Affect and Emotion

A New Social Science Understanding

Absolutely essential reading for those wanting to understand the recent 'turn' to affect. Offering an extensive analysis of all the perspectives available, including the psycho, neuro, bio and social, Margie Wetherell treads a magisterial path through the radically different offerings, one that illuminates key ideas and will save the uninitiated wandering down many pointless avenues. A path-setting book.

Engagingly well written and using up-to-the-minute research, this book will be indispensible for those who want a comprehensive overview of 'where we are now' in research on emotions. But more than this, by developing an original model of 'affective practices', which focuses on the affective assemblages operating in concrete situations, it suggests a way forward that will prove inspirational for new research in this field. 

The book is a valuable addition not only to the study of affect and emotion, but also to the rest of social science research. Emphasizing the importance of social interaction, it embarks on an ambitious debate on the subject. Readers already familiar with the field will get the most out of this title.

This important book is a brilliant corrective to some of the careless, poorly psychologically informed work on affect. It is essential reading for all those seriously interested in the topic.