It’s not just about feeling happy or sad — researchers say humans can experience several categories of emotions.These findings from the University of California, Berkeley, which were recently published in Proceedings of National Academy of Sciences, found there are 27 distinct categories of emotions.
These, in alphabetical order, include admiration, adoration, aesthetic appreciation, amusement, anger, anxiety, awe, awkwardness, boredom, calmness, confusion, craving, disgust, empathetic pain, entrancement, excitement, fear, horror, interest, joy, nostalgia, relief, romance, sadness, satisfaction, sexual desire and surprise.
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Co-author Alan S. Cowen of Berkeley’s Department of Psychology, says he is surprised a study of this kind hasn’t been done already.