Differences in the use of emotion metaphors in expert-lay communication

In this chapter I traverse the empirical cycle to analyze the use of conceptual metaphors for anger, love, and sadness in authentic discourse between experts and laypersons. The results gained by examining corpus data of expert-lay communication in psychology guide me in formulating my hypothesis regarding the factors that account for the differences between experts and laypersons in metaphor use. Following the empirical cycle, this hypothesis is then tested by collecting evidence from a methodologically different study in which data are elicited in guided interviews with laypersons. Relating the evidence from the two studies leads to a refinement of my initial hypothesis about the aspects contributing to the differences in the use of emotion metaphors between experts and laypersons.