THE NERVOUS SYSTEM 169 



Professor Cannon's views as to the function of 

 adrenaline. This brings us to Cannon's "emer- 

 gency theory." In times of stress as when a per- 

 son suffers pain, or is in an agitated state of mind 

 a chemical factor, in the shape of adrenaline, 

 cooperates with nervous factors in an attempt to 

 meet the emergency and not be overcome by it. 

 That is why, according to Cannon, we find an in- 

 creased output of adrenaline in times of stress. 



But we must be careful not to misinterpret this 

 view of Cannon's. "The concept of an emotion 

 may be expressed either in psychological terms of 

 subjective experience or in physiological terms of 

 bodily change. Adrenal secretion is not essential 

 to the subjective experience of strong emotion. 

 Adrenaline has its effect peripherally, on outlying 

 viscera. An assumption that subjective feeling de- 

 pends on circulating adrenaline involves support- 

 ing the view that emotion as a psychological state 

 is the consequence of visceral changes. I have, in 

 fact, definitely argued against this view. If the 

 critics of the emergency theory conceive emotion 

 as bodily change, they will find in Cannon's con- 

 sideration of the interrelations of emotions the 

 point emphasized that it is the sympathetic division 



adrenal glands is not manifested. There is little wonder, there- 

 fore, that Stewart and Rogoff, who alone have employed the 

 pocket method, with its attendant severe abdominal operation 

 and repeated manipulation of the abdominal contents, failed to 

 obtain the positive results which have been obtained by all other 

 observers." 



