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01-12-2004 | Original Article

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

Auteurs: Jukka M. Leppänen, Jari K. Hietanen

Gepubliceerd in: Psychological Research | Uitgave 1-2/2004

Abstract

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.

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Titel: Positive facial expressions are recognized faster than negative facial expressions, but why?
Auteurs: Jukka M. Leppänen
Jari K. Hietanen
Publicatiedatum: 01-12-2004
Uitgeverij: Springer-Verlag
Gepubliceerd in: Psychological Research / Uitgave 1-2/2004
Print ISSN: 0340-0727
Elektronisch ISSN: 1430-2772
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426-003-0157-2

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