disgusted
Disgust is a basic human emotion serving to protect individuals from touching or eating ingesting harmful substances such as spoiled food or faeces, which could carry disease. Later, it expanded to cover social and moral dimensions (see below).
It is interesting to note that young children often confuse the facial expression of disgust in others with anger. It is important to be able to interpret disgust on others, particularly if they are looking at YOU and looking disgusted by YOU. As adults, when we notice a look of disgust on someone’s face while they look at US, we usually try and think what we are doing that is disgusting the other person. This is part of being socially aware.
1. Core Disgust: This form is primarily related to sensory experiences (taste, smell, sight, touch) and involves physical revulsion, such as seeing rotten food or bodily fluids or feeling something slimy underfoot! It acts as a defensive reaction to potential pathogens.
2. Social Disgust: Extending from physical disgust, this refers to aversions linked to behaviors or people considered offensive. For example, seeing someone urinating in public.
3. Moral Disgust: Often closely tied to social norms, moral disgust arises when people encounter behaviors or situations that violate deeply held values or ethics. For example, someone stealing from a charity collection tin.
How to explain DISGUSTED to children
(When it comes to children, we generally speak about CORE DISGUST as explained above)
“Disgusted is how you feel when you think something is really yucky. You might make a scrunched-up face and say ‘Eww! YUCK!’ You might feel disgusted by a smell, by the taste of something, the look of something – or the feel of something on your hands. Not everyone feels disgusted by the same thing. When you are disgusted by something, you find that thing DISGUSTING – and you usually move away from it.”
Time to imagine
Here, Coco is feeling disgusted but we can’t see what Coco is being disgusted by. What do you think it MIGHT be? What MIGHT Coco find disgusting?
Relate it to the child
Think of something that makes you feel disgusted for each of the following: 1) when you smell it 2) when you taste it 3) when you see it 4) when you feel it/touch it 5) when you hear it