Social fear and expressive reactions to social stimuli

This study explored whether subjects high as compared to low in social fear react with a more negative emotional response, measured as facial electromyographic (EMG) activity, when exposed to social stimuli (pictures of angry and happy facial expressions). It was found that subjects who rated themselves as relatively high in public speaking fear gave larger negative facial EMG responses (Corrugator supercilii muscle activity) to angry faces than did the low fear subjects. Low fear subjects, on the other hand, gave larger positive facial EMG responses (Zygomatic major muscle activity) to happy faces than did the high fear subjects. It was further found that happy stimuli were rated as more hostile and less friendly and happy by the high fear group. Consistent with earlier findings, it was concluded that the facial EMG technique is sensitive to detecting different reactions among subjects relatively high and low in social fear.     

听障儿童外部情绪理解研究

通过自编的外部情绪理解问卷,考察了听障儿童表情识别、情绪情景识别和提示物理解等外部情绪理解三个成分的发展状况。结果表明:(1)听力障碍儿童在外部情绪整体理解、表情识别、情绪情景识别和提示物理解四方面的得分都显著低于普通儿童;(2)不同年级听力障碍儿童的外部情绪理解、表情识别、情绪情景识别和提示物理解四方面得分存在显著差异,不同性别听力障碍儿童外部情绪理解差异不显著;年级和性别的交互作用显著;(3)父母听力状况不同的听障儿童,其外部情绪理解水平差异显著。DD儿童的外部情绪整体理解、表情识别和情绪情景识别得分显著高于DH儿童。     

Social anxiety and interpretation of ambiguous smiles

This study investigated whether social anxiety facilitates the discrimination between genuine and ambiguous smiles. Socially anxious (N=20) and nonanxious (N=20) participants categorized as “happy” or “not happy” faces with either (1) a truly happy expression (i.e., happy eyes and a smile), (2) truly nonhappy expressions (e.g., angry eyes and an angry mouth), or (3) blended expressions with a smiling mouth and nonhappy (e.g., angry, sad, etc.) eyes. Results indicated that, relative to nonanxious participants, those high in social anxiety were more likely to judge as “not happy” any blended expression with nonhappy eyes, and they were faster in judging as “not happy” the blended expressions with angry, fearful, or disgusted eyes (but not those with sad, surprised, or neutral eyes). These results suggest, respectively, that social anxiety inhibits a benign interpretation of all the ambiguous expressions with a smile, and speeds up the detection of threatening eyes in such expressions. Importantly, no differences appeared as a function of social anxiety for truly happy or nonhappy faces. This rules out a response-bias explanation, and also reveals that social anxiety does not affect sensitivity in the recognition of prototypical expressions.     

男性对女性面孔吸引力的认知偏好: 来自ERP的证据

运用事件相关电位(ERPs)技术, 采用学习-再认实验任务, 探讨了男性对有、无吸引力女性面孔图片进行判断和再认时脑内时程的动态变化。行为数据结果表明, 男性对有吸引力女性面孔的反应时更长, 再认正确率更高。ERP结果发现, 有、无吸引力面孔诱发的ERP早成分和晚成分都存在显著差异, 最强效应出现在大脑皮层的中前部。在判断任务和再认任务中, 有吸引力的女性面孔都比无吸引力的女性面孔诱发出更大的ERP成分(分别为N300、P350~550ms和P160、N300~500ms、P500~700ms)。结果表明, 男性对有吸引力的女性面孔的判断和再认存在偏好。     

名字对个体吸引力的影响

用评定法研究名字对个体吸引力的影响。结果表明:(1)名字吸引力水平影响对个体吸引力的评定,名字性别倾向与实际性别匹配能获得更好评价;(2)名字在对个体吸引力评定有先入为主的影响;(3)在外表知觉完成后,名字亦能影响对个体吸引力的评定。     

不同注意条件下动态面孔表情识别的ERP研究

利用ERP技术对16名被试在不同注意负荷下对动态表情识别的脑时程特点进行了考察,结果发现：N170成分不受注意负荷和表情效价影响;低注意负荷条件下动态表情加工早期负性表情诱发的EPN成分（early posterior negativity）显著大于中性、正性表情,后期高级分析阶段正、负性表情均诱发明显的LPP成分（late positive potentials）,且负性较正性表情诱发更大的LPP成分;而在高注意负荷条件下并未发现表情识别诱发明显的EPN或LPP成分。这些结果说明,动态表情识别明显受到注意资源调节,只有在注意资源不断增加时表情加工才会出现注意偏向效应,尤以负性表情的加工优势最为凸显且持久,正性表情相对微弱和短暂。     

催产素对社会善念的提升作用

两个实验考察催产素对社会善念的作用以及面孔吸引力对二者关系的影响。实验1采用双盲实验，使用安慰剂作对照，发现催产素可以促进社会善念，不受面孔性别的影响。实验2依然采用双盲实验，进一步考察面孔吸引力与面孔性别对催产素与社会善念关系的作用，发现催产素对社会善念的作用不受面孔吸引力的影响；女性面孔（与男性面孔相比）吸引力对男性的社会善念影响更大。研究表明，催产素可以稳定地提高社会善念水平。     

Gender differences in facial imitation and verbally reported emotional contagion from spontaneous to emotionally regulated processing levels

Previous studies on gender differences in facial imitation and verbally reported emotional contagion have investigated emotional responses to pictures of facial expressions at supraliminal exposure times. The aim of the present study was to investigate how gender differences are related to different exposure times, representing information processing levels from subliminal (spontaneous) to supraliminal (emotionally regulated). Further, the study aimed at exploring correlations between verbally reported emotional contagion and facial responses for men and women. Masked pictures of angry, happy and sad facial expressions were presented to 102 participants (51 men) at exposure times from subliminal (23 ms) to clearly supraliminal (2500 ms). Myoelectric activity (EMG) from the corrugator and the zygomaticus was measured and the participants reported their hedonic tone (verbally reported emotional contagion) after stimulus exposures. The results showed an effect of exposure time on gender differences in facial responses as well as in verbally reported emotional contagion. Women amplified imitative responses towards happy vs. angry faces and verbally reported emotional contagion with prolonged exposure times, whereas men did not. No gender differences were detected at the subliminal or borderliminal exposure times, but at the supraliminal exposure gender differences were found in imitation as well as in verbally reported emotional contagion. Women showed correspondence between their facial responses and their verbally reported emotional contagion to a greater extent than men. The results were interpreted in terms of gender differences in emotion regulation, rather than as differences in biologically prepared emotional reactivity.