[Actuality of Wallon's emotional model: toward a "body-psychosocial" model of emotions].

Author focuses on qualitative approach of emotions with their human function. She postulates that emotions would be one of the way of the mind's body-inscription. A short presentation of the actual discussion, within psychoneurology and cognitive psychology, shows the lack of a developmental perspective. From the Wallon's emotions theory, the author presents a model that allows to go beyond this limit and to redefine the primary function of emotions: the "body-psycho-social Wallon's model" of emotions. Wallon's emotional model focuses on the interaction between body-image and psycho-social construction. This model: a) fixes the emotions into automatisms, but these automatisms are already in link with the social world (through the sense of the mother's language), b) establishes the integrative function of antagonisms (between mind and automatisms, between emotions and mind, between emotions and automatisms). This model shows that emotion's function cannot be reduce to the adaptative response to an unpredictable situation (cognitive or motor). The initial function of emotions concerns the communication system, or better, the first function of emotions is a search for action on family circle, by means of mimicry with ambient and emotional contagion. This emotional system is completely dependent (addicted) on the environment. It gives a "tool" to put in coordination with its environment: a) it favours the setting up of an instant empathy within infant and family circle, b) it makes easier the mind and motor accommodation, c) it put in the necessary plasticity for the emergence of the consciousness.