Affect and Emotion

Margaret Wetherell is Professor of Social Psychology at the Open University, UK and Director of the Economic and Social Research Council Programme on Identities and Social Action.

Chapter 1: Introducing Affect: Lines of Argument Chapter 2: Bodying Affect: Affective Flows and Their Psychobiological Figuring Chapter 3: Negotiating Affect: Discourse, Representation and Affective Meaning-Making Chapter 4: Situating Affect: Interaction, Accountability and the Present Moment Chapter 5: Solidifying Affect: Structures of Feeling, Habitus and Emotional Capital Chapter 6: Personalising Affect: Relational Histories, Subjectivities and the Psychosocial Chapter 7: Circulating Affect: Waves of Feeling, Contagion and Affective Transmission

Absolutely essential reading for those wanting to understand the recent 'turn' to affect. Offering an extensive analysis of all the perspectives available, including the psycho, neuro, bio and social, Margie Wetherell treads a magisterial path through the radically different offerings, one that illuminates key ideas and will save the uninitiated wandering down many pointless avenues. A path-setting book. -- Professor Beverley Skeggs Engagingly well written and using up-to-the-minute research, this book will be indispensible for those who want a comprehensive overview of 'where we are now' in research on emotions. But more than this, by developing an original model of 'affective practices', which focuses on the affective assemblages operating in concrete situations, it suggests a way forward that will prove inspirational for new research in this field. -- Ian Burkitt The book is a valuable addition not only to the study of affect and emotion, but also to the rest of social science research. Emphasizing the importance of social interaction, it embarks on an ambitious debate on the subject. Readers already familiar with the field will get the most out of this title. -- Marjo Kolehmainen This important book is a brilliant corrective to some of the careless, poorly psychologically informed work on affect. It is essential reading for all those seriously interested in the topic. -- Valerie Walkerdine