Emotion	Arousal	Valence	Core Use Case
Celebratory	High	Positive	Success, achievements, milestones
Calming	Low	Positive	Reassurance, gentle guidance
Urgent	High	Neutral	Warnings, time-sensitive actions
Playful	Medium-High	Positive	Fun interactions, games
Professional	Low	Neutral	Business contexts, credibility
Mysterious	Medium	Neutral	Reveals, discovery moments
Energetic	High	Positive	Active, dynamic experiences
Frustrated	Medium-High	Negative	Error states (use sparingly)
Trustworthy	Low	Positive	Security, data handling
Anticipatory	Medium	Neutral	Loading, waiting states
Delightful	Medium-High	Positive	Easter eggs, surprises
Focused	Low	Neutral	Deep work, minimal distraction
Welcoming	Medium	Positive	Onboarding, first impressions

Arousal-Valence Model

Based on Russell's circumplex model of affect:

                    HIGH AROUSAL
                         |
        Frustrated       |       Celebratory
        Urgent           |       Energetic
                         |       Delightful
    ─────────────────────┼─────────────────────
    NEGATIVE             |             POSITIVE
                         |       Welcoming
        Focused          |       Trustworthy
                         |       Calming
                         |
                    LOW AROUSAL

Emotion Parameter Mapping

Each emotion maps to specific animation parameters. See references/emotion-profiles.md for complete implementation details.

Quick Reference

Emotion	Duration	Exaggeration	Easing	Spring
Celebratory	1.2x	1.6x	spring-bouncy	damping: 8, stiffness: 180
Calming	1.4x	1.1x	ease-in-out-gentle	damping: 30, stiffness: 80
Urgent	0.8x	1.3x	emphasized-accelerate	damping: 30, stiffness: 400
Playful	1.1x	1.6x	spring-bouncy	damping: 10, stiffness: 200
Professional	1.0x	1.1x	standard	damping: 25, stiffness: 150

Brand Attitude Modifiers

Brand	Emotion Bias	Exaggeration Adjust	Duration Adjust
Elegant	+calming, +professional	-20%	+10%
Playful	+playful, +delightful	+30%	+0%
Bold	+energetic, +urgent	+20%	-10%
Friendly	+welcoming, +trustworthy	+10%	+5%

Context Modifiers

Context	Duration	Exaggeration	Secondary
First visit	+20%	+10%	+20% intensity
Repeat user	-10%	-10%	-10% intensity
Reduced motion	-50%	0	Disabled
Low power mode	-20%	-20%	-30% intensity

Emotion Blending

For scenarios requiring mixed emotions, use weighted averaging:

Common Blends

Blend	Emotions	Weights	Use Case
Confident Success	celebratory + trustworthy	70/30	Payment confirmation
Gentle Play	playful + calming	60/40	Children's apps
Business Welcome	professional + welcoming	50/50	B2B onboarding
Secure Alert	urgent + trustworthy	60/40	2FA prompts

Accessibility Considerations

Emotion-Safe Patterns

Emotion	Accessibility Risk	Mitigation
Urgent	Anxiety induction	Clear resolution path, no rapid flash
Frustrated	Stress amplification	Keep brief, offer help
Energetic	Motion sensitivity	Provide reduced alternative
Celebratory	Distraction	Allow dismissal

Reduced Motion Mapping

When prefers-reduced-motion: reduce is active:

Original Emotion	Reduced Alternative
Celebratory	Gentle fade + success icon
Playful	Standard transition
Energetic	Quick fade
Frustrated	Static error state + icon

Quick Reference: Emotion Selection

What's the user feeling or should feel?
├── Positive outcome → Celebratory
├── Error occurred → Frustrated (brief) → Offer resolution
├── Waiting → Anticipatory
├── Learning something new → Welcoming
├── Making a decision → Professional
├── Playing/exploring → Playful
├── Achieved something → Delightful
├── Needs reassurance → Calming
├── Time pressure → Urgent
├── Security context → Trustworthy
├── Deep work → Focused
└── Discovery moment → Mysterious

Implementation Checklist

Identify primary emotion for interaction
Check brand compatibility
Apply context modifiers (first visit, device, preferences)
Generate parameters using formula
Implement reduced motion alternative
Test emotional resonance with users

Related Skills

animation-recipes - Pre-built animations for common emotional contexts
accessibility - WCAG compliance for all emotional animations
easing - Curve selection for different emotional profiles
duration - Timing selection based on emotional context

emotion-mapping

Emotion Mapping

Emotion Taxonomy

Primary Emotions