Research documents that the mood and emotions of an individual significantly influence their decision-making process. The mood and emotions provide people with crucial information about their situation and about others in the social context (Bruyneel et al. 2009). The information is then used to inform decision-making processes. In the video file provided, Karen's conduct offers an excellent illustration of how mood and emotions impact decision making.
Karen reacts differently to the same question on two separate days. A colleague requests that she be assisted in logging in to the network. Karen, who seems restless, does not respond to the query as expected. She is unwilling to offer any assistance, Sally. The previous day, however, she was more than willing to assist Jim, who had a similar query. There are several possible reasons why Karen decides not to assist her colleague.
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First, Karen is looking for something on her desk when her colleague makes the query. She has probably lost her key card and the mouth spray, which is supposed to get rid of the cigarette odor. This possibly has led to the aggravated reaction towards her colleague. Secondly, Karen probably does not like Sally. It seems like Sally has replaced Jim in the office, and Karen is not happy about it. The fact that Karen is upset when the head of security offers to assist Sally and calls her name confirms that Karen does not like Sally that much. This could be another reason for her decision not to assist Sally. From her call to the head of security the previous day, it sounds like she was flattering him. Sally seems to be a competitor for the attention of the male colleagues in the office.
Karen's mood had a significant impact on her decision to help Jim and not Sally. When Jim made the query, she was in a good mood, which influenced her decision to assist him. However, when Sally enquired, Karen was in emotional distress. She had probably lost her key card, and the mouth spray, and Jim was no longer her colleague. Studies show that when people are in emotional distress, they tend to be involved in risky decision making (Bruyneel et al. 2009). Karen's decision not to assist risks her reputation in the office as an unwelcoming colleague. However, she still decides because of her emotional distress.
Also, Karen was trying to regulate her mood by the time Sally made the query, thus the adverse reaction. Studies show that effective mood regulation attempts to deplete the available cognitive resources for self-control (Bruyneel et al. 2009). As a result, when people experience negative affect (mood), they actively try to regulate their mood and often lose their self-control (Zajonc, 1980). Karen was probably looking for her key card and mouth spray in an attempt to improve her mood. She, however, lost self-control and reacted aggressively towards Sally's query.
The mood can also impact decision making in life or death situations. For instance, in a murder trial, the recollections of an eye witness can significantly influence the outcome of the trial. Research shows that mood has a significant influence on the memory of an eye witness. Negative mood elicits systematic information processing, which would lead to accurate recollections of the witness during a trial (Forgas et al. 2005). A positive mood, on the other hand, limits the accuracy of the information provided by an eye witness. This is because systematic processing of information during and after witnessing the murder is impaired by positive mood, thus leading inaccurate information.
References
Bruyneel, S. D., Dewitte, S., Franses, P. H., & Dekimpe, M. G. (2009). I felt low and my purse feels light: Depleting mood regulation attempts affect risk decision making. Journal of Behavioral Decision Making , 22 (2), 153-170.
Forgas, J. P., Laham, S. M., & Vargas, P. T. (2005). Mood effects on eyewitness memory: Affective influences on susceptibility to misinformation. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology , 41 (6), 574-588.
Zajonc, R. B. (1980). Feeling and thinking: Preferences need no inferences. American psychologist , 35 (2), 151.
