, K.
Venue
Cognition and Emotion
Published
1992-05
Volume
6
Issue
3-4
Pages
201-223
ISSN
  • 0269-9931 (ISSN-L)
  • 1464-0600
OpenAlex
W2075173534
Cited by
488
References
11
FWCI
9.33
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed

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CoChat. (2026). Citation check: Basic emotions, rationality, and folk theory. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.1080/02699939208411069
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Johnson-laird, P. N., & Oatley, K. (1992). Basic emotions, rationality, and folk theory. Cognition and Emotion. https://doi.org/10.1080/02699939208411069

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Contains information from the Semantic Scholar Academic Graph Datasets, made available under the ODC Attribution License (ODC-BY 1.0).

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