DISGUST AND ITS ADAPTIVE FUNCTIONS: BETWEEN SURVIVAL AND SOCIAL REGULATION
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.56238/revgeov17n4-081Keywords:
Disgust, Basic Emotions, Contamination, Social Regulation, Morality, Neurobiology, Culture, Mental HealthAbstract
The article analyzes disgust as a basic human emotion from its biological, psychological, and social dimensions. Initially oriented toward protection against pathogens, this emotion expanded to regulate symbolic boundaries, moral norms, and interpersonal relationships. The text describes different modalities—basic disgust, bodily violation disgust, interpersonal disgust, and moral disgust—and examines their neurobiological correlates, cognitive processes, and behavioral manifestations. The role of culture and subjectivity in defining what is perceived as repugnant is highlighted, as well as the clinical implications, including its relationship with anxiety, depressive, and eating disorders. It concludes that disgust is central to survival and social organization, but may also underlie exclusion and prejudice.
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