<p>Classically, we might call emotional volatility <strong>neuroticism.</strong>  We could also refer to a continuum of <strong>affective reactivity</strong> (high vs. low reactivity; e.g., <a href="http://www.psych.nmsu.edu/~ketelaar/papers_and_abstracts/affectandpersonality.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Gross, Sutton, &amp; Ketelaar, 1998</a>). </p>

<p><strong>Emotion dysregulation</strong> need not imply emotional volatility. For example, depressed patients show stable depressed mood or <strong>emotional inertia</strong> (<a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02699931.2014.916252" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Brose et al., 2014</a>), which is related to impaired <strong>affective updating</strong> under stress (<a href="http://web.stanford.edu/group/mood/cgi-bin/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Pe-Gotlib-Emotion-2015.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Pe et al., 2015</a>) and perseverative thinking (<a href="http://gerontology.wp.uncg.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/63/2014/08/Nolen-Hoeksema-Wisco-Lyubomirsky-2008.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Nolen-Hoeksema, Wisco, &amp; Lyubomirsky, 2008</a>).</p>

<p>A lot of these ideas can be pushed under the umbrella of <strong>affective dynamics</strong>, or how affect/emotions change over time (for recent theory, see <a href="http://emr.sagepub.com/content/7/4.toc" rel="nofollow noreferrer">this special issue of <em>Emotion Review</em>, 2015</a>).</p>

<p>We can also say that fluctuations in affect represent deviations from <strong>allostasis</strong> (<a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0031938411003076" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Sterling, 2013</a>), which motivate us to engage in self-regulatory behaviors that bring us back to allostasis (<a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1364661315000054" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Inzlicht, Bartholow, &amp; Hirsch, 2015</a>).  </p>

<p>As part of a predictive regulation framework, emotional instability may result from feedback dynamics between positive and negative predictions about the world (<a href="http://www.cell.com/trends/cognitive-sciences/pdf/S1364-6613(15)00174-6.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Eldar et al., 2015</a>; see the image below).  Relatedly, maladaptive priors and associated attentional biases (i.e., inappropriately weighted prediction errors) may also account for volatility (<a href="http://www.princeton.edu/~ndaw/hdd15.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Huys, Daw, &amp; Dayan, 2015</a>).</p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/jnLKc.png" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/jnLKc.png" alt="enter image description here"></a></p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-11-10T03:21:56.547Z
2015-11-10T03:27:00.087Z
2015-11-10T03:27:00.087Z
mrt
<p>This question starts out with some finance theory to set the scene:</p>

<p><strong>Background</strong></p>

<p>Let's consider the stock price of Google (the value of holding a share in Google). The volatility in Google's stock price is the degree of variation in that price. An implied volatility can be derived from the market price of an option.</p>

<p>An option is an instrument which gives the buyer a right to buy or sell a particular stock in the future at a particular price, if they want to. Volatility is one of the inputs required to price (determine the correct value) of an option. It is the range in which a a stock price is expected to fluctuate.</p>

<p>Organisations are often considered as organisms. Organic metaphors are often used to describe how organisations work.</p>

<hr>

<p><strong>Question</strong></p>

<p>If I was to use psychology to create a metaphor for volatility, what theory could I use?</p>

<p>If stock price is an individuals self worth or self esteem and an option price is their outlook on what their self worth might be at a point in the future. Finance theory would suggest that a correct view of future self worth would require something comparable to volatility.</p>

<p>Does it sound reasonable to consider volatility as emotional modulation? Emotional dysregulation at one end of the scale, a level head at the other? Is there a psychological term for level head?</p>

<p>Any good reading you would suggest to help me continue this comparison/analysis?</p>

<emotion>
Drawing Parallels Between Finance and Psychology: A Psychology Metaphor
DVCITIS
# Drawing Parallels Between Finance and Psychology: A Psychology Metaphor

(Asked by: username_0 on 2015-11-09)

This question starts out with some finance theory to set the scene:

**Background**

Let's consider the stock price of Google (the value of holding a share in Google). The volatility in Google's stock price is the degree of variation in that price. An implied volatility can be derived from the market price of an option.

An option is an instrument which gives the buyer a right to buy or sell a particular stock in the future at a particular price, if they want to. Volatility is one of the inputs required to price (determine the correct value) of an option. It is the range in which a a stock price is expected to fluctuate.

Organisations are often considered as organisms. Organic metaphors are often used to describe how organisations work.

---

**Question**

If I was to use psychology to create a metaphor for volatility, what theory could I use?

If stock price is an individuals self worth or self esteem and an option price is their outlook on what their self worth might be at a point in the future. Finance theory would suggest that a correct view of future self worth would require something comparable to volatility.

Does it sound reasonable to consider volatility as emotional modulation? Emotional dysregulation at one end of the scale, a level head at the other? Is there a psychological term for level head?

Any good reading you would suggest to help me continue this comparison/analysis?

**Tags:** emotion


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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2015-11-10. Score: 2 | Accepted answer

Classically, we might call emotional volatility **neuroticism.** We could also refer to a continuum of **affective reactivity** (high vs. low reactivity; e.g., [Gross, Sutton, & Ketelaar, 1998](http://www.psych.nmsu.edu/~ketelaar/papers_and_abstracts/affectandpersonality.pdf)).

**Emotion dysregulation** need not imply emotional volatility. For example, depressed patients show stable depressed mood or **emotional inertia** ([Brose et al., 2014](http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02699931.2014.916252)), which is related to impaired **affective updating** under stress ([Pe et al., 2015](http://web.stanford.edu/group/mood/cgi-bin/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Pe-Gotlib-Emotion-2015.pdf)) and perseverative thinking ([Nolen-Hoeksema, Wisco, & Lyubomirsky, 2008](http://gerontology.wp.uncg.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/63/2014/08/Nolen-Hoeksema-Wisco-Lyubomirsky-2008.pdf)).

A lot of these ideas can be pushed under the umbrella of **affective dynamics**, or how affect/emotions change over time (for recent theory, see [this special issue of *Emotion Review*, 2015](http://emr.sagepub.com/content/7/4.toc)).

We can also say that fluctuations in affect represent deviations from **allostasis** ([Sterling, 2013](http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0031938411003076)), which motivate us to engage in self-regulatory behaviors that bring us back to allostasis ([Inzlicht, Bartholow, & Hirsch, 2015](http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1364661315000054)).

As part of a predictive regulation framework, emotional instability may result from feedback dynamics between positive and negative predictions about the world ([Eldar et al., 2015](http://www.cell.com/trends/cognitive-sciences/pdf/S1364-6613(15)00174-6.pdf); see the image below). Relatedly, maladaptive priors and associated attentional biases (i.e., inappropriately weighted prediction errors) may also account for volatility ([Huys, Daw, & Dayan, 2015](http://www.princeton.edu/~ndaw/hdd15.pdf)).

[![enter image description here](https://i.sstatic.net/jnLKc.png)](https://i.sstatic.net/jnLKc.png)


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