33/Facial Expressions and Emotions

Gendered Perceptions

• Anger: Often perceived as a more masculine emotion (Becker et al., 02/2007, Figure 33.3).

• Empathy: Plays a crucial role in inspiring kindness and our willingness to help each other, even at personal cost (Comment, Jammel Zaki, 02/2019).

• Gender Differences in Empathy:

  • Women are more likely to express empathy and display emotions when observing others' emotions.

  • Figure 33.4 illustrates this gender difference, showing that women displayed more emotion when watching sad film clips (Krausz et al., 02/2012).

  • Individuals lower in power, like women historically, often feel a stronger urge to understand others' emotions (Deets & Knowles, 2016).

Culture and Emotion

• Cultural Differences in Gesture Interpretation:

  • The "thumbs up" gesture, while positive in many cultures, can be offensive in certain West African and Middle Eastern countries (Fleming & Scott, 1991; Kerner, 2003).

• Universality vs. Cultural Specificity of Facial Expressions:

  • Researchers have explored whether facial expressions have different meanings across cultures by showing photos of posed faces to people worldwide (Ekman, 2016; Ekman & Friesen, 1975; Isaac, 1994; Nelson et al., 02/2013).

  • Figure 33.5 presents a task of labeling emotions in photos to demonstrate this concept.

• Identifying Basic Emotions:

  • The exercise in Figure 33.5 involves identifying emotions like disgust, anger, fear, happiness, sadness, and surprise.

• Happiness:

  • Recognizing a smiling face as happiness is generally universal across cultures (Matsumoto & Edmund, 1989).

• Variations in Recognizing Other Emotions:

  • Perception of emotions like anger and fear can differ across cultures.

  • We are better at judging faces from our own culture, as if we learn a local emotional "dialect" (Criglia Adal, 2016).

• Facial Expressions and Information Intake:

  • Surprise raises eyebrows and widens eyes, enabling us to take in more information.

  • Disgust wrinkles the nose, reducing intake of foul odors.

• Subtle Facial Cues:

  • Figure 33.7 uses sketches to demonstrate how subtle facial cues can convey emotion, like anger (Franklin et al., 02/2019).

• Display Rules:

  • Display rules dictate how much emotion to express.

• Cultural Bias Toward Positivity:

  • Westerners often exhibit a bias toward enthusiastic positivity.

  • For example, 40% of students on an American campus were seen smiling, compared to only 20% in Beijing (Telltale et al., 02/2019).

• Cultural Differences in Job Applications:

  • European American job applicants use more excited smiles and words compared to applicants in Hong Kong, where calmness is emphasized.

  • European American leaders also express broader smiles more frequently in their official photos.

The Power of Facial Expressions

• Facial expressions convey immediate emotions effectively.

• The perceiver often understands the emotion without needing to translate it into words.

• Paul Ekman highlighted that facial expressions allow others to see our feelings.

• A smile is a powerful long-distance transmitter of emotion, recognizable from a distance.

Landmark Study of Facial Expressions in Papua New Guinea

• In the 1960s, Paul Ekman lived with an isolated Stone Age culture in the highlands of Papua New Guinea.

• These individuals had minimal contact with the outside world and had never seen photographs or other media.

• Ekman aimed to determine if facial expressions were universal or changed with societal development.

• He conducted studies where he showed them photographs and asked them to identify emotions based on stories.

• He also asked them to act out expressions.

• The results showed that the facial expressions used by this isolated culture were the same as those used in industrialized societies.

• Ekman suggested that these universal expressions reveal a set of core human emotions.

• The six basic facial expressions identified were happiness, sadness, disgust, surprise, anger, and fear.

Influence of Facial Expressions on Feelings (Facial Feedback Effect)

• Charles Darwin (1872) argued that outward signs of emotion intensify the emotion itself.

• Example: Giving way to violent gestures will increase rage.

• The act of faking a smile or frown can influence feelings.

• Experiments have shown that inducing students to make a frowning expression can lead to feelings of anger, disgust, or sadness.

• Constructing a fearful expression (raising eyebrows, widening eyes) can also influence emotions (Close et al., 1989).

• James and Darwin were correct and expressions communicate, amplify, and regulate emotion.

• The facial feedback effect has been found across many cultures and for many basic emotions.

• Going through the motions can awaken emotions (Kratty et al., 2018).

• Leaning back and taking deep breaths when angry or stressed can help to lessen the emotion.

• Positive social media posts can create a ripple effect, leading friends to also express more positive emotions (Kramer, 2012).