The relation between positive and negative affect becomes more negative in response to personally relevant events.

E Dejonckheere; M Mestdagh; S Verdonck; G Lafit; E Ceulemans; B Bastian; EK Kalokerinos

Journal article

The relation between positive and negative affect becomes more negative in response to personally relevant events.

E Dejonckheere, M Mestdagh, S Verdonck, G Lafit, E Ceulemans, B Bastian, EK Kalokerinos

Emotion | AMER PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOC | Published : 2021

DOI: 10.1037/emo0000697

Abstract

Can we experience positive (PA) and negative affect (NA) separately (i.e., affective independence), or do these emotional states represent the mutually exclusive ends of a single bipolar continuum (i.e., affective bipolarity)? Building on previous emotion theories, we propose that the relation between PA and NA is not invariable, but rather fluctuates in response to changing situational demands. Specifically, we argue that our affective system shifts from relative independence to stronger bipolarity when we encounter events or situations that activate personally relevant concerns. We test this idea in an experience sampling study, in which we tracked the positive and negative emotional traje..

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University of Melbourne Researchers

Brock Bastian Author

Elise Kalokerinos Author

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Grants

Awarded by Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek

Funding Acknowledgements

All supplemental data and code for this article can be accessed online at the Open Science Framework: https://osf.io/yte2w/. This research was supported by the research fund of KU Leuven (C14/19/054), by an Australian Research Council Discovery grant awarded to Brock Bastian (DP140103757), and by a grant of the Fund of Scientific Research Flanders (FWO) awarded to Eva Ceulemans (G074319N). The data collection was supported by a Marie Sklodowska-Curie fellowship (704298) awarded to Elise K. Kalokerinos. Elise K. Kalokerinos is supported by an Australian Research Council Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DE180100352). Stijn Verdonck is supported by the Fund of Scientific Research Flanders (FWO).