Introspection in Emotion Research: Challenges and Insights
Introspection, or looking inward to observe one's experience, is inherent in many methods used to study feelings, the experiential component of emotion. Challenges of introspection make faithful, high-fidelity descriptions of feelings difficult to attain. A method that (1) cleaves to
a specific moment, (2) cleaves to pristine inner experience, (3) brackets presuppositions, and (4) utilizes an iterative process may be particularly well suited to this task. We review some contemporary introspective methods from the perspective of these four methodological constraints, finding
that Descriptive Experience Sampling (DES) addresses the constraints most fully. We present DES findings on feelings to highlight the unique contributions careful introspective methods make to emotion science. High-fidelity descriptions of feelings are necessary for a complete understanding
of emotion.
Keywords: DESCRIPTIVE EXPERIENCE SAMPLING; EMOTION; FEELINGS; INTROSPECTION; METHODOLOGY
Document Type: Research Article
Affiliations: 1: Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL, USA 2: Department of Psychology, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV, USA
Publication date: 01 January 2024
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