Purpose of Positive Emotions or The Good and Bad of Positive Emotions

Now that we know how the components change for positive emotions, we will discuss some theories and findings related to the purpose of emotions.  Basic emotion theorists suggest that positive emotions function to increase the survival of our genes.  How would positive emotions help us to pass on our gene?  Some ways might be through finding a valuable mate, raising healthy children, and by maintaining our own physical and psychological health. Let’s consider a few theories on the outcomes of positive emotions.