Heather Zimmie

Dr. Rand
UWRT 1103
October 14, 2014

Inquiry Project Proposal

Emotions are defined as a state of feeling. They are evolutionary adaptations that
control our thoughts, actions, and behavior to keep us alive. Blaise Pascal said, The
heart has reasons the mind knows not of and while we know that emotions do not
literally come from the heart we know that humans are emotional beings that often rely
on feelings more than reason because they are unconscious, uncontrollable, and quickly
perceived. I wonder why people act emotionally. Is there something physiological or
psychological that affects how we feel? Are there certain events that create emotion?
Why do we express our emotions?
Learning about why people act emotionally is important because we are always
dealing with others. We have to know how to express ourselves in order to function,
interact with each other, and create relationships. Emotions are an interesting topic to me
because they are subjective which makes them hard to grasp because we do not all react
to the similar situations the same way. My passion for the medical field and sciences
drives my interest in emotions. Science teaches us about how living things work and
show us that the internal (psychological) and external (sociological) forces that affect the
way we act are largely based on emotions and experiences. As a future healthcare

professional I am expected to be able to empathize with a patient and provide them with
support. I cannot accomplish this if I do not understand how emotions work or what
causes them.
Thinking about my big question has led me to some assumptions. I believe that
our emotions come from our brain and how it perceives the world around us. Our
environment, which includes experiences and people, will be a large factor in what
affects the way most of my subjects feel. So far I have only consulted my peers and
professor on my inquiry topic. I plan to use sociology and psychology texts as well as
other resources online to learn about the physiology and psychology of emotions. I will
be consulting people for thoughts, opinions, and personal experiences dealing with their
emotions or the emotions they observe in others.
I plan to use primary and secondary research for my inquiry project. I want to use
secondary research to find out the science and explanations behind emotions. I will be
using primary research to find out specific people, places, and circumstances that make
people act emotionally and find out their ideas on why they act they way they do in when
they encounter these things. Gaining primary information might be difficult because it
can be hard to get participation especially when it requires them to talk about their
feelings. Finding the right questions to ask or an assignment that they can do will also
require trial and error. Feelings are subjective; everyone is going to have different
responses. Analyzing their answers to gain information will not be easy. I am hoping that
through inquiry I will find answers to my big question and learn many new things along
the way.