What are Emotions? (evolution, experience)

[tomspug]

Are emotions merely forms of communication? What are their evolutionary purpose? What purpose do feelings of guilt, remorse, shame, bitterness, pride, and love serve in the evolutionary process?

I know that emotions aren't exclusive to humans, but I don't understand how they have 'developed' over time.

[Sunstone]

Emotions are based on neurochemicals. For instance, oxytocin, a peptide, causes us to have "warm and fuzzy" feelings. Emotions seem to serve at least two purposes. First, they prompt us to action. Second, they help us to prioritize.

[zenzero]

Friend tomspug,
Your thoughts on the subject are on the right track that emotions springs from the feelings of guilt, shame, remorse etc.
The evolutionary process works in the sense that one is born wherever the individual left of in his previous birth BUt in so far as his karma is concerened. in another wards it is the resultant or balance of karma that one starts another birth and since most are yrt to get over those feelings like thoughts they too remain as seeds.
From experience can say that though am not emotional in expressing have found they came out once or twice when I met someone like some knots opening but why it happened am yet to get an answere. Yes, attachments do play a great role in emotions and which are used everyday by everyone which we call emotional blackmailing in extreme cases.
Love & rgds

[Wandered Off]

We process information by comparison. Emotions are the results and reflections of those comparisons.

[tomspug]

Yes, I understand that emotions are chemical processes, but my question concerns their purpose in the evolutionary process. If our development is based on adaptation, how did we go from not having these emotions to having them?

[Ringer]

Originally Posted by tomspug

Yes, I understand that emotions are chemical processes, but my question concerns their purpose in the evolutionary process. If our development is based on adaptation, how did we go from not having these emotions to having them?

Maybe those that were able to produce the chemical that in turn produced the emotion that gave the animal a favorable chance of survivability was able to reproduce and after a while a dominate species prevailed?

[tomspug]

But what benefits do these emotions have on survival? That is what I'm wondering.

[Wandered Off]

Originally Posted by tomspug

But what benefits do these emotions have on survival? That is what I'm wondering.

Perhaps they're a byproduct of the way we process information rather than a key benefit to survival, and it's actually the processing that helps us survive rather than the emotions themselves.