On the transfer of emotions and moods between people - the mechanism and psychological determinants of affective contagion

Affective contagion is a process of transferring emotions or moods between persons. Although research (especially conducted in the United States) shows that this phenomenon plays a great role in understanding changes of affective states that occur in the presence of other people, it has not yet attracted the attention of Polish psychologists. Thus, the aim of the article was to describe the phenomenon of affective contagion. Particular emphasis was placed on the differentiation between two kinds of processes - emotional and mood contagion - together with their underlying mechanisms. Manifestations and consequences of the spread of affective states through contagion, as well as psychological determinants of susceptibility to the transfer of moods and emotions were also discussed. peerReviewed publishedVersion