Emotions predictably modify response times in the initiation of human motor actions: A meta-analytic review.

Emotions motivate individuals to attain appetitive goals and avoid aversive consequences. Empirical investigations have detailed how broad approach and avoidance orientations are reflected in fundamental movement attributes such as the speed, accuracy, and variability of motor actions. Several theoretical perspectives propose explanations for how emotional states influence the speed with which goal directed movements are initiated. These perspectives include biological predisposition, muscle activation, distance regulation, cognitive evaluation, and evaluative response coding accounts. A comprehensive review of literature and meta-analysis were undertaken to quantify empirical support for these theoretical perspectives. The systematic review yielded 34 studies that contained 53 independent experiments producing 128 effect sizes used to evaluate the predictions of existing theories. The central tenets of the biological predisposition (Hedges' g = -0.356), distance regulation (g = -0.293; g = 0.243), and cognitive evaluation (g = -0.249; g = -0.405; g = -0.174) accounts were supported. Partial support was also identified for the evaluative response coding (g = -0.255) framework. Our findings provide quantitative evidence that substantiate existing theoretical perspectives, and provide potential direction for conceptual integration of these independent perspectives. Recommendations for future empirical work in this area are discussed.

Emotional state impacts center of pressure displacement before forward gait initiation.

Emotional states influence whole-body movements during quiet standing, gait initiation, and steady state gait. A notable gap exists, however, in understanding how emotions affect postural changes during the period preceding the execution of planned whole-body movements. The impact of emotion-induced postural reactions on forthcoming posturomotor movements remains unknown. We sought to determine the influence of emotional reactions on center of pressure (COP) displacement before the initiation of forward gait. Participants (N = 23, 14 females) stood on a force plate and initiated forward gait at the offset of an emotional image (representing five discrete categories: attack, sad faces, erotica, happy faces, and neutral objects). COP displacement in the anteroposterior direction was quantified for a 2 second period during image presentation. Following picture onset, participants produced a posterior postural response to all image types. The greatest posterior displacement was occasioned in response to attack or threat stimuli compared with happy faces and erotica images. Results suggest the impact of emotional states on gait behavior begins during the motor planning period before the preparatory phase of gait initiation, and manifests in center of pressure displacement alterations.

Regulating emotions uniquely modifies reaction time, rate of force production, and accuracy of a goal-directed motor action.

We investigated how emotion regulation (ER) strategies influence the execution of a memory guided, ballistic pinch grip. Participants (N=33) employed ER strategies (expressive suppression, emotional expression, and attentional deployment) while viewing emotional stimuli (IAPS images). Upon stimulus offset, participants produced a targeted pinch force aimed at 10% of their maximum voluntary contraction. Performance measures included reaction time (RT), rate of force production, and performance accuracy. As hypothesized, attentional deployment resulted in the slowest RT, largest rate of force production, and poorest performance accuracy. In contrast, expressive suppression reduced the rate of force production and increased performance accuracy relative to emotional expression and attentional deployment. Findings provide evidence that emotion regulation strategies uniquely influence human movement. Future work should further delineate the interacting role that emotion regulation strategies have in modulating both affective experience and motor performance.