The people involved will also affect each other’s emotions in three main ways:
- Firstly, by direct interpersonal emotion regulation (where each person deliberately makes an effort to influence, in some way, the other’s emotions);
- Secondly, by emotional contagion (where each person’s emotions automatically and unconsciously affect the other’s); and
- Thirdly, by each other’s appraisal of emotional displays by the other.
This cycle continues over and over and is not linear. Remember that people may experience multiple emotions at the same time, or in quick succession, so various iterations of this cycle may be in progress at any given time in an interaction.
Generally, the advice seemed to be move to separate sessions and try to spend equal time with each party, irrespective of whether they were the person expressing strong emotion or the person observing it / to whom it was directed.