Abstract
The psychoanalytic affect theory is discussed in the light of (a) the theory of evolution, (b) the participation of implicit (procedural) memory in the establishment of blearned fearQ and (c) the major conclusions of cognitive psychology.
I start this discussion by quoting what Sigmund Freud wrote in his assay on Narcissism 90 years ago: bwe must recollect that all of our provisional ideas in psychology will presumably one day be based on an organic substructureQ.
Besides Freud I would like to introduce in this discussion Charles Darwin, not only because he conducted one of the first extensive studies on emotional expression [1], but also because his ideas suggesting that human behavior is a result of evolutionary processes, were to my opinion, the theoretical basis of experimental psychology. To my opinion, William James’s thinking was influenced by Darwin’s theory of evolution. Furthermore the idea of evolution is of extreme importance for what we discuss here today. Because, par example, the argument of Dr. Kernberg: bfrom the viewpoint of psychoanalytic theory, the genetically determined and constitutional given capacity to react affectively to bodily and environmental stimuli, with separate affective systems for pleasurable and aversive affect development, indicates the biological basis for the overall classification of the affective system into positive or rewarding and negative oraversive affectsQ, becomes stronger if we consider that such capacities are selected during the haeons of evolution of the different species.
