The psychological theory of expectation that David Huron proposes in
Sweet Anticipation grew out of the author's experimental efforts to
understand how music evokes emotions. These efforts evolved into a
general theory of expectation that will prove informative to readers
interested in cognitive science and evolutionary psychology as well as
those interested in music. The book describes a set of psychological
mechanisms and illustrates how these mechanisms work in the case of
music. All examples of notated music can be heard on the Web.
Huron proposes that emotions evoked by expectation involve five
functionally distinct response systems: reaction responses (which engage
defensive reflexes); tension responses (where uncertainty leads to
stress); prediction responses (which reward accurate prediction);
imagination responses (which facilitate deferred gratification); and
appraisal responses (which occur after conscious thought is engaged).
For real-world events, these five response systems typically produce a
complex mixture of feelings. The book identifies some of the aesthetic
possibilities afforded by expectation, and shows how common musical
devices (such as syncopation, cadence, meter, tonality, and climax)
exploit the psychological opportunities. The theory also provides new
insights into the physiological psychology of awe, laughter, and
spine-tingling chills. Huron traces the psychology of expectations from
the patterns of the physical/cultural world through imperfectly learned
heuristics used to predict that world to the phenomenal qualia we
experienced as we apprehend the world.
