Tips on Using
Relationship Targets

The type and intensity of emotion that is acceptable can depend on the relationship as well as the situation (see Relationship Targets). Around a stranger, it is safer to keep all of your emotions in the outer levels of the Emotions Color Wheel. With friends, who are closer to you and know you better, you can show more intense emotions. You should show less intense emotion to an authority figure than to family or close friends. As an example, if you are upset by a grade you got on a paper, you might be ‘distraught’ when describing it to a friend, but when talking about it to a teacher it would be wiser to be ‘disappointed’. The less you know someone and the further it is from the center of the Relationship Target circle, the less intense the emotional expressions should be and the further it should be from the black center of the Emotion Color Wheel.