The state of passion in criminal law is mitigating. Affect from a psychological point of view

Science perceives affect as a complex phenomenon - a combination of mental, physiological, cognitive and emotional processes. This is a short-term peak state, or, in other words, the reaction of the body during which psychophysiological resources are thrown into the fight against stress that has arisen under the influence of the external environment.

Affect is usually a response to an event that has occurred, but it is already based on a state of internal conflict. The affect is provoked by a critical, most often unexpected situation, from which a person is not able to find an adequate way out.

Specialists distinguish between ordinary and cumulative affect. In the first case, the affect is due to the direct impact of the stressor on a person, in the second case, it is the result of the accumulation of relatively weak factors, each of which individually is not capable of causing a state of affect.

In addition to excitation of the body, affect can provoke inhibition and even blocking of its functions. In this case, a person is seized by any one emotion, for example, panic horror: in a state of asthenic affect, a person, instead of active actions in a daze, watches the events unfolding around him.

Affect is sometimes not easy to distinguish from other mental states. For example, affect differs from ordinary feelings, emotions and moods in intensity and short duration, as well as the obligatory presence of a provoking situation.

There are differences between affect and frustration. The latter is always a long-term motivational-emotional state that arises as a result of the inability to satisfy one or another need.

It is more difficult to distinguish between affect and trance, since they have much in common. For example, in both states there are violations of conscious volitional control of behavior. One of the main differences is that trance, unlike affect, is caused not by situational factors, but by painful changes in the psyche.

Experts also distinguish between the concepts of affect and insanity. Although the characteristics of the individual's behavior in both states are very similar, in affect they are not random. Even in situations where a person is not able to control his impulses, he becomes their prisoner of his own free will.

Physiological changes during affect

Affect is always accompanied by physiological changes in the human body. The first thing that is observed is a powerful release of adrenaline. Then comes the time of vegetative reactions - the pulse and respiration become more frequent, blood pressure rises, spasms of peripheral vessels occur, coordination of movements is disturbed.

People who have suffered a state of passion observe physical exhaustion and exacerbation of chronic diseases.

Affect is usually divided into physiological and pathological. The physiological affect is an intense emotion that completely takes over the consciousness of a person, as a result of which control over one's own actions is reduced. Deep stupefaction of consciousness in this case does not occur, and the person usually retains self-control.

A pathological affect is a psycho-physiological reaction that is rapidly flowing and characterized by a sudden onset, in which the intensity of the experience is much higher than with a physiological affect, and the nature of emotions is centered around such states as rage, anger, fear, despair. With a pathological affect, the normal course of the most important mental processes - perception and thinking - is usually disrupted, a critical assessment of reality disappears, and volitional control over actions is sharply reduced.

The German psychiatrist Richard Kraft-Ebing drew attention to a deep disorder of consciousness in pathological affect, with the consequent fragmentation and confusion of memories of what happened. And the domestic psychiatrist Vladimir Serbsky attributed pathological affect to states of insanity and unconsciousness.

According to doctors, the state of pathological affect usually lasts a matter of seconds, during which there is a sharp mobilization of the body's resources - a person at this moment is able to demonstrate abnormal strength and reaction.

Despite the severity and short duration, psychiatrists distinguish three phases of pathological affect.

The preparatory phase is marked by an increase in emotional tension, a change in the perception of reality, and a violation of the ability to adequately assess the situation. At this moment, consciousness is limited by the traumatic experience - everything else does not exist for it.

The explosion phase is already directly aggressive actions, which, according to the description of the Russian psychiatrist Sergei Korsakov, "have the character of complex arbitrary acts committed with the cruelty of an automaton or machine." In this phase, facial reactions are observed that demonstrate a sharp change in emotions - from anger and rage to despair and bewilderment.

The final phase is usually accompanied by a sudden depletion of physical and mental strength. After it, there may be an irresistible desire for sleep or a state of prostration, characterized by lethargy and complete indifference to what is happening.

The Criminal Code of the Russian Federation distinguishes between crimes committed with mitigating and aggravating circumstances. Given this, a murder committed in a state of passion (Article 107 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) and infliction of serious or moderate bodily harm in a state of passion (Article 113 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) are classified as mitigating circumstances.

According to the Criminal Code, affect acquires criminal legal significance only in the case when “the state of sudden strong emotional excitement (affect) is caused by violence, bullying, severe insult on the part of the victim or other unlawful or immoral actions (inaction) of the victim, as well as prolonged psychotraumatic a situation that has arisen in connection with the systematic unlawful or immoral behavior of the victim.

Lawyers emphasize that the situation that provokes the emergence of an affect must exist in reality, and not in the imagination of the subject. However, the same situation can be perceived differently by a person who has committed a crime in a state of passion - this depends on the characteristics of his personality, psycho-emotional state and other factors.

The sharpness and depth of an affective outburst is by no means always proportional to the strength of the provoking circumstance, which explains the paradoxical nature of some affective reactions. In such cases, only a comprehensive psychological and psychiatric examination can assess the mental functioning of a person in a state of passion.

We often hear about affect when it comes to any illegal act: "murder in the heat of passion." However, this concept is not limited to criminal topics. Affect can both destroy and save a person.

Affect - causes, manifestations, help

In clinical psychiatry, the term affect is a synonym for the concept (term) emotions.

In psychology affect called a short-term and very pronounced emotional state. This happens if a person subjectively does not see the possibility of getting out of a critical or life-threatening situation. A feeling of lack of options for solving a problem that is stressful or traumatic for this particular person can lead to a state of affect. Moreover, it is necessary to understand that a pronounced emotional reaction is associated with a person's subjective acceptance of a situation that is not always perceived by others as critical. Also, an affective state can be observed when a person experiences very strong positive emotions - sudden joy, delight.

In particular, the state of creative inspiration can also be called a state of passion. If a composer writes a funeral march, it can be assumed that he has an affect of grief, and if a prelude about tenderness, an affect of love.

Affect always manifests itself as a strong emotional reaction to an already existing situation and often occurs not only with a threat to physical existence, but also with certain not only negative, but also positive events.

The affect, according to the definition of some authors, can give a discharge in action that is not subject to conscious volitional control, as well as strong and relatively short-term emotional experiences, accompanied by pronounced motor and visceral manifestations.

The main reasons that most often cause a state of affect can be:

critical or extreme situation associated with a threat to life,
deep and prolonged conflict, especially if a person experiences criticism, doubts about his abilities or humiliation,
overly emotional conflict situation,
the need to make a decision or take a certain action in conditions of severe time pressure,
the need to act, combined with a personal strong conviction that it is impossible to act,
a pronounced desire to satisfy some needs and the realization that it is impossible to get what you want in this situation,
a sharp, unexpected external influence at a time when a person does not have his own plan of action,
repeated repetition of similar psycho-traumatic effects,
successful marriage or desired divorce,
appointment to the desired position or dismissal from work,
winning a large amount of money
skydiving or other extreme pleasures.

Probability of occurrence affective states largely depends on the personal characteristics of a person, his character and temperament, education and upbringing, attitudes and needs. In impulsive, unbalanced people, the state of affect is observed much more often. For negative affect, the emergence of a feeling of anger and even rage is most often characteristic, since a person is not ready to reconcile or cannot realize that it is impossible to get what he wants.

The main signs of affect can be called the explosive nature of the reaction, the short duration of the course and high intensity. A violent and brightly colored emotional reaction entails a change in the main characteristics of attention, and a person perceives only those things that are associated with a frightening situation. He is poorly aware of the presence of other stimuli and, accordingly, does not respond to them.

The state of affect is characterized by difficulty in concentrating and analyzing the consequences of one's own actions. As a rule, in a situation of affect, the individual does not act rationally, since at this moment he is not sufficiently able to consciously control his behavior.

It must be taken into account that the state of passion is characterized by other reactions than those that are characteristic of him in his usual state, when he observes accepted social norms. in a state of passion, a person may be inclined to commit stereotyped, patterned actions. Superstrong arousal caused by a traumatic situation that has arisen leads to a weakening of control over one's own actions, reduces the ability to think rationally, and therefore often leads to behavior that is dangerous both for oneself and for others.

A person in a state of passion has significant changes in the functioning of the autonomic system (increased or slowed pulse and respiration, vasoconstriction, sweating, tremor) and changes in the voluntary motor sphere (obvious coordination disorders, inhibition or pronounced excitation).

In this state, there is a disorder of consciousness in the form of a twilight state of consciousness (narrowed consciousness) with subsequent complete loss of memory for the entire period of pathological affect.

Despite the fact that the affect is always short-lived, there are several phases in its development.

Some authors also distinguish other types of affect, for example,

cumulative(reaction to regularly occurring traumatic situations or prolonged traumatic impact);

affect of inadequacy(manifested in aggression, most often associated with high expectations and as a reaction to failures), etc.

In people with personality disorders (excitable, explosive psychopaths), affective states are observed quite often. In order to prevent a violent emotional reaction, you need a long work with a professional psychologist, psychotherapist. The specialist, together with the client, will identify and eliminate those attitudes that provoke an excessive reaction to negative statements or certain actions of other people.

In the pre-affective phase, when a person is still able to adequately assess what is happening, such actions can be taken.

Human life is full of emotions. The more acutely a person experiences feelings, the brighter life becomes. They are conditionally divided into negative and positive. Uncontrolled negative emotions are called affect, because at this time a person performs uncontrollable actions. The article considers examples of affect, which manifests itself in special states, signs and for certain reasons.

Particular attention is paid to this issue in criminal law, where affect is of great importance, since the offender can receive a shorter term if he was in this state. The affect has several types, which will also be discussed in the article.

What is affect?

If we take the emotional side of affect, then it is expressed in two components: negative emotions and motor activity. What is affect? These are strong experiences that manifest themselves in a hopeless, dangerous stressful situation and cause motor activity and organic manifestations.

A person's consciousness at the moment of stress narrows, and the will is suppressed. A person ceases to think, because even after the passage of the affect, he is not able to realize the reasons for his behavior. they capture a person so strongly that he no longer thinks, but reacts.

The uncontrolled actions of people is one area of study for manipulators. From there comes the science of reading people by their gestures, facial expressions, body posture, voice intonation, etc. This sphere of a person allows other people to manipulate and get everything they need from him. People who are well acquainted with how to cause uncontrollable actions in a person are great manipulators.

The effect of suggestion is directly proportional to the amount of money paid. Notice how easily a person succumbs to the idea that the most expensive things are of high quality and functional. And what happens to a person if he acquires such a thing? It lends itself to any idea that is advertised with this thing. In other words, a person will never believe that he bought "junk" if he spent a lot of money on it. And until the effect of suggestion wears off, the person will uncontrollably believe that he has bought a quality item.

Under the influence of sudden fear, a person grabs at the place where there is something important to him. You can find out where your money is (in which pocket or bag?), If you accidentally scare you. This also happens because you are not in control of your actions at such moments. But your short, abrupt movements tell manipulators what they want to know from you. And for this, it is important for them to touch only that emotion that will provoke you to the reaction that is interesting to them.

Obviously, the uncontrolled actions of people are a defensive reaction, but also "traitors" who give out all the secrets. However, knowing this will allow you to sometimes restrain yourself from doing things that happen without your will.

Affect is a field of study of criminal law, since criminals often attribute their illegal actions to this state. The state of affect is characterized by a surge of emotions and violent movements that a person shows within a few minutes. However, this is enough to commit a criminal act.

It is in a state of passion that a person's ability to control himself is reduced. Therefore, in criminal law it is called "reduced legal capacity".

Affect in psychology

Affect can be attributed to the emotional sphere, since it manifests itself in the same mechanisms as emotions. A person reacts to external stimuli. Depending on the internal attitude towards them, he experiences positive or negative emotions. However, in psychology, affect is perceived not as part of the inner "I" of a person, but as an external manifestation.

Affect in psychology is strong, vivid and short-term experiences that significantly narrow the mind and awaken energy for action.

Emotions help a person adapt to the world around him. External stimuli provoke a certain attitude towards oneself. However, the strength of emotions causes one or another state of mind. Usually, when affected, a person does not remember some details. This is characterized by memory depression. A person may not remember the events that preceded the affect, their actions during the event, or what they did after.

When affected, a person loses control over himself. This is called oppression of the higher mental function. A person simply performs actions, sometimes without even realizing them. They seem to be controlled by other forces, someone else's will. He himself does not understand what he is doing, which becomes interesting in criminal law.

The reason for the emergence of affect in psychology is the situation when a person is in a stressful state, while he does not see a way out. The lack of a solution to a problem that is important to a person causes intense fear, combined with internal excitement. The affect can be compared to the loss of a sense of security and protection. When a person loses the basic sense of security, he falls into affect - the desire to eliminate a dangerous situation.

Psychologists and philosophers of all times have studied this phenomenon. To date, affect in psychology acts as a special state that develops at specific critical moments that arise unexpectedly. This state is referred to as biological, instinctive, since a person seems to obey his bestial nature, and not conscious thinking.

Pay attention to how a person behaves when something that is unpleasant to him suddenly happens. You urgently need to go to work that a person is not interested in, or suddenly an old enemy has appeared, or you have lost money. What happens at the very moment when a person learns bad news?

A person is not able to control personal emotions and reactions in the first seconds of something unpleasant, disliked, annoying. You can track yourself or other people, what really worries them, interests them and how they treat you, which is noticeable only in stressful situations. A person does not control himself, it would be more accurate to say that he does not want to control himself when he does not like something. At this very moment, fear, excitement disappear, and a person begins to do what he considers necessary, fearlessly, confidently and boldly. It is in a stressful situation that a person does not try to be someone, but becomes himself, allowing himself to do what protects him from the stress factor. And along with this, he finally demonstrates his attitude towards those people who are next to him at this time.

In a stressful situation, a person does not control himself, that is, he shows his true nature. Observe yourself, and you will understand what you really want, how you really relate to certain people. Watch other people and you will see their desires and attitudes towards you that they hide at other times. This is an occasion to think about why you are deceiving yourself, other people do not tell you the whole truth. What you see should be noticed and taken seriously, since this is also part of nature, which always manifests itself in stressful situations that happen almost every day.

Types of affect

Affect is different in its manifestations. Here are the types of affect, which are characterized by their characteristics:

Physiological - a sane state in which a person can understand what is happening and what he is doing. It is often singular. Formed against the background of limitations in the psyche.
Pathological - a condition in which a person does not control his actions. He is called insane, because he completely loses consciousness and there is a lack of will. Psychologists note it as a condition requiring treatment, since the function between the balance of inhibition and excitation of the nervous system is impaired.
Cumulative - a condition that develops against the background of constant or periodic exposure to an irritant on a person. In other words, it can be called an affective explosion, when “a person cannot withstand” tension.
Interrupted - a state that is interrupted by an external stimulus.
Negative - a condition that depresses the psyche and motor activity.
Positive - a state in which a person loses his tendency to analytical narrowing. He begins to think in a stereotyped way, his decisions become lightning fast, and his actions are reactive, that is, thoughtless.
The affect of inadequacy is a condition that develops against the background of failures. This happens in situations where a person overestimated his own abilities too high and was sure that he was ready to achieve a result, but the reality turned out to be different. Psychologists note it in people with high self-esteem. When a failure occurs, a person is not able to adequately respond to it, which is expressed in aggression, irritability, anger, anger, hysteria.

Affect manifests itself in three phases:

Preparatory (pre-affective) - there is some understanding of what is happening, but it is gradually erased. The perception of the situation is gradually oppressed, emotions become stronger.
Reaction (affective explosion) is the very state of passion, when the will is suppressed, psychological processes become chaotic, and actions are performed chaotically, quickly and uncontrollably. There are only two reactions here: run away and hide, or repel and attack.
The initial (post-affective, final) is the depletion of a person’s physical and mental resources, which stops him from committing acts. There may be a desire to sleep.

Signs of affect

The main signs of affect are manifested in external manifestations that others can describe, as well as in internal experiences that the person himself speaks about.

External manifestations:

Uncontrolled motor activity.
Change in speech and facial expressions.
Change in appearance.

Internal feelings:

"Everything was like a dream."
"I vaguely remember."
"Something broke inside."

If we turn to criminal law, then the affect is described in it in the following terms:

Explosive nature.
Profound mental changes.
Sudden occurrence.

Affect refers to emotional experiences of a strong nature. Man expresses his inner feelings in different ways. Affect is characterized by such mental factors:

Acute dissatisfaction.
Specific hormonal, autonomic and other physiological changes.
High mental energy and the desire for discharge.

In addition to the fact that a person changes in facial expression and begins to perform chaotic actions, a change in thinking and attention is traced behind him, when he is not able to concentrate, distribute, concentrate it. A person loses control over his actions, and also becomes unable to make decisions.

The effect becomes:

Short term in duration.
Unconscious.
With dominant emotions.
With a high intensity of experiences.
Expressive.
Spontaneous.
With amnesia.

A person in a state of affect experiences the following sensations:

Disorientation in time, space, culture, situation, etc.
Feeling of hopelessness.
Sleep disturbance: first, the complete absence of drowsiness, and then the desire to sleep.
Chronic fatigue, high fatigue, the occurrence of diseases.
Feeling of alienness of actions: "It was as if it were not me, but someone controlled me."
Distortion of perception, appearance of illusions, narrowness of consciousness.
Loss of reality.
Loss of control over actions.

Affect is a violent reaction that manifests itself in chaotic actions and changes in consciousness, when a person may not even understand what is happening. Outwardly, he becomes "not himself."

Affect in criminal law

Particular attention is paid to affect in criminal law, since many criminals refer to the uncontrollability of their own actions that they have committed. How much a person was under the influence of passion is decided by specialists who diagnose the defendant in criminal law.

A sign of affect is a violation of mental activity, which led to the unconsciousness of the consequences of one's own actions. The attention of the defendant is directed to the object of irritation, which causes emotional stress, which leads to the loss of the ability to choose one's own behavior. A person does not choose and does not think, but is sharpened to eliminate the object of irritation.

In forensic psychiatry, affect is considered a state in which a person is unable to control his own actions. They seem to happen on their own. If it has been proven that a person was under the influence of passion, then this becomes a serious reason for commuting the sentence. However, there must be special conditions for this.

Psychology does not name clear stimuli that can lead to affect. Since criminal law must be clear and specific, for this reason special conditions have been identified that are considered provoking an affective state:

Victim abuse.
Violence.
Psychotraumatic situation of a long nature.
Mockery.
Illegal or immoral actions of the victim.

A distinctive feature of affect in criminal law is the suddenness of its occurrence. Witnesses and the victim himself may say that "they did not expect what would happen." Indeed, a person does not think in advance of his own actions. A stimulus arises sharply, which leads to an affect that manifests itself in criminal actions. The situation becomes one-time and significant for the accused.

The first person to diagnose affect is the lawyer. It is he who is given the role to initially determine whether the offender was in a state of passion. This is done on the following points:

What preceded the criminal acts? If situations are identified that are considered objective for the occurrence of affect, then the lawyer can declare an affective state when committing a crime.
Behavior of a criminal when committing illegal acts. If they can be defined as affective, then the lawyer insists on them.
What did the perpetrator do after the committed actions? If he does not remember anything, he was “not himself”, which is confirmed by the testimony, then they become a serious reason for mitigating the sentence.

The state of passion and its examples

In affect, stages of development are traced, which are manifested in external behavior. How a person behaves will be discussed with examples. The state of passion begins with sudden excitement, which less quickly turns into inhibition, which is accompanied by fatigue, loss of strength, and stupor. All this is accompanied by emotional excitement, which completely disappears at the stage of inhibition, is pacified.

If at the stage of development of an affect it is still possible to pacify emotional unrest, then at the moment of its manifestation this becomes impossible. That is why many people note the futility of trying to stop a person in a state of passion. If you look into his eyes, you can see something different there than was usually seen there.

A person in a state of passion really becomes different. This is due to the fact that his higher mental system is completely oppressed. There remains only the body and instincts, which are subject to emotions that have arisen under the influence of the psyche. There are two types of behavior of people in a state of passion:

Expression of rage, screaming, stormy and strong movements.
A manifestation of confusion, despair, delight.

There are examples of how mentally weak people in a state of passion have committed actions that they would never have done in a calm state.

Examples of affect can be such situations:

Beating an opponent, whom the husband found in bed with his wife.
Overcoming a high barrier when an angry dog is chasing a person.
Knocking down a door or striking a wall where a deep dent is formed.
Beating his wife while intoxicated.
A sudden cry that occurs after a stormy conversation on an unpleasant topic.

Many criminal acts are committed on the basis of passion, but only a few of them are considered justified. Here, a person’s inability to restrain his own emotions, control their development, and calm himself is noted.

Causes of affect

The duration of the influence of a negative factor leads to the appearance of one or another emotional state. The causes of affect are traumatic situations that arise right now. A person does not enter into a state of passion only from memories of something unpleasant. At the moment, some traumatic and mentally unpleasant situation must occur in order to provoke the condition in question.

Here are such common situations - the causes of affect:

A threatening, dangerous, physically traumatic situation that has the potential to cause harm.
Shortage of time - the need to act quickly or react in a short period of time.
Sudden strong irritation of a person when he does not have a plan of action in such a situation.
A protracted conflict or a highly emotional situation of an unpleasant nature.
The emergence of a conflict between the need to act and the impossibility or unwillingness to act.
Periodic repetition of a traumatic situation.
Individual features and structure of the nervous system (instability, mobility).
The impact of others, in which a person’s self-esteem is affected and his feelings are injured.
Impulsivity and heightened emotionality.
Difficult memories that destroy existence.

Much depends on the attitude of a person to what is happening. It also depends on the structure of the nervous system of each individual. One will be able to remain calm, the other will react very violently. Some emotions can be controlled if a person is engaged in self-education and development of an adequate attitude to what is happening.

It is necessary to single out the overestimation of the requirements that are kept in constant tension. If a person expects too much from himself or assumes the obligation to meet the expectations of others, then he causes constant stress in himself. You can't always be successful and please everyone. Facing failure instantly provokes a gamut of bad feelings, guilt, and fear of what other people will say. If people notice a failure and point it out, it can lead to an affective response.

When a person is humiliated, subjected to emotional pressure or suppression of his self-esteem, this also leads to the development of affect. A person cannot withstand external pressure and explodes.

No emotions - no problems. Conflict situations arise only when a person succumbs to his negative emotions, which tell him: “I don’t want this to happen. I imagined something else." And you, succumbing to emotions, begin to change the situation, other people and circumstances. You want your way, but you get a rebuff in the form of problems, quarrels with other people, illnesses, etc. You just succumbed to emotions that didn’t like something, after which you decided to change the world to suit your desires. However, if you did not succumb to your emotions, you would simply experience a certain situation that would have gone unnoticed in the past. You would not betray the situation of any significance, which means that it would be a thing of the past without creating any problem.

affect treatment

Depending on the state in which the person is and what has already been done, an individual course of treatment of affect is prescribed. It is usually recommended to contact a psychologist if the affect is single. If depression and accompanying suicidal thoughts occur, hospitalization is necessary, which implies constant supervision by doctors. Here, 5 ml of aminazine solution 2.5% is used.

If affect is a factor in psychosis, then treatment is prescribed by a psychiatrist who will control manic and depressive states. Antidepressants are prescribed here. Electroconvulsive therapy is used when it is impossible to achieve the effect of drug treatment. Mania is eliminated with neuroleptics: Clopixol, Azaleptin, Tizercin. Manic patients are hospitalized because they are capable of causing harm to others.

If euphoria is observed during affect, then the person is hospitalized, as this may indicate intoxication or disorders in the brain.

If we are talking about mentally and physically healthy people, it will be enough to undergo a course of treatment with a psychologist who will help in resolving internal unrest.

How to control your emotions? Most likely, you have noticed that it is impossible to control something that you cannot feel, measure, or lock. Emotions are something invisible, quickly arising, filling. Sometimes feelings are so strong that it is impossible to control them. What can you do with something that cannot be held in your hands?

There is no need for control. Understanding and monitoring are the actions that will help you cope with your emotions.

Firstly, it should be understood that you will not be able to calm emotions or forbid yourself to feel them. They don't ask your permission. Moreover, they occur even before you begin to feel them. It is impossible to stop an invisible train that has already accelerated and is rushing along the knurled track.

Secondly, you still need to understand that emotions are not controlled, but monitored and understood. You must understand how you feel and track exactly how your emotions manifest in you. How exactly are you angry? What makes you do resentment? What reaction do you feel happy or disappointed in? Usually people wonder about the control of negative emotions, since the reactions, actions and consequences of positive emotions please everyone.

Thirdly just don't do what your emotions make you do. Feeling a negative emotion, you have certain desires. The offended one has a desire to take revenge, the disappointed one wants to retire, the angry one wants to hurt. But you can choose not to do what your emotions make you do. This will be exactly the same control that you dream of, because you are not satisfied not with what you feel, but with what you begin to do under the guidance of your emotions. The most ideal way out of the situation is not to do what your emotions provoke you to do.

You can feel, experience, feel your emotions. All people experience emotions - this is quite normal. And the best control over your own feelings is not to do what they make you do, but to decide for yourself what actions to take.

Get distracted by something else that is not related to the object that causes the affect.
Change environment or activity.
Calm down your motor reactions, for example, by doing breathing exercises.

If the above tips do not give the desired result, then you should seek psychological help.

Outcome

A person must understand that emotions are not bad, but they must be understood and controlled. The result of the developing affect can become sad: a person will commit an illegal act that will put him in prison for a long time or send him to a psychiatric hospital. Healthy people are advised not to indulge their emotional state and control their own experiences.

When a person succumbs to the influence of his emotions, then problems arise. Pay attention, when a person is calm, he considers his every step. He traces the consequences of his actions, and then decides whether to do something or not. But when a person is under the influence of his emotions, he does not think about whether he needs to do something or not. He just takes and does what the feelings that overwhelm him at the moment tell him.

Emotions, as you know, are not always only positive. Often, literally any little thing can spoil your mood: someone stepped on your foot, the boss does not give you a salary or scolded you for the work done, your loved one yelled because you didn’t do something, etc. Every day there are many factors that can cause negative emotions. And what happens when you give in to them?

No emotions - no problems. Why is that?

Firstly because you don’t guess, you don’t think, you don’t give the situation an emotional color. You just look at what is happening with a sober and cold look, seeing everything as it really happens. You don’t think out on your own what could happen if something else happened, you don’t guess what other participants in a particular situation were thinking, you don’t give an assessment of what is happening, whether you like it or not. You simply look at the situation as it unfolds in front of you, taking into account only what you see, without any emotional colors.

Secondly, you perceive any situation as it is. If something unpleasant is said to you, then you calmly listen to it, because you do not connect emotions. You just hear what they say or do, without thinking about whether you like it or not. And this, in turn, does not give you a chance to create a problem out of what is happening. Yes, you can say unpleasant things. But if you listen calmly, silently draw your conclusions and say nothing to the interlocutor, then there will be no quarrel. Your opponent expressed his opinion, you made your conclusions - everyone was satisfied.

Live without problems. Feel your emotions, but don't let them take over. Look at the events calmly, indifferently, without emotions. Based on your composure, draw conclusions, make decisions and act. Let emotions rage on their own, and you kind of step back from them so that they do not prevent you from thinking soberly and clearly. This will save you not only from affect, but also from other negative emotional states.

Affect- a state around which there are still many rumors and "urban legends". What is this state in fact, what is a person capable of in it, and what will be the consequences for him from the point of view of criminal law? About everything - in our article.

What is a state of affect

With regard to criminal law, people who are poorly versed in law and forensic psychiatry tell different things about the state of passion. It is often argued, for example, that such a state can be simulated - then, they say, you won’t have to answer for the murder.

In fact, it's not like that at all. Affect is a state when a person, under the influence of extremely strong emotions, performs actions that are weakly amenable to conscious control (for example, commits violence against the one who aroused such emotions in him). Although such a reaction is absolutely normal (anyone, even the most calm and balanced person, can be brought to an affect), it cannot be simulated.

Any negative emotion (fear, despair, anger, etc.) can cause such a state, but an affective state is reflected not only in the human psyche, but also in his bodily state. As a result, a qualified medical examiner can easily detect physiological consequences (or lack of them) at an examination conducted shortly after the affect.

Types of affect

Medical specialists distinguish several varieties of affect:

Physiological. Here, the affect occurs in a mentally healthy person under the influence of a situation that severely injures his psyche, causes moral or physical suffering. In simple terms, a person endures to a certain limit, and then “explodes”, while he is no longer able to control his actions. It is the almost complete lack of self-control that affects affect and differs from a simple attack of anger or rage. Although he who is in a state of passion practically does not perceive words, it is still possible to reason with him. At the same time, it is important to pay attention to the word “practically”: a person still has the remnants of control during affect, therefore he will be responsible for his actions according to the law.
Pathological. Such an affect arises as one of the symptoms of mental illness, as a kind of attack.
Under the influence of PAS (psychoactive substances). These substances include drugs, alcohol, and some other substances of similar effect. The reaction to intoxication, for example, is individual for everyone, but in practice, the alcoholic affect, in which the drunk does not understand what he is doing, is, unfortunately, quite common. Moreover, alcohol is one of the types of surfactants that provoke aggression. In historical terms, the behavior of the Scandinavian berserkers can be partly called affective. True, historians believe that their famous "fighting frenzy" was more of a simulation.

It should be noted that from the point of view of modern psychiatry, a person can have a physiological affect only once in a lifetime. This is a limiting (and even prohibitive) stress reaction, the probability of recurrence of which is practically equal to zero. The pathological affect can also be repeated if this is facilitated by the current disease.

In addition, experts note intermediate options between physiological and pathological affects. So, in persons who have suffered severe craniocerebral injuries or infectious diseases that affect the brain, with general sanity, conditions were sometimes noted that were not the usual physiological affect, but did not reach the depth of the pathological affect.

When does an affective state occur?

If we do not take into account cases when the sick or intoxicated fall into an affect, then such a condition may occur in a healthy person:

Suddenly, as a result of a very sharp but brief experience.
As a result of a prolonged situation that traumatizes the psyche, when some next circumstance, although insignificant in itself, becomes the last straw that triggers a state of passion. The situation that led to the affect can unfold over days, months, and even years. The latter is especially common when a murder in the heat of passion is committed on the basis of domestic violence.

Here, more than ever, individual differences in the human psyche are sharply manifested: circumstances that one person hardly notices, another can bring to passion and commit criminal acts. That is why the investigation of crimes committed in this state, without fail, requires the involvement of experts of the appropriate profile (psychologists, psychiatrists, etc.).

Significance of affect in criminal law

Criminal law singles out affect as a special sign of a crime in 2 cases:

If in this state the perpetrator committed murder.
If bodily harm is caused, relating to the category of serious or medium. In relation to minor harm, the affect is not particularly distinguished and, from the point of view of the law, does not matter.

In both cases, the legislator emphasizes that the emotional excitement that led to the affect must arise under the influence of the victim. In the actions of the person affected in these cases, there must be a desire to intentionally insult, humiliate or commit violence. Accordingly, the victim of a crime in a state of passion can only be the one who brought the perpetrator to such a state. If outsiders have suffered, the offender's reference to an affective state is not taken into account and does not play a role in qualifying the crime.

It should be noted that for qualification under criminal law, the physiological affect that arose in a mentally healthy person is taken into account. The pathological affect of a mentally ill person is the subject of attention not so much of the investigation and judges as of psychiatrists. In this case, the person who committed the crime is not punished, but sent for compulsory treatment.

Internal signs of an affective state

From the side, affect can manifest itself in different ways, but there are a number of common points. They allow us to judge with certain certainty whether a person is already in this state or is on the verge of a breakdown.

From the point of view of the person himself, the signs of affect are:

Sensory disturbances. The state of affect can affect hearing (blood noise in the ears), vision (darkness in the eyes or, on the contrary, “white fire”, a hazy look), tactile and even pain sensitivity (a person receives wounds, cuts, burns, but does not respond to them ).
Change in skin color: sudden pallor or, conversely, redness of the face.
Sharply accelerated heartbeat. Those who have been in an affect often use expressions such as "the heart jumped out of the chest", "the pulse beat right in the throat."
Speech disorder. At the peak, a person may generally lose the ability to talk due to spasm of the muscles of the jaws and throat. If he nevertheless tries to utter something, the voice becomes characteristically “clashing”, suppressed.
Trembling of the limbs, sudden sweating or excessive dryness of the palms.
Upset stomach and intestines (diarrhea, constipation, nausea).
At the end - a sharp decline in strength, a decrease in tone, a feeling of deepest fatigue (even if there were no physically difficult actions). There were cases when, after a murder in a state of passion, the offender simply fell and fell asleep next to the victim.
Memory disturbances: a person may not remember at all or vaguely remember what he did while in an affect.

External signs

People around you can pay attention to the following behaviors:

In the first phase, when the affect has not yet begun, but the tension is growing, the person becomes fussy, makes erratic and uncoordinated movements.
He does not perceive well the speech addressed to him, hardly remembers information, loses flexibility in responding to the situation.
The main feature is the suddenness and explosive nature of the reaction. The affect lasts from tens of seconds to 2-3 minutes, no longer.

Doctors can also detect the effects of affect in the form of changes in the hormonal composition of the blood, changes in pulse, pressure, etc.

Is it possible to interrupt an affective state

A characteristic feature of affect is that it does not lend itself to volitional control on the part of the person himself. Thus, it can neither be called consciously nor canceled once it has already begun to unfold.

However, experts note that outside interference can interrupt the unfolding affect. More precisely, the psychological and physiological mechanisms will continue to operate, but in a more smoothed form, as a result, a person will be able to calm down without performing poorly controlled actions.

How to prove the state of passion in the murder? This question has been repeatedly resolved by our criminal lawyer. The infliction of death on a person necessitates the initiation of a case under Article 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for murder. However, the commission of the act in question does not always have a direct intent. Cases of causing death as a result of inappropriate actions of the victim are not rare.

The commission of an act in a state of sudden powerful "outburst" of anger should be qualified as a crime in the heat of passion. Why is retraining from Art. 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation at art. 107 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation? It's simple, the punishment is so different that if under Art. 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, it is pointless to hope for a suspended sentence, the practice of sentencing for murder in a state of passion, on the contrary, indicates hundreds of examples of a “soft” sentence. our law office will give you the opportunity to achieve justice.

Watch the video with our lawyer's advice on the composition of murder, art. 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, subscribe to the channel:

The question is natural - how to prove the state of passion during the murder?

In order to obtain an expert opinion on the presence of affect (during the investigation or in court) that the defense party needs, our lawyers pay attention to the following:

Actions and behavior of the victim. According to criminal law, the cause of murder in the heat of passion is necessarily long-term (for several years) bullying, insults, immorality, wrongfulness and cynicism of the victim's behavior. When you get into the situation under consideration, a person’s behavior, his attitude to everyday life changes dramatically and dramatically - a change of interests, lack of proper self-care, negligence towards himself, etc. Such a long-term psychotraumatic situation gives rise to a depressive state of a person, according to which there is only one possible way out of such a situation - suicide. In this case, our lawyers identify the irritant that appeared against the background of the listed facts.
life threat. In this case, there is always a conflict with the victim.
Awareness of reality. As a rule, the state of emotional affect is accompanied by explanations of the person about the facts with the presence of the phrases “I vaguely remember”, “something broke in me”, “as in a dream”, etc. At the same time, all attention, all thoughts are concentrated exclusively on the object of irritation - the victim. In such a state, a person is not aware of the consequences of his actions. The result of this is "confusion" in colors, sizes of objects located at the time of the act, etc.
Signs of the act itself. As a rule, in the considered stressful state, a person is able to perform actions that he is not capable of in a normal situation. In addition, the affect is accompanied by speech disorders - there are screams, erratic phrases.
memory loss. Emotional overstrain is often associated with a partial loss of memory about the circumstances preceding the conflict. When committing a murder in an affective state, a person may not be aware of the onset of death at all or believe that it was all a “dream”. Also a characteristic feature is "loss in time", a violation of temporal orientation.
Consequences of affect. Strong emotional excitement necessarily ends in its sharp decline - loss of strength, fatigue, stupor, etc. The listed circumstances have an external expression in the form of pallor of the skin, trembling of the limbs. The "heartless", "cold" attitude to what is happening also directly indicates the need to establish an affective state.

The task of our law firm in this case is to determine the specific facts that a person really remembers.

It is important to note that indecisive and timid people are predisposed to affect. In ordinary life, their aggression is always expressed in the most correct and acceptable forms.

ATTENTION: The above facts allow us to answer the question - how to prove the state of passion in the examination, because this is psychology - an area of special knowledge. But without consulting our lawyer, who resolved this issue in practice, you should not try to build a line of defense on your own. Errors in behavior and steps can lead to the inability to correct the situation in the future.

To prove the existence of a state of passion, criminal lawyers of our bureau:

on the issue of reclassification of the alleged crime to a milder article of the criminal law;
prepare motions to call and interrogate additional witnesses, requesting the necessary documentation;
develop and agree on a defense position with you at the upcoming interrogation;
supervise the interrogation process defendant for completeness and compliance with criminal procedural legislation;
cook application for retraining crimes, as well as changing the measure of restraint to a milder one (since, with a change to article 107 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, murder in a state of passion, the crime goes into the category of minor gravity);
in case of refusal to retrain, they accompany the process appeals this decision of the investigation in higher authorities, as well as in court;
participate in the defense in court on the issue of reclassification of a crime from Art. 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation to 107 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation;
conducts an independent legal investigation within the framework of the case;
provides other legal assistance to its client.

ATTENTION: watch a video about defending the rights of the accused by a lawyer and subscribe to our YouTube channel, you will have access to free legal assistance from a lawyer through comments on the video.

Affect- these are emotional, strong experiences that arise when it is impossible to find a way out of critical, dangerous situations, associated with pronounced organic and motor manifestations. Translated from Latin, affect means passion, emotional excitement. This condition can lead to inhibition of other mental processes, as well as the implementation of appropriate behavioral reactions.

In a state of passion, strong emotional agitation narrows the consciousness and limits the will. After the experienced unrest, affective special complexes arise, which are triggered without awareness of the reasons that caused the reaction.

Causes of affect

The most important cause of affect are circumstances that threaten the existence of a person (indirect or direct threat to life). The reason can also be a conflict, a contradiction between a strong desire, attraction, desire for something and the inability to objectively satisfy the impulse. For the person himself there is an impossibility of understanding this situation. The conflict can also be expressed in the increased demands that are placed on a person at a given moment.

An affective reaction can be provoked by the actions of others that have affected a person’s self-esteem and thereby traumatized his personality. The presence of a conflict situation is mandatory, but not sufficient for the emergence of an affective situation. Of great importance are the stable individual psychological characteristics of the personality, as well as the temporary state of the subject who is in a conflict situation. In one person, circumstances will cause a violation of a coherent system of behavior, while in another they will not.

Signs of affect

The signs include external manifestations in the behavior of the person who is accused of a crime (motor activity, appearance, peculiarities of speech, facial expressions), as well as the sensations experienced by the accused. These feelings are often expressed by the words: “I vaguely remember what happened to me”, “something seemed to break in me”, “feelings like in a dream”.

Later, in the works of criminal law, the sudden emotional excitement began to be identified with the psychological concept of affect, which is characterized by the following features: explosive nature, suddenness of occurrence, deep and specific psychological changes that remain within the limits of sanity.

Affect refers to a sensual, emotionally excited state experienced by an individual in the process of all life activity. There are different signs by which emotions, feelings, affective reactions are distinguished. The modern use of the concept of affect, denoting emotional excitement, has three conceptual levels:

1) clinical manifestations of feelings associated with a spectrum of experiences of pleasure or displeasure;

2) associated neurobiological phenomena, which include secretory, hormonal, autonomic or somatic manifestations;

3) the third level is associated with psychic energy, instinctive drives and their discharge, signal affects without the discharge of drives.

Affect in psychology

The emotional sphere of a person represents special mental processes, as well as states that reflect the experiences of an individual in different situations. Emotions are the reaction of the subject to the acting stimulus, as well as to the result of actions. Emotions throughout life affect the human psyche, penetrating into all mental processes.

Affect in psychology is strong, as well as short-term emotions (experiences) that occur after certain stimuli. The state of affect and emotions are different from each other. Emotions are perceived by a person as an integral part of himself - "I", and affect is a state that appears beyond the will of a person. The affect occurs in unexpected stressful situations and is characterized by a narrowing of consciousness, the extreme degree of which is a pathological affective reaction.

Mental excitement performs an important adaptive function, preparing a person for an appropriate reaction to internal and external events, and is marked by a high severity of emotional experiences that lead to the mobilization of psychological as well as physical human resources. One of the signs is a partial loss of memory, which is noted not in every reaction. In some cases, the individual does not remember the events that precede the affective reaction, as well as the events that occurred during the emotional excitement.

Psychological affect is marked by the excitation of mental activity, which reduces control over behavior. This circumstance leads to a crime and entails legal consequences. Persons in a state of mental agitation are limited in their ability to be aware of their actions. Psychological affect has a significant impact on a person, while disorganizing the psyche, affecting its higher mental functions.

Types of affect

There are such types of emotional excitement - physiological and pathological.

Physiological affect is an uncontrolled discharge that appears in an affective situation with emotional stress, but does not go beyond the norm. Physiological affect is a non-painful emotional state that represents a rapid and short-lived explosive reaction without a psychotic change in mental activity.

Pathological affect is a psychogenic disease state that occurs in mentally healthy people. Psychiatrists perceive such excitement as an acute reaction to traumatic factors. The height of development has disturbances according to the type of twilight state. The affective reaction is characterized by sharpness, brightness, three-phase flow (preparatory, explosion phase, final). A tendency to pathological conditions indicates a violation of the balancing of the processes of inhibition and excitation in the central nervous system. For pathological affect, emotional manifestations are inherent, often in the form of aggression.

In psychology, the affect of inadequacy is also distinguished, which is understood as a stable negative experience provoked by the inability to succeed in any activity. Often, affects of inadequacy appear in young children when voluntary regulation of behavior is not formed. Any difficulty that caused dissatisfaction of the needs of the child, as well as any conflict, provokes the emergence of emotional unrest. With improper upbringing, the tendency to affective behavior is fixed. Under unfavorable conditions of upbringing, children show suspicion, constant resentment, a tendency to aggressive reactions and negativism, and irritability. The duration of such a state of inadequacy provokes the formation and consolidation of negative character traits.

Affect in criminal law

Signs of affect in criminal law are a loss of flexibility in thinking, a decrease in the quality of thought processes, leading to an awareness of the immediate goals of one's actions. A person's attention is focused on the source of irritation. For this reason, due to emotional stress, the individual loses the opportunity to choose a behavior model, which provokes a sharp decrease in control over his actions. Such affective behavior violates expediency, purposefulness, and also the sequence of actions.

Forensic psychiatry, as well as forensic psychology, relates the state of passion to the limiting ability of the individual to realize the actual nature, as well as the social danger of his act and the inability to control it.

Psychological affect has minimal freedom. A crime committed in a state of passion is considered by the court as a mitigating circumstance, if certain conditions are met.

The concepts of affect in criminal law and in psychology do not coincide. In psychology, there is no specifics of negative stimuli that provoke a state of affective reaction. There is a clear position in the Criminal Code that speaks about the circumstances that can cause this condition: bullying, violence, insult on the part of the victim or a long-term psycho-traumatic situation, immoral and illegal actions of the victim.

In psychology, affect and strong emotional excitement that have arisen are not identical, and criminal law puts an equal sign between these concepts.

Affect as a strong short-term emotional excitement is formed in a person very quickly. This state occurs suddenly for others and the person himself. The proof of the presence of emotional excitement is the suddenness of its occurrence, which is an organic property. Strong emotional excitement can be caused by the actions of the victim and needs to establish a connection between the affective reaction and the act of the victim. This condition should suddenly appear. The suddenness of its appearance is closely related to the emergence of the motive. The following situations precede the sudden emotional strong excitement: bullying, violence, grave insult, immoral and illegal actions. In this case, an affective reaction arises under the influence of a one-time event, as well as a significant one for the most guilty event.

The state of passion and its examples

Affective reactions have a negative impact on human activity, lower the level of organization. In this state, a person commits unreasonable actions. Extremely strong excitation is replaced by inhibition and, as a result, ends with fatigue, loss of strength, and stupor. Disturbances of consciousness lead to partial or complete amnesia. Despite the suddenness, emotional excitement has its own stages of development. At the beginning of an affective state, one can stop emotional emotional excitement, and at the final stages, losing control, a person cannot stop on his own.

To postpone an affective state, huge volitional efforts are needed to restrain oneself. In some cases, the affect of rage is manifested in strong movements, violently and with cries, in a furious facial expression. In other cases, despair, confusion, delight are examples of an affective reaction. In practice, there are cases when physically weak people, experiencing strong emotional excitement, do things that they are incapable of in a calm environment.

Examples of the state of affect: the spouse unexpectedly returned from a business trip and personally discovered the fact of adultery; a frail man beats several professional boxers in a state of affective reaction, or knocks down an oak door with one blow, or inflicts many mortal wounds; a drunkard-husband commits constant scandals, fights, fights on the basis of drinking alcohol.

Affect treatment

Treatment of an affective state includes emergency measures, which include the establishment of supervision of a person and the mandatory referral to a psychiatrist. Depressed patients prone to suicide are shown hospitalization with enhanced supervision, and the transportation of such people is carried out under the supervision of medical staff. On an outpatient basis, patients with agitated depression, as well as depression with suicidal attempts, are shown injections of 5 ml of a 2.5% solution of Aminazine.

Treatment of affect with includes drug therapy that affects the manic and depressive phases of the disease. For depression, antidepressants of different groups are prescribed (Lerivol, Anafranil, Amitriprilin, Ludiomil). Depending on the type of affective reaction, atypical antidepressants are prescribed. Electroconvulsive therapy is used when it is impossible to carry out medical treatment. The state of mania is treated with such antipsychotics as Azaleptin, Clopixol, Tizercin. In the treatment, sodium salts have proven themselves well if the affective reaction takes a monopolar variant.

Manic patients are often hospitalized because their wrong and unethical actions can harm others and the patients themselves. In the treatment of manic states, neuroleptics are used - Propazine, Aminazin. Patients with euphoria also need hospitalization, since this condition means either the presence of intoxication or an organic disease of the brain.

Aggression in patients with epileptic is removed by hospitalization. If the depressive state acts as a phase of circular psychosis, then psychotropic drugs - antidepressants - are effective in the treatment. The presence of agitation in the structure requires complex therapy with antidepressants and neuroleptics. With psychogenic minor depression, hospitalization is not mandatory, since its course is regressive. Treatment includes antidepressants and sedatives.