Valence, also known ashedonic tone, is a characteristic of emotions that determines theiremotional affect (intrinsic appeal or repulsion).
Positive valence corresponds to the "goodness" or attractiveness of an object, event, or situation, making it appealing or desirable. Conversely, negative valence relates to "badness" or averseness, rendering something unappealing or undesirable.
This concept is not only used to describe the intrinsic qualities of objects and events but also categorizes emotions based on their inherentattractiveness oraverseness.[1][2]
The use of the term in psychology entered English with the translation from German ("Valenz") in 1935 of works ofKurt Lewin. The original German word suggests "binding", and is commonly used in a grammatical context to describe the ability of one word to semantically and syntactically link another, especially the ability of averb to require a number of additional terms (e.g. subject and object) to form a complete sentence.[3]
The termchemical valence has been used in physics and chemistry to describe the mechanism by which atoms bind to one another since the nineteenth century.
Valence is an inferred criterion from instinctively generated emotions; it is the property specifying whether feelings/affects are positive, negative or neutral.[2] The existence of at least temporarily unspecified valence is an issue for psychological researchers who reject the existence of neutral emotions (e.g.surprise, sublimation).[2] However, other psychological researchers assume that neutral emotions exist.[4] Two contrasting views in the phenomenology of valence are that of a constrained valence psychology, where the most intense experiences are generally no more than 10 times more intense than the mildest, and the Heavy-Tailed Valence hypothesis, which states that the range of possible degrees of valence is far more extreme.[5]
Some philosophers question whether the structure of affective experience supports a strict positive-negative valence binary. For example, it has been argued that while suffering is clearly negatively valenced, introspective attempts to identify a phenomenologically opposite state—such as “anti-suffering”—fail to reveal a distinct experiential counterpart. This suggests that valence may not always correspond to simple oppositional categories. Rather than a linear scale, emotional valence might reflect a more complex and asymmetrical space of affective states, where the absence of suffering is not necessarily equivalent to the presence of pleasure.[6]: 47
Valence could be assigned a number and treated as if it were measured, but the validity of ameasurement based on asubjective report is questionable. Measurement based on observations of facial expressions, using theFacial Action Coding System andmicroexpressions (seePaul Ekman) or muscle activity detected throughfacial electromyography, or on modern functionalbrain imaging may overcome this objection. The perceived emotional valence of afacial expression is represented in the right posteriorsuperior temporal sulcus and medialprefrontal cortex.[7]
"Negative" emotions likeanger andfear have anegative valence.[8] But positive emotions likejoy have apositive valence. Positively valenced emotions are evoked by positively valenced events, objects, or situations.[9] The term is also used to describe the hedonic tone offeelings, certainbehaviors (for example, approach and avoidance), goal attainment or non-attainment, and conformity with or violation ofnorms.Ambivalence can be viewed as conflict between positive and negative valence-carriers.
Theorists taking a valence-based approach to studyaffect, judgment, and choice posit that emotions with the same valence (e.g., anger and fear orpride andsurprise) produce a similar influence on judgments and choices.Suffering is negative valence and the opposite of this ispleasure orhappiness.
