[...] emotions—some positive and helpful (I’ve worked hard and I can ace this presentation;...), others negative and less so (He’s purposely ignoring me;...).
I searched online dictionaries and find just the definition below:
less so Contextual comparative. Modifies another adjective (to which the "so" is a direct anaphoric reference), indicating a lesser degree of the quality in question.
So, Does the sentence above means some emotions are negative and less nagative?