Editing Jealousy (section)

=== In psychology ===

Jealousy involves an entire "emotional episode" including a complex narrative. This includes the circumstances that lead up to jealousy, jealousy itself as emotion, any attempt at [[Self control|self regulation]], subsequent actions and events, and ultimately the resolution of the episode.&nbsp; The narrative can originate from experienced facts, thoughts, perceptions, memories, but also imagination, guesses and assumptions. The more society and culture matter in the formation of these factors, the more jealousy can have a social and cultural origin. By contrast,&nbsp;jealousy can be a "cognitively impenetrable state", where education and rational belief matter very little.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Haslam|first1=Nick|last2=Bornstein|first2=Brian H.|date=September 1996|title=Envy and jealousy as discrete emotions: A taxometric analysis|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/bf02251889|journal=Motivation and Emotion|volume=20|issue=3|pages=255–272|doi=10.1007/bf02251889|s2cid=40599921|issn=0146-7239}}</ref>

One possible explanation of the origin of jealousy in [[evolutionary psychology]] is that the emotion evolved in order to maximize the success of our genes: it is a biologically based emotion selected to foster the certainty about the paternity of one's own offspring. A jealous behavior, in women, is directed into avoiding sexual betrayal and a consequent waste of resources and effort in taking care of someone else's offspring.<ref>{{cite journal| doi=10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01619| doi-access=free| title=The Evolutionary Psychology of Envy and Jealousy| year=2017| last1=Ramachandran| first1=Vilayanur S.| last2=Jalal| first2=Baland| journal=Frontiers in Psychology| volume=8| page=1619| pmid=28970815| pmc=5609545}}</ref> There are, additionally, cultural or social explanations of the origin of jealousy. According to one, the narrative from which jealousy arises can be in great part made by the imagination. Imagination is strongly affected by a person's cultural milieu. The pattern of reasoning, the way one perceives situations, depends strongly on cultural context. It has elsewhere been suggested that jealousy is in fact a secondary emotion in reaction to one's needs not being met, be those needs for attachment, attention, reassurance or any other form of care that would be otherwise expected to arise from that primary romantic relationship.

While mainstream psychology considers [[sexual arousal]] through jealousy a [[paraphilia]], some authors on sexuality have argued that jealousy in manageable dimensions can have a definite positive effect on [[sexual function]] and sexual satisfaction. Studies have also shown that jealousy sometimes heightens passion towards partners and increases the intensity of passionate sex.<ref>Emotions and sexuality. In K. McKinney and S. Sprecher (Eds.), ''Sexuality, in close relationships'' (pp. 49–70). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.</ref><ref name="Pines">Pines, A. (1992). ''Romantic jealousy: Understanding and conquering the shadow of love''. New York: St. Martin's Press.</ref>

Jealousy in children and teenagers has been observed more often in those with low self-esteem and can evoke aggressive reactions. One such study suggested that developing intimate friends can be followed by emotional insecurity and loneliness in some children when those intimate friends interact with others. Jealousy is linked to aggression and low self-esteem.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.apa.org/monitor/feb05/jealousy.html|title=Study links jealousy with aggression, low self-esteem|publisher=Apa.org|access-date=12 March 2012}}</ref> Research by Sybil Hart, PhD, at Texas Tech University indicates that children are capable of feeling and displaying jealousy at as young as six months.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Hart|first1=S.|last2=Carrington|first2=H.|year=2002|title=Jealousy in six-month-old infants|journal=Infancy|volume=3|issue=3|pages=395–402|doi=10.1207/s15327078in0303_6|pmid=33451216}}</ref> Infants showed signs of distress when their mothers focused their attention on a lifelike doll. This research could explain why children and infants show distress when a sibling is born, creating the foundation for sibling rivalry.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Hart|first1=S.|last2=Carrington|first2=H.|last3=Tronick|first3=E. Z.|last4=Carroll|first4=S.|year=2004|title=When infants lose exclusive maternal attention: Is it jealousy?|journal=Infancy|volume=6|pages=57–78|doi=10.1207/s15327078in0601_3}}</ref>

In addition to traditional jealousy comes [[Obsessional jealousy|Obsessive Jealousy]], which can be a form of [[Obsessive–compulsive disorder|Obsessive Compulsive Disorder]].<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://scinapse.io/papers/2805253447|title=Cognitive Analytic Therapy for Obsessive Morbid Jealousy: A Case Series {{!}} Scinapse {{!}} Academic search engine for paper|journal=Journal of Psychotherapy Integration|date=December 2018|doi=10.1037/INT0000122|language=en|access-date=22 February 2019|last1=Curling|first1=Louise|last2=Kellett|first2=Stephen|last3=Totterdell|first3=Peter|s2cid=149698347}}</ref> This jealousy is characterized by obsessional jealousy and thoughts of the partner.