Nearly all research emotion research has been focused on either traditional emotion categories (Happy, Sad, Fearful, etc.) or bipolar spectrums thought to underlie our feelings (such as negative to positive valence). My work aims to use neuroscience to understand the ‘messier’ feelings we have traditionally overlooked. This research has involved developing the theories and experimental designs necessary for studying complex emotions. Neuroimaging work in this area has included the first study to show a spatiotemporally consistent neural signature for mixed emotions, and adult brain development during stressful but meaningful life transitions.