Biocultural Approaches to the Emotions

Are emotions given by biology or are they learnt? Are they the same everywhere, or culturally variable? Research in this field tends to be polarised between neo-Darwinian and culturalist perspectives. This volume attempts to transcend the traditional oppositions, proposing various strategies for integrating both approaches to the study of emotion. Are emotions innate or learned? Are they the same everywhere, or culturally variable? Research on the emotions tends to be polarised between neo-Darwinian and culturalist perspectives. In this volume, first published in 1999, biological and cultural anthropologists attempt to transcend the traditional oppositions, proposing various strategies for integrating biological and cultural approaches to the study of emotion. They discuss a variety of fascinating ethnographic examples, covering topics that range from the effects of music to the relationships between emotion and respiration. The editor's introduction provides a lucid review of the state of the field.