It's time to study emotions!

The study of emotions and their impact on humans has been around for thousands of years. What has changed over the years has been the general approach to this investigation. For many years, researchers in psychology focused on what seemed to be rational and what could be directly observed through physiology. Emotion was neglected as it was seen as more part of mind than body. The role of emotion in how we think was not well understood. In fact, many researchers saw emotion more as a deterrent to investigation of the things that made humans rational.

While it appears that emotional responses are in some ways automatic and physiological, the last couple of decades have seen an increasing focus on the importance of the psychology as well as the physiology of our responses. The growth of "New Age" books in shops is a testament to this.