ABSTRACT
One of the most intriguing questions in the psychology of emotion con cerns the process of emotion differentiation. Which are the factors that determine whether a particular event will produce anger, joy, shame, fear, or sadness? Many of the classic theories of emotion do not address this issue directly. The importance of evaluation or appraisal processes was first underlined by Brnold (1960a,b) and Lazarus (1966). In recent years, theorists interested in the differentiation of emotion have turned their attention increasingly to the study of the cognitive (and subcognitive) processes that are involved in event evaluation, trying to determine the dimensions or criteria that are responsible for eliciting differential emotional responses.
