Afectivitat

Afectivitat, or affectivity, refers to the set of processes, states, and expressions related to affect and emotion in humans. It encompasses the capacity to experience, express, and regulate affective states, as well as the tendency to form emotional bonds with others. The term derives from Latin affectus and is used across psychology, education, philosophy, and social sciences to describe how people feel, show their feelings, and manage them in social contexts.

In psychology, affectivity includes both the valence of emotional reactions (positive and negative affect) and the ways these feelings influence perception, cognition, and behavior. It covers affective experience (feeling states), affective expression (facial, vocal, and gestural signals), affect regulation (strategies to modulate intensity and duration of emotions), and affective attachment (emotional bonds and closeness with others). Temperament and mood are related dimensions that shape overall affective life.

Cultural and contextual factors shape affectivity: norms about when and how to express emotion, family dynamics, and social roles influence emotional life. In education and clinical practice, affectivity is considered in two ways: the affective climate of interaction (how warmth, trust, and emotional safety support learning and well-being) and the diagnostic or therapeutic relevance of affective dysregulation (as seen in mood or personality disorders).

See also: affect, emotion, mood, temperament, attachment.