How to Identify Your Dominant Emotional Style (and Why It Matters)
In difficult times, we often find ourselves leaning towards one dominant emotion, even when another might be more “logical.” For example, your default emotion might be anxiety, which you will feel during stressful moments, even though anger, sadness, or frustration might be a more appropriate emotional response.
“This is your dominant emotional style,” said Alice Boyes, Ph.D. , author of The Toolkit for a Healthy Mind , in a recent article she wrote for Psychology Today . During times of stress, the “dominant emotion” is the default emotion we hold to it, and is often related to how we interpret and respond to situations. Returning to the anxiety example, your reaction may be related to a tendency to blame yourself for situations; if your dominant emotion is anger, it may be due to a tendency to assume that others are trying to hurt you.
Why is it important to be able to experience different emotions
We use our dominant emotions by default because that is what we know and what we are most familiar with. However, it is important to be able to experience a range of emotions, as this is often the key to a healthier and happier life.
One way to think about emotions is to think of all the different emotions as part of a balanced ecosystem . There are many different components within an ecosystem, each of which is important for a healthy system. However, if this balance is disturbed, and one emotion becomes strongly dominant, then the general state of the system will go out of balance.
Research shows that people who experience a wide range of emotions tend to have better mental and physical health , including lower rates of depression. One possible reason is that a mixture of emotions, even if they are negative, can help prevent one emotion from dominating completely.
Two options for reducing dominant emotions
Feeling too much of one emotion is tiring and can lead to burnout. According to Boyes, there are two options that can help you move away from the dominant emotion.
The first option is to think over other possible interpretations of the situation. As Boyce notes, her dominant emotion is anxiety, for which she usually blames herself. However, when she slows down and assesses the situation, trying to ponder other reasons for what is happening, it allows her other emotions to manifest.
The second option is to focus on calmer feelings that have been drowned out by the dominant emotion. “If I tune in to their emotions smaller, they no longer come up to the surface”, – Boyce wrote . These other senses can help you find different solutions to your problem, as well as help you have a more balanced point of view.
As Boyce points out, these strategies for weakening the dominant emotion can have many positive benefits. This includes feeling relieved, developing your creativity, identifying new ways to solve problems, and being motivated to try alternative approaches that you might not otherwise have thought of.
As Boyce observed when it comes to feeling these other emotions: “It’s okay if the feeling of your non-dominant emotions makes you feel unsettled and perhaps a little out at sea. You may feel insecure but still benefit. “