ReviewPhilosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences2026
A multi-level framework for the functions of emotions and their expressions.
Review in Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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3 authors.
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Abstract
This paper introduces a framework for understanding the functions of emotion and emotion expression at multiple levels of analysis. The framework clarifies several key but sometimes overlooked conceptual distinctions in emotion science, including the distinctions between emotions and their expressions, the individual and social functions of emotions, and functions and benefits. This framework also integrates ultimate and proximate levels of analysis by showing how functional hypotheses lead to concrete, testable proximate predictions about how emotions work. By organizing these distinctions and levels of analysis, this framework provides a basis for asking precise questions and testing new hypotheses about the structure and function of emotions and their expressions. This article is part of the theme issue 'Mechanisms, development, phylogeny and functions of emotional expressions'.
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