Sex differences in identifying the facial affect of normal and mirror-reversed faces

The influences of sex and lateralized visual hemispace bias in the judgment of the emotional valence of faces during a free viewing condition are evaluated. 73 subjects (aged 18 to 52 yr.) viewed videotaped facial expressions of emotion in normal and mirror-reversed orientation and classified each face as a positive, negative, or neutral expression. There was a significant interaction between the sex of the rater and the orientation of the face that influenced the proportion of correct classifications. Male and female perceivers did not differ in the accuracy of their affect judgments for faces viewed in normal orientation, whereas reversal of the orientation of the faces resulted in a significant enhancement of accuracy judgments for the males but not the females. The results suggest greater cerebral lateralization of perceptual processes in males.     

Perceiver and poser asymmetries in processing facial emotion

This study examined both perceiver and poser asymmetries in processing facial emotion. Posers were left brain-damaged (LBD), right brain-damaged (RBD), and normal control (NC) right-handed males videotaped while expressing happiness and anger. Perceivers rated the facial expressions for asymmetry in original and reversed orientations. Overall, expressions viewed in the reversed orientation were rated as more left-sided than in the original orientation. In the reversed orientation, the more extensive left hemiface of the NCs and LBDs fell in the perceiver's left hemispace. This finding is consistent with previous research demonstrating a left hemispace bias for free-field viewing of emotional faces. Expressions were produced significantly more intensely on the left than the right hemiface by NCs and LBDs; expressions of RBDs were not significantly lateralized.     

Humorous responses to interpersonal complaints: effects of humor style and nonverbal expression

Based on disposition theory (Zillmann & Cantor, 1996), this study assessed reactions to vignettes in which individuals humorously respond to complaints from their partners. Vignettes varied based upon the sex and affective expression (positive/negative) of the speaker, and style of humor used (affiliative, aggressive, self-enhancing, self-defeating). Although males were rated as funnier than females, speakers were generally rated as more funny and likeable, and evoked less counterarguing, when they had positive facial expressions even when using negative humor styles. Aggressive humor garnered the highest evaluations of funniness, likeability, and credibility, but also the most counterarguing.     

多身份追踪中基于表情特征的分组效应

探讨了表情因素作为身份特征对多身份追踪中分组效应的影响。采用多身份追踪范式, 8个客体为表情图片(正性、负性、中性)其中4个为目标, 对45名被试进行了有无眉毛线索对追踪表现影响的测查。实验条件分别为：目标表情与非目标表情完全不相同组(4水平, 简称分组)、目标表情与非目标表情都由两种相同数量的表情混合组成(3水平, 简称配对)与基线组(8个客体表情相同)。发现分组水平的成绩显著优于基线组, 配对水平的成绩显著低于基线组, 并表现出了负性表情的追踪优势; 另外, 有无眉毛线索对追踪表现无显著影响。这一结果说明多身份追踪中存在基于表情特征的分组效应, 负性表情的分组知觉高于正性表情。     

Emotional responsiveness and obsessive-compulsive behaviour

Abstract

Several clinicians have proposed that patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) are unusually sensitive to unpleasant events. We tested a non-clinical sample of obsessive-compulsive (O-C) subjects who reported in diagnostic interviews that they experienced significant problems with obsessions and/or compulsions. Excerpts from three emotion-eliciting films were shown to 10 O-C males, 12 O-C females, 12 normal males, and 12 normal females. Emotional response was measured by using a self-report instrument and by recording facial expressions, which were coded for both appropriate emotional reactions as well as reactions that may represent efforts to mask or control the display of negative emotion. The groups did not differ with regard to subjective response to the film clips, but facial responses indicated that O-C subjects made more efforts to suppress the expression of fear (inappropriate smiles/laughs) during the frightening film clip. In spite of these responses, male O-C subjects also tended to reveal more frightened facial expressions than male control subjects. This finding is believed to illustrate one component of a model in which exaggerated emotional response is a precursor to the development of OCD.     

Encoding and decoding nonverbal cues of emotion.

Subjects ("senders") encoded six emotions twice, first via facial expressions and second via tone of voice. These expressions were recorded and presented for decoding to the senders and an additional group of judges. Results were as follows: (a) the ability to encode and the ability to decode both visual and auditory cues were significantly related; (b) the relationship between encoding and decoding cues of the same emotion appeared low or negative; (c) the ability to decode visual cues was significantly related to the ability to decode auditory cues, but the correlations among encoding (and decoding) scores on different emotions were low; (d) females were slightly better encoders, and significantly better decoders, than males; (e) acquaintance between sender and judge improved decoding scores among males but not among females; (f) auditory decoding scores were higher than visual decoding scores, particularly among males; (g) auditory decoding scores were relatively high if sender and judge were of the same sex, while visual decoding scores were relatively high if sender and judge were of opposite sexes; (h) decoding scores varied according to channel of communication and type of emotion transmitted.     

表达抑制调节负性情绪的男性优势——来自事件相关电位的证据

生活经验和文献证明,男性相比女性有更少的情绪表达行为。据此,本研究假设表达抑制进行负性情绪调节具有男性优势,而采用认知重评调节时可能没有该性别差异。在不同的实验阶段,被试分别采用自由观看、表达抑制和认知重评策略观看负性情绪图片,同时记录事件相关电位(ERP),以及使用各种策略之后的主观情绪体验。结果表明,采用表达抑制和认知重评调节情绪后,被试报告的负性情绪体验没有出现男女差异。然而,对ERP晚期正电位(Late Positive Potential,LPP)的统计分析发现,LPP的中期(2000~3000 ms)与晚期(3000~4000 ms)波幅均出现了调控策略与性别的交互作用。对男性而言,负性图片诱发的LPP波幅(2000~4000 ms)在表达抑制条件下相比自由观看条件出现显著降低,但女性没有出现上述效应。此外,在LPP各个时间窗口,采用认知重评策略进行情绪调节时均无显著性别差异。上述结果表明采用表达抑制策略进行负面情绪调节时,男性具有相比女性更好的调控效果。这提示男性比女性更适合采用抑制情绪表达的方式进行日常情绪管理。这种性别优势可能来源于社会对男女性性别角色的不同期望。     

Cerebellum and processing of negative facial emotions: cerebellar transcranial DC stimulation specifically enhances the emotional recognition of facial anger and sadness

Some evidence suggests that the cerebellum participates in the complex network processing emotional facial expression. To evaluate the role of the cerebellum in recognising facial expressions we delivered transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over the cerebellum and prefrontal cortex. A facial emotion recognition task was administered to 21 healthy subjects before and after cerebellar tDCS; we also tested subjects with a visual attention task and a visual analogue scale (VAS) for mood. Anodal and cathodal cerebellar tDCS both significantly enhanced sensory processing in response to negative facial expressions (anodal tDCS, p=.0021; cathodal tDCS, p=.018), but left positive emotion and neutral facial expressions unchanged (p>.05). tDCS over the right prefrontal cortex left facial expressions of both negative and positive emotion unchanged. These findings suggest that the cerebellum is specifically involved in processing facial expressions of negative emotion.     

Facial EMG reactions to facial expressions: A case of facial emotional contagion?

The purpose of this study is to explore whether subjects exposed to stimuli of facial expressions respond with facial electromyographic (EMG) reactions consistent with the hypothesis that facial expressions are contagious. This study further examines whether males and females differ in facial EMG intensity. Two experiments demonstrated that subjects responded with facial EMG activity over the corrugator supercilii, the zygomatic major , the lateral frontalis , the depressor supercilii , and the levator labii muscle regions to stimuli of sad, angry, fearful, surprised, disgusted and happy faces, that, to large extent, were consistent with the hypothesis that facial expressions are contagious. Aspects of gender differences reported in earlier studies were found, indicating a tendency for females to respond with more pronounced facial EMG intensity.     

Posed and spontaneous communication of emotion via facial and vocal cues1

Subjects' facial expressions were videotaped without their knowledge while they watched two pleasant and two unpleasant videotaped scenes (spontaneous facial encoding). Later, subjects' voices were audiotaped while describing their reactions to the scenes (vocal encoding). Finally, subjects were videotaped with their knowledge while they posed appropriate facial expressions to the scenes (posed facial encoding). The videotaped expressions were presented for decoding to the same subjects. The vocal material, both the original version and an electronically filtered version, was rated by judges other than the original senders. Results were as follows: (a) accuracy of vocal encoding (measured by ratings of both the filtered and unfiltered versions) was positively related to accuracy of facial encoding; (b) posing increased the accuracy of facial communication, particularly for more pleasant affects and less intense affects; (c) encoding of posed cues was correlated with encoding of spontaneous cues and decoding of posed cues was correlated with decoding of spontaneous cues; (d) correlations, within encoding and decoding, of similar scenes were positive while those among dissimilar scenes were low or negative; (e) while correlations between total encoding and total decoding were positive and low, correlations between encoding and decoding of the same scene were negative; (f) there were sex differences in decoding ability and in the relationships of personality variables with encoding and decoding of facial cues.     

Cerebellum and processing of negative facial emotions: Cerebellar transcranial DC stimulation specifically enhances the emotional recognition of facial anger and sadness

Some evidence suggests that the cerebellum participates in the complex network processing emotional facial expression. To evaluate the role of the cerebellum in recognising facial expressions we delivered transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over the cerebellum and prefrontal cortex. A facial emotion recognition task was administered to 21 healthy subjects before and after cerebellar tDCS; we also tested subjects with a visual attention task and a visual analogue scale (VAS) for mood. Anodal and cathodal cerebellar tDCS both significantly enhanced sensory processing in response to negative facial expressions (anodal tDCS, p=.0021; cathodal tDCS, p=.018), but left positive emotion and neutral facial expressions unchanged (p>.05). tDCS over the right prefrontal cortex left facial expressions of both negative and positive emotion unchanged. These findings suggest that the cerebellum is specifically involved in processing facial expressions of negative emotion.     

Effect of manipulated prestige‐car ownership on both sex attractiveness ratings

Previous studies have shown that male attractiveness can be enhanced by manipulation of status through, for example, the medium of costume. The present study experimentally manipulated status by seating the same target model (male and female matched for attractiveness) expressing identical facial expressions and posture in either a ‘high status’ (Silver Bentley Continental GT) or a ‘neutral status’ (Red Ford Fiesta ST) motor‐car. A between‐subjects design was used whereby the above photographic images were presented to male and female participants for attractiveness rating. Results showed that the male target model was rated as significantly more attractive on a rating scale of 1–10 when presented to female participants in the high compared to the neutral status context. Males were not influenced by status manipulation, as there was no significant difference between attractiveness ratings for the female seated in the high compared to the neutral condition. It would appear that despite a noticeable increase in female ownership of prestige/luxury cars over recent years males, unlike females remain oblivious to such cues in matters pertaining to opposite‐sex attraction. These findings support the results of previous status enhancement of attractiveness studies especially those espousing sex differences in mate preferences are due to sex‐specific adaptations.     

Hemispheric alpha asymmetries of words with positive, negative, and neutral arousal values preceding tasks of recall and recognition: Electrophysiological and behavioral results from stuttering males and nonstuttering males and females

Hemispheric alpha asymmetries were obtained for stuttering males and nonstuttering males and females for words of positive, negative, and neutral arousal values. Electroencephalographic data were gathered during the presentations of stimulus words and during the actual nonoral recall and recognition of the stimulus items. Stuttering males demonstrated right-hemispheric alpha suppression across stimulus words and tasks as contrasted with left-hemispheric alpha suppression for the nonstuttering males and females. Stuttering males were also shown to recall and recognize fewer words than the nonstuttering subjects across arousal categories. Subjects were also administered a modified version of A. Paivio's (1971, In B. Randhawa & W. Coffman, Eds., Visual thinking, learning, and communication, New York: Academic Press) Individual Differences Questionnaire (IDQ). Results showed our stuttering males to have obtained lower scores on the verbal and imagery questions of the IDQ as compared to the nonstuttering groups. Hemispheric alpha asymmetry results and memory performance from the stuttering males are discussed relative to nonsegmental, right-hemispheric processing strategies.     

The effects of facial expressions and tears on the speed of sex recognition

The goal of this research was to examine the effects of facial expressions on the speed of sex recognition. Prior research revealed that sex recognition of female angry faces was slower compared with male angry faces and that female happy faces are recognized faster than male happy faces. We aimed to replicate and extend the previous research by using different set of facial stimuli, different methodological approach and also by examining the effects of some other previously unexplored expressions (such as crying) on the speed of sex recognition. In the first experiment, we presented facial stimuli of men and women displaying anger, fear, happiness, sadness, crying and three control conditions expressing no emotion. Results showed that sex recognition of angry females was significantly slower compared with sex recognition in any other condition, while sad, crying, happy, frightened and neutral expressions did not impact the speed of sex recognition. In the second experiment, we presented angry, neutral and crying expressions in blocks and again only sex recognition of female angry expressions was slower compared with all other expressions. The results are discussed in a context of perceptive features of male and female facial configuration, evolutionary theory and social learning context.     

Positive facial expressions are recognized faster than negative facial expressions, but why?

Three experiments examined the recognition speed advantage for happy faces. The results replicated earlier findings by showing that positive (happy) facial expressions were recognized faster than negative (disgusted or sad) facial expressions (Experiments 1 and 2). In addition, the results showed that this effect was evident even when low-level physical differences between positive and negative faces were controlled by using schematic faces (Experiment 2), and that the effect was not attributable to an artifact arising from facilitated recognition of a single feature in the happy faces (up-turned mouth line, Experiment 3). Together, these results suggest that the happy face advantage may reflect a higher-level asymmetry in the recognition and categorization of emotionally positive and negative signals.     

Encoding and decoding of nonverbal behavior through facial expressions

Ten males and ten females served as both senders and receivers of nonverbal expressions in an experiment designed to examine various kinds of sending-receiving relationships. While the overall sending-receiving relationship for five types of expressions combined was positive and nearly statistically significant (.10 > p > .05), the category-specific sending-receiving relationships were near zero in magnitude or slightly negative. Sending-receiving relationships that were category specific and involved same-sex communication attempts only were found to be more negative with some being statistically significant. Females were found to be significantly better receivers but not significantly better senders than males. The results were discussed in terms of recent theoretical notions concerning sending and receiving processes.     

Religious Coping and Substance Use: The Moderating Role of Sex

The objectives of this study were to ascertain whether positive and negative religious coping are associated with substance use and to determine whether sex moderates this association. This study utilized a cross-sectional design and examined 349 undergraduate students (103 males and 246 females) at a midsize southeastern university. Participants completed a demographic questionnaire, the Brief RCOPE, and the Drinking and Drug Habits Questionnaire. Results revealed a positive association between negative religious coping and substance use only for males. While positive religious coping was significantly negatively associated with substance use, sex did not moderate this association. These results suggest that males may be especially vulnerable to engaging in substance use when utilizing negative religious coping. It may be important for university counseling centers to be cognizant of the types of religious coping used by students, as well as sex differences regarding the association between negative religious coping and substance use.     

Role of color in perception of attractiveness

In this color study females reported a favorite color significantly more often than males. Males preferred bright colors significantly more than females, with a converse finding for preference for soft colors. The 276 subjects, when asked to evaluate the attractiveness of stimulus models in photographs, gave as the reason color significantly more often than style of clothing or facial expressions. Subjects significantly concurred with expert choices of recommended and nonrecommended colors in five of the six sets of photographs. This study lends credence that wearing recommended colors makes a difference in judgments of what looks best by subjects over the age of 12.     

Effect of positive emotion on consolidation of memory for faces: The modulation of facial valence and facial gender

Studies have shown that emotion elicited after learning enhances memory consolidation. However, no prior studies have used facial photos as stimuli. This study examined the effect of post-learning positive emotion on consolidation of memory for faces. During the learning participants viewed neutral, positive, or negative faces. Then they were assigned to a condition in which they either watched a 9-minute positive video clip, or a 9-minute neutral video. Then 30 minutes after the learning participants took a surprise memory test, in which they made “remember”, “know”, and “new” judgements. The findings are: (1) Positive emotion enhanced consolidation of recognition for negative male faces, but impaired consolidation of recognition for negative female faces; (2) For males, recognition for negative faces was equivalent to that for positive faces; for females, recognition for negative faces was better than that for positive faces. Our study provides the important evidence that effect of post-learning emotion on memory consolidation can extend to facial stimuli and such an effect can be modulated by facial valence and facial gender. The findings may shed light on establishing models concerning the influence of emotion on memory consolidation.     

Watching people talk about their emotions: Inferences in response to full-face vs. profile expressions

Young adults talked to an experimenter about their emotional reactions to video episodes intended to evoke either negative or positive affect. Facial behavior was simultaneously videotaped from three perspectives (full-face, a 90° right profile, and a 90° left profile) without their awareness. Judges viewed a subset of dynamic expressions in one of the three facial perspectives in either normal or mirror-reversed orientation. While subjects talked about a negative affect elicitor, the left hemiface and the full-face were perceived as more expressive than the right hemiface. The left hemiface, in reversed orientation, was perceived to display more emotion than the same expression in original orientation for positive or negative affect. These results are discussed in the context of the literature exploring hemifacial differences in emotional expression and mouth asymmetry during propositional speech.