Schachter Singer Two-Factor Theory

What Is the Schachter Singer Two-Factor Theory?

Stanley Schachter and Jerome E. Singer created the Schachter Singer two-factor theory in the early 1960s. The two factors associated with this theory are physiological responses (bodily reactions to stimuli) and cognitions (or thoughts) that are believed to produce an emotional response. The team developed the theory to understand better why we experience emotion and better make sense of emotional experiences.

The four stages of the two-factor theory are:

1. Eliciting Event Stimulus

This is the first stage of the theory, which states that a particular event must occur that will prime the chain of reactions to produce a certain emotional experience.

2. Physiological Change

In this second stage of the theory, a person experiences a physiological change or sensation in response to an environmental stimulus. According to this theory, physiological responses can be either high or low in terms of the level of arousal they produce, which also correlates to the intensity of emotion experienced.

3. Cognitive Appraisal

In the third stage, a person engages in cognitive appraisal and thinks about or makes meaning of their physiological response to an environmental stimulus. These cognitive appraisals may be quick/automatic or slow/conscious. A resulting emotion could be labeled immediately, or it may take some time for a person to label the emotion they are feeling as a result of this process.

4. Behavior Change & Subjective Feeling

Finally, the resulting behavioral change and subjective feeling is the result of this entire process, according to the theory. The theory assumes a person will only experience an emotion after this chain of events.

Examples of the Two-Factor Theory of Emotion

This theory can be applied to many situations. One example of the two-factor theory could be a child becoming sad and crying after having their favorite toy taken away. The environmental stimulus would be the removal of the toy; the physiological response would be the child experiences hyper-arousal in response to this stimulus (flushed cheeks, heart racing); the child then has the thought that they are sad they no longer have their favorite toy, and they have lost something valuable to them. The resulting emotion is sadness, and the child may cry for their parents to signal a need for support or to fix the situation.

Here is an example of the two-factor theory process broken down into stages:

• Eliciting event stimulus: The child’s favorite toy is taken away from them.
• Physiological arousal: The child experiences flushed cheeks and notices their heart racing.
• Cognitive appraisal: The child thinks, “I’ve lost my favorite toy forever.”
• Behavior change and subjective feelings: The child feels sadness and likely anger; he also starts crying for his parents to signal a need for support or remedying the situation.

People can experience this sequence with some overlap in the steps. This theory applies to people of all ages, not just children.

Historical Background of the Schachter Singer Theory

Stanley Schachter and Jerome E. Singer were two researchers who created the Schachter Singer two-factor theory in the early 1960s. Their research was conducted in order to deepen understanding of the human emotional experience and create a theory about why people feel what they feel. The 1960s was a time in American history known as the “cognitive revolution” in psychology, and many researchers were producing theories that attempted to deepen understanding of human behavior.

Schachter & Singer’s Experiment

The Schachter Singer two factor theory was based on an experiment wherein participants were injected with epinephrine, which caused hyperarousal, and were placed in one of four conditions: epinephrine informed, epinephrine ignorant, epinephrine misinformed, and a control group. These participants were then led to believe they might feel euphoric or angry by a research confederate or someone hired by the researchers to play a role. The researchers found that people who had no explanation for why their body felt the way it did, or those in the epinephrine ignorant group, were more susceptible to the emotional suggestions made by the confederate, which ultimately supported the researcher’s theory.¹

Criticisms of the Schachter Singer Theory

Some studies replicated the original experiment conducted by Schachter and Singer and found less consistent results, especially in the case of the euphoric confederate and the group that was not injected with epinephrine did not report different experiences than the injected group.² Another study that used hypnosis instead of epinephrine found that regardless of suggestions around emotion displayed by a research confederate, participants tended to experience negative emotions if they did not understand the source of their physiological arousal.³ These studies suggest that people’s emotional responses may be more nuanced, context-dependent and individualized than Schachter and Singer initially thought.

Alternative Theories of Emotions

There are other theories about emotions and why humans experience emotion aside from the Schachter Singer two-factor theory.

Examples of alternative theories of emotions include:

Charles Darwin’s Theory

Charles Darwin, the “father of evolution” proposed that emotions function as a mechanism for helping humans survive and be motivated to reproduce. Darwin believed that emotions were unconnected to one another and saw them as “discrete entities.” He also believed facial expressions were the most important source of information about emotions.⁴

James-Lange Theory

Similar to the two factor theory, James-Lange believed that physiological sensations led to the experience of emotion, but he did not emphasize the need for cognitive appraisal of an emotional experience in order for an emotion to result. This theory has been criticized for being overly simple in nature.⁵

Cannon-Bard Theory

This theory might address the areas where the two-factor theory falls short in terms of its complexity. The Cannon-Bard theory more intricately discusses the involvement of brain processes in our experience of emotion. For example, this theory postulates that emotions result from processes that occur in the hypothalamus and dorsal thalamus. They also state that arousal does not have to happen in order for emotion to occur. Meaning, this theory states that physiological arousal and the subjective experience of an emotion can be completely independent of one another. after exposure to environmental stimuli.⁶

In My Experience

In my experience, emotions are complex, nuanced, individualized and context-dependent. When reading and revising these theories I learned about in graduate school to write this article, I found myself having appreciation for the early researchers who sought to make sense of and define these experiences that we have as humans, and I can also clearly see the limitations associated with all these theories. Oftentimes in psychology, we seek to understand and explain very complex subject matter, which may be difficult, if not impossible, to understand and explain completely.

I believe these theories are most useful in suggesting a fundamental understanding of human nature. However, it is important to remember that there is so much we still don’t know and may never understand about the human experience, which is part of the beauty and magic of being human. Theories and research about human experience are constantly changing and evolving, which I see as a positive thing. After all, trying to have all the answers might take away some of the mystery that makes life interesting.