Facial mimicry is independent of stimulus format : Evidence for facial mimicry of stick figures and photographs

The present research investigated facial mimicry of the basic emotions joy, anger, and sadness in response to stimuli in different formats. Specifically, in an electromyography study, 120 participants rated the expressions of joyful, angry, and sad faces presented as photographs or stick figures while facial muscle activity was measured. Using both frequentist and Bayesian approaches to hypothesis testing, we found strong support for a facial mimicry effect: Participants showed higher zygomaticus major and orbicularis oculi activity (smiling) towards joyful faces, while they showed higher corrugator supercilii activity (frowning) towards angry and sad faces. Although participants rated the stick figures as more abstract and less interesting stimuli, the mimicry effect was equally strong and independent of the format in which the faces were presented (photographs or stick figures). Additionally, participants showed enhanced emotion recognition for stick figures compared to photographs, which, however, was unrelated to mimicry. The findings suggest that facial mimicry occurs in response to stimuli varying in their abstractness and might be more robust to social-cognitive influences than previously assumed

The Snacking Chameleon: Psychological Proximity Increases Imitation of Food Intake Independently of Brand Choice

Observing other people snacking can affect one’s own consumption behavior. The present experiment tested whether temporal distance moderates imitation of brand choice and the number of snacks consumed. Based on previous research demonstrating that psychological distance (e.g., temporal or spatial distance) reduces imitation of movements, we hypothesized that participants would imitate the amount of food intake to a lesser degree when they temporally distance themselves from a model person. To test this idea, participants (n = 113) were asked to imagine their life either the next day (proximal condition) or in one year (distant condition). Next, participants watched a video clip depicting a model person who chose one of two brands of pretzels and ate either plenty or just a few of the pretzels. Then, participants chose one of the two brands of pretzels, served themselves as many of the pretzels as they liked, and ate them while filling in a tasting questionnaire. As expected, participants primed with proximity imitated snack intake more than participants primed with distance. The brand choice was not affected by self-distancing. Implications for snacking behavior are discussed

Relative processing fluency

The subjective ease, or fluency, that is experienced during the cognitive processing of information has a large impact on the outcome of the processing. Research on judgment in a variety of domains shows that such fluency effects depend less on the (absolute) level of experienced fluency than on the relative fluency—that is, the change in fluency or the deviation from the expected level of fluency. Changes in an internal state are often more noticeable and perhaps more relevant as a diagnostic cue regarding the environment than the absolute level of that state. Relative experience is therefore particularly informative and accounts for ease-of-retrieval effects as well as classic fluency effects such as the truth effect and the mere-exposure effect. </jats:p

Key normative, legal, and policy considerations for supporting pregnant and postpartum adolescents in high HIV-burden settings: a critical analysis

Rates of adolescent pregnancy within sub-Saharan Africa are increasing. Adolescent mothers ages 10-19 years face a distinct set of risks to their own and their children's health, compounded by many economic, social, and epidemiological challenges, such as living with HIV. In navigating this complex developmental period, many adolescent mothers face structural barriers impeding safe transitions to adulthood and motherhood. Drawing on existing literature and emerging data, we outline three normative, legal, and policy issues - violence and gender inequity, access to sexual and reproductive health services, and access to social and structural supports - which affect the health, wellbeing and development of adolescent mothers and their children. We also highlight emergent evidence about programming and policy changes that can better support adolescent mothers and their children. These key proposed responses include removing barriers to SRH and HIV service integration; ensuring implementation of return-to-school policies; and extending social protection systems to cater for adolescent mothers. Despite ongoing global crises and shifts in funding priorities, these normative, legal, and policy considerations remain critical to safeguard the health and wellbeing of adolescent mothers and their children

Existential threat and responses to emotional displays of ingroup and outgroup members

The present research investigates how emotional displays shape reactions to ingroup and outgroup members when people are reminded of death. We hypothesized that under mortality salience, emotions that signal social distance promote worldview defense (i.e., increased ingroup favoritism and outgroup derogation), whereas emotions that signal affiliation promote affiliation need (i.e., reduced ingroup favoritism and outgroup derogation). In three studies, participants viewed emotional displays of ingroup and/or outgroup members after a mortality salience or control manipulation. Results revealed that under mortality salience, anger increased ingroup favoritism and outgroup derogation (Study 1), enhanced perceived overlap with the ingroup (Study 3), and increased positive facial behavior to ingroup displays—measured via the Facial Action Coding System (Studies 1 and 2) and electromyography of the zygomaticus major muscle (Study 3). In contrast, happiness decreased ingroup favoritism and outgroup derogation (Study 2), and increased positive facial behavior towards outgroup members (Study 3). The findings suggest that, in times of threat, emotional displays can determine whether people move away from unfamiliar others or try to form as many friendly relations as possible

The cold heart : Reminders of money cause feelings of physical coldness

Mere reminders of money have been shown to cause socially ‘‘cold’ ’ behavior. Recent research suggests that the metaphor of ‘‘social coldness’ ’ is bodily grounded and thus linked to actual sensations of physical coldness. We therefore hypothesized that reminding individuals of money causes them to feel physically colder. This hypothesis was put to test in two studies, drawing on predictions from psychophysiological thermal perception. In Study 1, individuals who had been reminded of money perceived the air in the room as colder compared to a control group (an assimilation effect). Contrarily, in Study 2, they perceived water (a medium that was only momentarily experienced) as warmer compared to individuals not reminded of money (a contrast effect). Together these findings demonstrate that reminders of money cause sensations of actual physical coldness and add to the literature of both the psychological effects of money and human thermal perception