CENTER FOR RESEARCH IN
COGNITION & NEUROSCIENCES/ConnexConnex

Positive valence is the intrinsic positivity or pleasantness of an emotion, feeling, or mood. Emotion researchers disagree on whether positive valence is unidimensional - a single spectrum ranging from minimally positive to maximally positive - or multidimensional - a complex construct that accommodates multiple distinct ways an emotion can be experienced as positive. Using behavioural and self-report methods, this thesis investigates the dimensionality of positive valence across six studies. Studies 1 and 2 explore the structure of positive valence through factor analyses of positive emotion evaluations across candidate valence dimensions. Studies 3, 4, and 5 assess whether unidimensional or multidimensional implementations of positive valence in decision-making models better predict emotional decisions and preferences. Study 6 investigates whether abstract rankings of decontextualised positive emotions are driven by a shared evaluative dimension of positive valence or by distinct positive features unique to each emotion. As a whole, this work advances our understanding of how positive valence is represented across emotional experiences, evaluations, preferences, and decision-making, while addressing the central question of the structural dimensionality of positive valence.