What’s in a Gaze, What’s in a Face? The Direct Gaze Effect Can Be Modulated by Emotion Expression

Publikation: Beitrag in FachzeitschriftArtikelForschungPeer-Review

Autoren

  • Roxana Pittig
  • Robrecht P.R.D. van der Wel
  • Timothy N. Welsh
  • Anne Böckler

Organisationseinheiten

Externe Organisationen

  • Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg
  • Rutgers University
  • University of Toronto
Forschungs-netzwerk anzeigen

Details

OriginalspracheEnglisch
Seiten (von - bis)400-411
Seitenumfang12
FachzeitschriftEMOTION
Jahrgang23
Ausgabenummer2
PublikationsstatusVeröffentlicht - 2023

Abstract

Gaze direction and emotion expression are salient facial features that facilitate social interactions. Previous studies addressed how gaze direction influences the evaluation and recognition of emotion expressions, but few have tested how emotion expression influences attentional processing of direct versus averted gaze faces. The present study examined whether the prioritization of direct gaze (toward the observer) relative to averted gaze (away from the observer) is modulated by the emotional expression of the observed face. Participants identified targets presented on the forehead of one of four faces in a 2 × 2 design (gaze direction: direct/averted; motion: sudden/static). Emotion expressions of the faces (neutral, angry, fearful, happy, disgusted) differed across participants. Direct gaze effects emerged—response times were shorter for targets on direct gaze than on averted gaze faces. This direct gaze effect was enhanced in angry faces (approach-oriented) and reduced in fearful faces (avoidance-oriented). “Weaker” approachand avoidance-oriented expressions (happy and disgusted) did not modulate the direct gaze effect. These findings suggest that the context of facial emotion expressions influences attentional processing.

ASJC Scopus Sachgebiete

Zitieren

What’s in a Gaze, What’s in a Face? The Direct Gaze Effect Can Be Modulated by Emotion Expression. / Pittig, Roxana; van der Wel, Robrecht P.R.D.; Welsh, Timothy N. et al.
in: EMOTION, Jahrgang 23, Nr. 2, 2023, S. 400-411.

Publikation: Beitrag in FachzeitschriftArtikelForschungPeer-Review

Pittig, R., van der Wel, R. P. R. D., Welsh, T. N., & Böckler, A. (2023). What’s in a Gaze, What’s in a Face? The Direct Gaze Effect Can Be Modulated by Emotion Expression. EMOTION, 23(2), 400-411. https://doi.org/10.1037/emo0001076
Pittig R, van der Wel RPRD, Welsh TN, Böckler A. What’s in a Gaze, What’s in a Face? The Direct Gaze Effect Can Be Modulated by Emotion Expression. EMOTION. 2023;23(2):400-411. doi: 10.1037/emo0001076
Pittig, Roxana ; van der Wel, Robrecht P.R.D. ; Welsh, Timothy N. et al. / What’s in a Gaze, What’s in a Face? The Direct Gaze Effect Can Be Modulated by Emotion Expression. in: EMOTION. 2023 ; Jahrgang 23, Nr. 2. S. 400-411.
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