Children’s nonverbal displays of winning and losing:Effects of social and cultural contexts on smiles

We examined the effects of social and cultural contexts on smiles displayed by children during gameplay. Eight-year-old Dutch and Chinese children either played a game alone or teamed up to play in pairs. Activation and intensity of facial muscles corresponding to Action Unit (AU) 6 and AU 12 were coded according to Facial Action Coding System. Co-occurrence of activation of AU 6 and AU 12, suggesting the presence of a Duchenne smile, was more frequent among children who teamed up than among children who played alone. Analyses of the intensity of smiles revealed an interaction between social and cultural contexts. Whereas smiles, both Duchenne and non-Duchenne, displayed by Chinese children who teamed up were more intense than those displayed by Chinese children who played alone, the effect of sociality on smile intensity was not observed for Dutch children. These findings suggest that the production of smiles by children in a competitive context is susceptible to both social and cultural factors

The reciprocal relationship between smiles and situational contexts

Smiles provide information about a social partner’s affect and intentions during social interaction. Although always encountered within a specific situation, the influence of contextual information on smile evaluation has not been widely investigated. Moreover, little is known about the reciprocal effect of smiles on evaluations of their accompanying situations. In this research, we assessed how different smile types and situational contexts affected participants’ social evaluations. In Study 1, 85 participants rated reward, affiliation, and dominance smiles embedded within either enjoyable, polite, or negative (unpleasant) situations. Context had a strong effect on smile ratings, such that smiles in enjoyable situations were rated as more genuine and joyful, as well as indicating less superiority than those in negative situations. In Study 2, 200 participants evaluated the situations that these smiles were perceived within (rather than the smiles themselves). Although situations paired with reward (vs. affiliation) smiles tended to be rated more positively, this effect was absent for negative situations. Ultimately, the findings point toward a reciprocal relationship between smiles and contexts, whereby the face influences evaluations of the situation and vice versa

The reciprocal relationship between smiles and situational contexts

Smiles provide information about a social partner’s affect and intentions during social interaction. Although always encountered within a specific situation, the influence of contextual information on smile evaluation has not been widely investigated. Moreover, little is known about the reciprocal effect of smiles on evaluations of their accompanying situations. In this research, we assessed how different smile types and situational contexts affected participants’ social evaluations. In Study 1, 85 participants rated reward, affiliation, and dominance smiles embedded within either enjoyable, polite, or negative (unpleasant) situations. Context had a strong effect on smile ratings, such that smiles in enjoyable situations were rated as more genuine and joyful, as well as indicating less superiority than those in negative situations. In Study 2, 200 participants evaluated the situations that these smiles were perceived within (rather than the smiles themselves). Although situations paired with reward (vs. affiliation) smiles tended to be rated more positively, this effect was absent for negative situations. Ultimately, the findings point toward a reciprocal relationship between smiles and contexts, whereby the face influences evaluations of the situation and vice versa

Chimpanzee faces under the magnifying glass: emerging methods reveal cross-species similarities and individuality

Independently, we created descriptive systems to characterize chimpanzee facial behavior, responding to a common need to have an objective, standardized coding system to ask questions about primate facial behaviors. Even with slightly different systems, we arrive at similar outcomes, with convergent conclusions about chimpanzee facial mobility. This convergence is a validation of the importance of the approach, and provides support for the future use of a facial action coding system for chimpanzees,ChimpFACS. Chimpanzees share many facial behaviors with those of humans. Therefore, processes and mechanisms that explain individual differences in facial activity can be compared with the use of a standardized systems such asChimpFACSandFACS. In this chapter we describe our independent methodological approaches, comparing how we arrived at our facial coding categories. We present some Action Descriptors (ADs) from Gaspar’s initial studies, especially focusing on an ethogram of chimpanzee and bonobo facial behavior, based on studies conducted between 1997 and 2004 at three chimpanzee colonies (The Detroit Zoo; Cleveland Metroparks Zoo; and Burger’s Zoo) and two bonobo colonies (The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium; The Milwaukee County Zoo). We discuss the potential significance of arising issues, the minor qualitative species differences that were found, and the larger quantitative differences in particular facial behaviors observed between species, e.g., bonobos expressed more movements containing particular action units (Brow Lowerer, Lip Raiser, Lip Corner Puller) compared with chimpanzees. The substantial interindividual variation in facial behavior within each species was most striking. Considering individual differences and the impact of development, we highlight the flexibility in facial activity of chimpanzees. We discuss the meaning of facial behaviors in nonhuman primates, addressing specifically individual attributes of Social Attraction, facial expressivity, and the connection of facial behavior to emotion. We do not rule out the communicative function of facial behavior, in which case an individual’s properties of facial behavior are seen as influencing his or her social life, but provide strong arguments in support of the role of facial behavior in the expression of internal states

The role of emotions mediating decision-making among successful poker players

Thesis (Ed.D.)--Boston UniversityThis study was designed to explore the role of emotions mediating the decision-making process in poker. The research questions included: (1) What emotions are reported by poker players? (2) What are the poker-related predictors of the reported emotions? (3) How do the reported emotions influence decision-making? A qualitative approach was chosen for the eight intermediate poker players in the study. Data analyzed according to content analysis derived from semi-structured retrospective interviews and a think aloud protocol offered evidence that emotions impacted the decision-making process of intermediate poker players. Six distinct emotions were found to influence the decision-making process in poker: Pride, excitement, happiness, anxiety, frustration, and anger. Findings confirmed prior research of the role of frustration and anger in influencing suboptimal decision-making. Three main findings deviated from previous research: Positive emotions of pride and excitement were found to impact suboptimal decision-making, the negative emotion of anxiety was found to impact optimal decision-making, and the role of experience facilitated a healthier interpretation of, and reaction to, multiple emotions. The findings in this study provide practical and academic applications for researchers, poker players, and poker consultants. A number of different directions for future research are suggested, including more observation of naturalistic poker play, using real money for naturalistic poker play, and comparing the emotional experience of different stratum of experts and intermediates. Poker players could improve profit margins through using more active, facilitative forms of coping for strong emotional reactions, while poker consultants could help clients in proactively entering emotional zones that facilitate optimal decision-making.2024-09-3

An evolutionary approach to human social behaviour : the case of smiling and laughing

Living in large groups is, for many species, an adaptive solution to survival and reproductive issues. It followed that in primates, and even more so humans, communication evolved into a complex signalling system that includes language, nonverbal vocalisations such as laughter, and facial expressions. A series of studies were designed to address the function of smiling and laughter through an analysis of context and consequences. First, naturalistic observations were conducted in areas where people could be watched interacting in stable social groups. Focal sampling of men and women allowed the recording of smiling and laughter frequencies, as well as other interpersonal aspects such as talking and listening time, and body contacts. Smiles were classified in two categories: spontaneous and forced. A test based on predictions derived from three hypotheses (mate choice, social competition, and cooperation) revealed that spontaneous smiling and laughter are likely to be involved in the formation of cooperative relationships. A closer examination of dyadic interactions revealed that smiling was related to talking and listening time, whereas female's vocalised laughter positively affected the partner's speech output. Finally, smiling and laughter rates increased the probability of observing affiliative body contacts between individuals. A second set of studies investigated the possibility that smiling could (1) advertise attributes relevant to the formation of social relationships, and (2) be a honest signal of altruistic dispositions. The assessment of various traits was examined through people's judgments of neutral and smiling photographs. Results showed that smiling faces were perceived as being significantly more attractive, more generous, healthier, more agreeable, more extroverted, and more open to experiences than their neutral counterparts. Interestingly, men were influenced by smiling in a much larger extent than women, particularly when smiling faces were female's. The rating study also revealed that people who displayed smiles involving an emotional component (Duchenne smiles) received higher scores on extroversion and generosity than people who did not, indicating that people's ratings of sociability and generosity are sensitive to facial movements that are not easy to produce on purpose. A final study investigated the effect of bargaining contexts on smiling and laughter rates between friends. Analysis of videotaped interactions showed that Duchenne smiling and vocalised laughter were displayed at significantly higher rates when people were involved in the sharing of material resources (as opposed to a control interaction). Moreover, data confirmed that Duchenne smiling could be a reliable signal of altruism, as its frequency of occurrence in the bargaining interaction was positively affected by measures of altruism. Finally, results showed that smiling and laughter could advertise personality traits as well as aspects of the relationship between sender and receiver. All in all, the present thesis indicates that smiling and laughter could be used adaptively to develop social alliances, and that this bonding process would entail the reliable advertisement of evolutionarily relevant attributes. The relevance of smiling to a behavioural style based on cooperation and prosocial activities is also discussed

Dominance, reward, and affiliation smiles modulate the meaning of uncooperative or untrustworthy behaviour

We investigated the effects of different types of smiles on the perception of uncooperative or untrustworthy behaviour. In five studies, participants assigned to one group played an economic game with a representative of another group. In an initial round, the representative acted uncooperatively by favouring their group and then displayed a dominance, reward, or affiliation smile. Participants rated the motives of the representative and played a second round of the game with a different member of the same outgroup. Following uncooperative or untrustworthy behaviour, affiliation smiles communicated less positivity and superiority, and a greater desire to both repair the relationship between groups and change the uncooperative decision than reward or dominance smiles. Perceptions of a desire to repair the relationship and to change the decision were associated with trust and cooperation in a subsequent round of the game. Together, these findings show that smiles that are subtly different in their morphology can convey different messages and highlight the importance of these expressions in influencing the perceptions of others’ intentions

The Ripple Effect: Emotional Contagion and Its Influence on Group Behavior

Group emotional contagion, the transfer of moods among people in a group, and its influence on work group dynamics was examined in a laboratory study of managerial decision making using multiple, convergent measures of mood, individual attitudes, behavior, and group-level dynamics. Using a 2 times 2 experimental design, with a trained confederate enacting mood conditions, the predicted effect of emotional contagion was found among group members, using both outside coders\u27 ratings of participants\u27 mood and participants\u27 self-reported mood. No hypothesized differences in contagion effects due to the degree of pleasantness of the mood expressed and the energy level with which it was conveyed were found. There was a significant influence of emotional contagion on individual-level attitudes and group processes. As predicted, the positive emotional contagion group members experienced improved cooperation, decreased conflict, and increased perceived task performance. Theoretical implications and practical ramifications of emotional contagion in groups and organizations are discussed

The Social Context of Nonverbal Behaviour

Although nonverbal behaviour has long been a topic of research, it is often studied in isolation from social partners and the social environment. This work presents three empirical chapters that reintroduce the social environment to the investigation of nonverbal cue exchange, focusing on the value of social rewards and the perceptive and affiliative functions of nonverbal communication. Findings reported in Chapter 2 indicate that the subjective value of social rewards changes as a function of social media use saliency. Specifically, thinking about a recent social media post, but not a synchronous conversation, increases the value of social rewards, such that people are willing to forego monetary gain to see a genuine smile. In Chapter 3, I show that although the amount of nonverbal behaviour does not necessarily enhance interpersonal judgement accuracy, accuracy does increase with familiarity, suggesting that people retain and update models of specific social partners. In Chapter 4, I demonstrate that social interactions on video-chat platforms, compared to face-to-face settings, are characterized by reduced interpersonal coordination and increased self-coordination, both of which have negative downstream effects for interaction outcomes (e.g., lower liking and worse interaction quality). Together, these findings indicate that the functions of nonverbal social cues and the subsequent judgments receivers make are strongly affected by the presence of social partners and the interaction environment. Thus, because nonverbal communication contingencies change as a function of individuals, situations, and interaction modalities, investigations of nonverbal cues should prioritize diverse social contexts to foster a well-rounded understanding of nonverbal behaviour